Custom tracking domains

A tracking domain is the hostname in your tracking links. By default PostbackX gives you a shared one; pointing your own at it produces links like track.yourdomain.com instead.

Why bother#

The link looks like yours. A visitor hovering a link sees your brand rather than an unfamiliar host, and so does the ad reviewer.

You are not sharing reputation. A shared domain's standing is affected by everyone using it. Your own domain answers only for your traffic.

You can move it. A domain you control can be repointed. One you do not, cannot.

Set one up#

Domains walks through it, with an animated demonstration for the common DNS providers — the wizard shows the actual screens for your registrar rather than describing them generically.

The shape is always the same: add a subdomain you will use for tracking, create the DNS record PostbackX gives you, then wait for verification.

DNS propagation is typically minutes and occasionally hours. The page shows verification state, so you do not have to guess.

Then use it#

Set the new domain as default and new campaigns pick it up.

Existing campaigns keep the domain they were created with, and their live links keep working. Changing the default does not rewrite links already behind running ads — which is deliberate, since rewriting them would break every ad pointing at the old host.

To move an existing campaign, update it and replace the link in the ad.

A note on the default domain#

The shared default works, and is fine while you are setting things up or testing. It is not what you want behind meaningful spend, for the reasons above.