Linktree

Linktree

Developer	Alex Zaccaria Anthony Zaccaria Nick Humphreys Bolster Creative PTY LTD
Type	Social media link in bio landing page
Status	Active
Members	50 million
Pricing model	Freemium
Website	linktr.ee/s/about

Linktree is a freemium[1] social media reference landing page[2] developed by Alex Zaccaria, Anthony Zaccaria, and Nick Humphreys, headquartered in Melbourne,[3] Australia.[4] Founded in 2016, it serves as a landing page for a person or company's entire associated links in social media, which rarely allows linking to multiple sites.[5] The site was inspired by the developers' annoyance with social media that cannot or do not allow multiple hyperlinks.[6]

History

Linktree was established in 2016, out of annoyance regarding social media that do not allow multiple hyperlinks in profiles.[6] The site was created in six hours.[6] It is reported to have gained 3,000 users overnight,^[when?] which caused the server to crash due to overload.[6] In 2018, Instagram banned the site[7] due to "spam", although it was lifted and Instagram issued an apology.[6] In December 2018, the number of users reached 1 million, then 3 million by the end of 2019. By October 2020, Linktree had gained more than 8 million users.[8][9]

As of March 2021, the number of users reached nearly 16 million, with an increase of 300% over the previous year.[10]

In August 2021 Linktree announced the acquisition of smart link provider Odesli to become a "one-stop-shop" for musicians seeking to monetize their art.[11]

Features and subscriptions

Linktree is a freemium service: it is free, but also offers a 'Pro' subscription launched in April 2017,[6] which gives more benefits, such as more customization options, more detailed analytics, email sign-up integration, removal of the Linktree logo, etc.[12] Users can upload as many links as they wish despite not subscribing. Pro analytics allows users to view their click-through rates. Both offerings allow users to create a personalized and customizable page, that houses all social media links and official websites. Linktree also partnered with Amazon, allowing users to upload their Amazon store profile as an affiliate link.[13] Amid the George Floyd protests, Linktree allowed users to adopt a 'Support Anti-Racism' icon, which pops a tab linking visitors to articles to further understand racism, organizations to donate to, and places to protest.^[clarification needed]

Accolades

In 2019, Linktree was included in CNBC's 'Upstart 100' list of "brightest, most intriguing, young startups promising to become the great companies of tomorrow."[14] In March 2020, Fast Company placed Linktree as fourth place in the 'Most Innovative Companies of 2020' list in the 'Social media' category for "making Instagram's 'link in bio' into a sleek menu for sharing articles, merch, or paid partnerships."[3] For comparison's sake, in that year the first place was Cameo and the third Pinterest; while the fourth place of other years[15] were Reddit (2018 and 2021), Are.na (2019) and Genies, Inc. (2022).

Instagram ban

It is reported that Linktree, started as a link-in-bio tool for Instagram, was banned from Instagram in 2018,[7] since it is noted as "breaking the community standards," specifically as a spam website.[6][16] Linktree stated that they were "working on it" with their "representatives on Instagram."[16] This ban was lifted after thousands of users advocated on Linktree's behalf. Although the ban was lifted and Instagram issued an apology,[12] as of March 2021, Instagram accounts for less than 40% of Linktree's profile traffic.[17]

Funding

On October 27, 2020, Linktree announced that it had received US$10.7 million in Series A financing from Airtree Ventures and Insight Partners. The funding is the company's first from an institutional investor.[8] On March 26, 2021, Linktree announced the closing of a $45M Series B financing round. The round was co-led by Index Ventures and Coatue, with participation from returning investors Airtree Ventures and Insight Partners.[18] After raising $110M in January 2022, and offering to pay its employees $6,000 in a yearly bonus, the company announced it would fire 17% of its workforce citing changing dynamics. It did not reveal cash on hand.

See also

• Online advertising
• Advertising network

References

1. "Linktree Review: Advantages, Disadvantages, Alternatives & How To Use". RecentHub. 2020-06-01. Archived from the original on 2020-12-19. Retrieved 2020-07-13.
2. "Social Media Landing Pages: The Best Link in Bio is Your Own". Nexcess. Retrieved 2023-04-19.
3. "The 10 most innovative social media companies of 2020". Fast Company. 2020-03-10. Archived from the original on 2020-12-19. Retrieved 2020-07-13.
4. "About Linktree™ | The Linktree Story". Linktree. Archived from the original on 2020-12-19. Retrieved 2020-07-15.
5. Ford, Brooke (2020-07-01). "Linktree Review 2020 | What Is It? Is It Worth It? Should You Get It?". Gain More Followers. Archived from the original on 2020-12-19. Retrieved 2020-07-13.
6. Zaccaria, Alex (2020-06-06). "Bootstrapped and Global from Day One: The Story of Linktree". Archived from the original on 2020-12-19.
7. Erica. "Why You Should Stop Using Linktree & How to Create Your Own in Squarespace". Big Cat Creative. Archived from the original on 2020-12-19. Retrieved 2020-07-15.
8. "Linktree raises $10.7M for its lightweight, link-centric user profiles". TechCrunch. 26 October 2020.
9. Carman, Ashley (2020-09-22). "The links that do it all, and the scrappy startups that power them". The Verge. Retrieved 2021-06-11.
10. Swant, Marty. "The URL Renaissance: Linktree Raises $45 Million To Fuel 'Link In Bio' Social Commerce". Forbes. Retrieved 2021-06-11.
11. "Linktree acquires Odesli in a bid to become a "one-stop shop" for artists". Forbes. 19 August 2021.
12. "Is Linktree Safe? Or Are There Better Alternatives?". Socialfollow. 2019-12-28. Archived from the original on 2020-12-19. Retrieved 2020-07-13.
13. Andress, Lina (2020-03-31). "Linktree Review: Share Links Limitlessly (Real Pros & Cons)". HowSociable. Archived from the original on 2020-12-19. Retrieved 2020-07-13.
14. Spiegel, David (2019-11-12). "100 of the world's most promising start-ups to watch in 2019". CNBC. Archived from the original on 2020-12-19. Retrieved 2020-07-13.
15. Chronologically:
    • "The World's Most Innovative Companies 2018: Social Media Honorees". Fast Company. Archived from the original on 2020-05-24. Retrieved 2020-07-13.
    • "The World's Most Innovative Companies 2019: Social Media Honorees". Fast Company. Archived from the original on 2020-12-19. Retrieved 2020-07-13.
    • "The 10 most innovative social media companies of 2021". Fast Company. 2021-09-03. Archived from the original on 2022-11-26. Retrieved 2023-01-27.
    • KC Ifeanyi (2022-08-03). "The 10 most innovative social media companies of 2022". Fast Company. Archived from the original on 2023-01-27. Retrieved 2023-01-27.
16. "We've been notified of an issue with Instagram..." Linktree (Twitter). 2018-06-13. Archived from the original on 2020-12-19. Retrieved 2020-07-13.
17. Waters, Cara (2021-03-25). "Afterpay's Nick Molnar backs social media startup Linktree in $59m raising". The Sydney Morning Herald. Archived from the original on 2023-04-16. Retrieved 2021-06-11.
18. "'Link-in-bio' company Linktree raises $45M Series B for its social commerce features". TechCrunch. 26 March 2021. Retrieved 2021-04-07.