This feature is quite simple, but it is very powerful if you need to have links that automatically expire. When a link expires, you can enable an “Expired Redirect” which is an alternate URL the user will be sent to (discussed in Step 3 below), or leave that option unchecked to simply send the user to a 404 error page. This would be especially useful if you are offering limited time offers, or simply want to only allow users to have access to your target links under certain parameters.
It can be found here in the Pro Options when creating a new PrettyLinks or editing an existing one. Here is how you can get it working on your site:
Step 1: Enable the ‘Expire’ Feature
When creating a new pretty link or editing an existing one, go to the Pro Options near the bottom of the page and click to enable the checkbox for the “Expire” feature.
Step 2: Choose Your ‘Expire After’ Feature
The options that are allowed for this feature are ‘Date,’ and, ‘Clicks,’ which will do the following:
- Date – Expire the link after a specified date. The date should be in the format YYYY-MM-DD.
- Clicks – Expire the link after any specified number of clicks on the PrettyLinks have been reached. NOTE: Note: Expirations based on clicks will not work properly if you have tracking turned off for this link so as long as this is set to Clicks, PrettyLinks will ensure tracking is turned on for this link as well.
Step 3: (Optional) Set an ‘Expired Redirect’
If you would rather send the user who clicks on your expired link to specific URL rather than a 404 error page, you can use this feature. Simply enter in the target URL, and once the link expires, all future users who click on the link will be sent to the specified page.