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Advanced Features

Auto Link Keywords in Content (PRO)

Manually linking the same keyword to the same short link across dozens of posts is tedious and easy to miss. Auto Link Keywords does it for you: define a keyword and a target short link once, and URL Shortify converts every matching word in your content into that link on the fly. This is a PRO feature managed under URL Shortify → Auto Link Keywords with global defaults under Settings → Display.

PRO feature

Auto Link Keywords is available in URL Shortify PRO.

Auto Link Keywords is a URL Shortify PRO feature that automatically converts chosen keywords or phrases in your published content into short links, without editing each post. You create rules that map keywords to a short link, and the plugin wraps each match in an anchor when the content is rendered.

How it works

When a visitor loads a post, URL Shortify scans the content for your configured keywords and wraps each match in an anchor pointing to the chosen short link. Matching uses word boundaries, existing <a> tags and HTML are left untouched, and only the post content is processed — not titles, excerpts, or widgets.

Step 1 — Enable the feature and set global defaults

Auto Link Keywords Settings

  1. Go to URL Shortify → Settings → Display.
  2. Scroll to the Auto Link Keywords section.
  3. Turn Enable Auto Link Keywords to On.
  4. Click Save Settings.

Turning this toggle off stops all keyword linking site-wide without deleting your individual rules.

The remaining fields in this section are optional defaults that pre-fill each new keyword rule, saving time when most rules share the same settings:

Setting What it controls Default
Default Post Types Post types new rules apply to; leave all unchecked for all post types none selected
Open in New Tab Pre-checks "Open in new tab" on new rules Off
No Follow Pre-checks rel="nofollow" on new rules Off
Case Sensitive Pre-checks case-sensitive matching on new rules Off
Default Status Whether new rules start Active or Inactive Active

Step 2 — Create a keyword rule

You can create a rule from its own page or directly from a short link.

Option A — From the Auto Link Keywords page

Add Auto Link Keyword Rule

  1. Go to URL Shortify → Auto Link Keywords.

  2. Click Add New.

  3. Complete the form:

    Field Description
    Keywords One or more keywords separated by commas (e.g. WordPress, WP, wordpress plugin)
    Short Link The short link to point the keywords at — search by name or slug
    Post Types Which post types this rule applies to; leave all unchecked for all post types
    HTML Options Open in new tab (adds target="_blank" rel="noopener"), Add rel="nofollow", and Case sensitive matching
    Status Active (rule runs) or Inactive (rule is paused)

  4. Click Save.

Option B — From the link add/edit form

Auto Link Keywords in Link Form

  1. Open any short link for editing (URL Shortify → Links → Edit).
  2. Find the Auto Link Keywords field on the link form.
  3. Enter keywords separated by commas.
  4. Save the link.

This creates or updates a keyword rule for that link using your global default settings.

Step 3 — Manage existing rules

Go to URL Shortify → Auto Link Keywords to see every rule.

Manage Auto Link Keyword Rules

Column What it shows
Keyword All keywords for the rule, shown as badges
Short Link The target short link name and URL
Post Types Applicable post types, or "All"
Options Active options (New Tab, Nofollow, Case Sensitive)
Status Active / Inactive badge
Created On Rule creation date

Each row has Edit and Delete actions, and you can Delete selected rules in bulk.

Verify it's working

  1. Open a published post that contains one of your configured keywords.
  2. View the post on the frontend.
  3. The keyword should render as a clickable link pointing to your short URL.

Notes and limitations

  • Keyword matching uses word boundaries, so WP does not match inside WPress.
  • Each rule targets one short link but can hold multiple comma-separated keywords.
  • Rules apply only to post content (the the_content filter) — not titles, excerpts, or widgets.
  • Existing <a> tags inside content are never modified.

Conclusion

Auto Link Keywords keeps internal short-linking consistent across your site with zero per-post effort: define the keyword-to-link rules once and they apply everywhere the content renders. To manage the links you point rules at, see how to create a short link, or automate rule creation through the REST API.

FAQs

Enable it under URL Shortify → Settings → Display, in the Auto Link Keywords section. Turn on Enable Auto Link Keywords and save. This master switch controls keyword linking site-wide; turning it off pauses all rules at once without deleting them.

Does Auto Link Keywords edit my post content in the database?

No. Rules are applied when content is rendered through the the_content filter, so your stored post content is untouched. Disable a rule or the feature and the keywords stop linking immediately — nothing needs to be reverted in your posts.

Yes. A single rule takes multiple comma-separated keywords (for example WordPress, WP, wordpress plugin), and all of them point to the one short link you selected. Use separate rules when different keywords should link to different short links.

Check that the feature is enabled under Settings → Display, the rule's Status is Active, the keyword's post type is included, and the keyword appears in the post content (not the title, excerpt, or a widget). Matching also respects word boundaries and any case-sensitive setting on the rule.

No. It is a URL Shortify PRO feature. The free version does not convert keywords in content into short links automatically.

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