You’re managing complex journeys across dozens of platforms and touchpoints. Whether you’re driving installs through ads, onboarding users via email, or converting offline traffic with QR codes, your links are critical to your success.
In a previous blog, we covered what deep linking is and why it matters. Now, let’s focus on how to evaluate your deep linking options, along with what capabilities actually matter when it comes to growth, engagement, and ROI.
What should a deep linking platform do?
- Cover every channel — not just paid ads, but also email, social, SEO, and QR codes
- Drive seamless user experiences — even across platforms, devices, and operating systems
- Provide reliable attribution — for paid, owned, and earned campaigns
- Uphold privacy and compliance — with security certifications and strong privacy principles
- Promote operational efficiency — for teams managing links and analyzing performance at scale
If your deep linking platform can’t deliver on these, you’re leaving growth and insights on the table.
Evaluate based on your channels and goals
Let’s break it down by key use cases to help you evaluate solutions based on what you need to achieve.
Paid campaigns: ads to app
For paid advertising, the stakes are high — you’ve already invested to get the click, so every broken link or missed attribution opportunity costs you. The right solution should offer seamless routing from ad to app, ensuring that users land exactly where you want them, regardless of device or platform. It should also support SKAdNetwork (SKAN) for iOS, handle postbacks, and integrate with major ad networks. When done right, deep linking not only improves user experience but also gives you a clearer picture of which campaigns are driving conversions and ROI.
Owned channels: email, website, push, SMS
Owned channels like email, push notifications, SMS, and your website are critical for driving engagement — as are the links that power these communications. These channels are some of your most cost-effective ways to re-engage users and drive repeat actions. You need a platform that enables quick link creation, supports user-level personalization, and offers smart routing based on whether the user has your app installed or not. Most importantly, it should empower your marketing team to create and manage these links without relying on developers for every update.
Social & organic: SEO, social posts
Social and organic channels can be unpredictable — especially with walled gardens, in-app browsers, and constant algorithm changes. That’s why your deep links need to be robust enough to handle all those edge cases. Whether someone is clicking a link in Instagram Stories or finding your content through a search engine, your platform should be able to route them to the best possible in-app experience. Bonus points if it also gives you visibility into how your organic efforts are contributing to app growth, engagement, and retention.
Offline to app: QR codes, desktop, packaging
Offline channels — including QR codes, desktop banners, connected TV (CTV), and physical packaging — present unique opportunities to drive users into your app. But bridging the gap from physical to digital isn’t always straightforward. You need a deep linking solution that supports cross-platform journeys, allows for branded and dynamic QR codes, and gives you the analytics to measure performance. Whether someone scans a code in-store or clicks a banner on their laptop, they should land in the right place inside your app — and you should be able to track it.
Partner & affiliate marketing
For affiliate and partner programs, accurate deep linking is essential. You want to make sure each partner’s traffic is routed correctly and credited properly — and that users have a frictionless experience along the way. That means using a solution that simplifies link creation for partners, offers partner-level attribution, and includes built-in protections against fraud or manipulation. As your program scales, the ability to manage and track these links centrally will save time and protect your ROI.
The power of combining deep linking and measurement
To truly understand and optimize user journeys, you need more than links — you need data. When deep linking and attribution live in the same platform, everything gets easier:
- Use one link for every campaign — across paid, owned, and earned
- Capture accurate attribution and SKAN conversions without extra tools
- Unify performance reporting in one place
- Quickly spot what’s working and double down
Branch brings all of this together in a single platform — helping you grow smarter, faster, and more efficiently. And as privacy regulations and platform policies evolve, your deep linking solution needs to keep up. Branch is built to be future-proof, with privacy-safe measurement like Predictive Aggregate Measurement and support for SKAN and other compliance frameworks. That means you stay compliant and competitive.
Because Branch is a cloud-based platform, you can be sure your links will always work — no matter what changes occur on your website or app. Furthermore, in every edge case, your deep links will route users to the best destination.
Branch combines every deep linking standard into a single, simple package. It’s easy to implement and always up to date.
Want to learn even more about Branch deep links can help you grow your mobile app? Check out our Definitive Guide to Deep Linking white paper.
