Domain Ownership & Launch Checklist
For IT teams owning the domain behind your GeoSwap links
Your domain stays yours
Your branded link domain (say, go.yourcompany.com) lives in your own registrar and DNS account. GeoSwap doesn't need access to your registrar, your DNS login, or ownership of the domain. All we need are two DNS records, which your team adds and can remove whenever you like.
This guide is for the IT team looking after that domain. It covers how to set it up securely, what to test before launch, and what happens if things change later. For the DNS setup itself, see Custom Domains.
What GeoSwap needs from you
A TXT record (ownership)
_geoswap-verification.<your-domain> with a code GeoSwap gives you. This proves you control the domain. Only someone with access to your DNS can add it, which is one more reason to keep DNS access with your IT team.
A CNAME record (routing)
Points your link domain at GeoSwap's edge network. SSL certificates are set up and renewed for you automatically (TLS 1.2 or newer), so there's nothing to upload or keep track of.
We recommend a subdomain like go. or link. rather than your main website domain. It keeps your links separate from your website and email.
Ownership & security checklist
These settings live on your side, in your registrar and DNS account. We can't change them for you, but they're what keep your links safe for years to come.
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Register the domain under a company admin account
Use your IT or admin account at the registrar (e.g. Cloudflare Registrar) rather than someone's personal login. That way nobody loses access when people change roles or leave.
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Turn on auto-renew with a company payment method
If the domain expires, every short link on it stops working. Auto-renew on a company card means it never lapses by accident.
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Send renewal and security notices to a shared mailbox
Something like it-domains@yourcompany.com, so reminders don't get lost in one person's inbox.
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Enable registrar lock (transfer lock)
This stops anyone moving the domain to another registrar unless your admin unlocks it first.
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Require MFA on the registrar and DNS account
Whoever controls DNS controls where your links go, so treat this login like any other important admin account.
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Limit who can edit DNS
Only your IT or admin team needs DNS access. Your marketing team works in GeoSwap and never needs to touch DNS.
Access controls inside GeoSwap
Only admins and owners can add, verify or remove domains. Editors can create and change links, but they can't touch domains, members or billing. The full breakdown is in Team Management.
Every change is recorded in the audit log, so you can always see who added a domain, edited a link or changed someone's role, and when they did it.
People sign in with a one-time email code (no passwords) or with Google or Microsoft. Enterprise workspaces can also use SSO (SAML / OIDC).
Pre-launch test checklist
Before a link goes into a campaign, run through these with your engineering or QA team:
- Domain shows Verified and SSL shows Active in Settings → Custom Domains.
- Test the link from each target country and check it lands on the right page. The Rule Simulator in your dashboard does this without a VPN.
- Test from a country that has no rule. You should land on the default (fallback) page.
- Paste the link into Slack, iMessage or LinkedIn and check the preview card. Preview bots always get the default page, so that's what the card will show.
- If you use UTM tags, make sure they come through to the destination (this needs "pass query string" turned on for the link).
- Visit the bare domain (https://your-domain/) and check it goes to the page you picked for it.
- For print and QR campaigns, scan the actual printed QR code, not just the URL on your screen.
What happens when…
Situation
What happens
A visitor matches no geo rule
They go to the link's default (fallback) page. Every link has one, so nobody hits a dead end.
A link is switched off in GeoSwap
Visitors see a "not found" page straight away. Switch it back on and it works again instantly. For printed or long-lived links, it's usually better to point them at an evergreen page than to switch them off.
Search engines, AI crawlers or link-preview bots open a link
They get the default page, and they're never counted as visits.
Someone visits the bare domain
They're sent to the root page you set for the domain in Settings → Custom Domains.
The DNS record is changed or removed
Links on that domain stop working once DNS no longer points to GeoSwap. Your links and settings are still saved in GeoSwap, so putting the record back brings them back.
The domain is removed from GeoSwap
Every link on that domain is deleted from GeoSwap. Only admins and owners can do this, and it shows up in the audit log. If you might need the links later, export them first from Settings → Data Export.
Your paid subscription ends
Your workspace moves to the Free plan and your links keep working. We don't switch anything off.
If you ever leave GeoSwap
- Download your links from Settings → Data Export. You get every link, destination, geo rule and label as a CSV.
- Set up the same redirects in your new tool.
- Point your domain's CNAME at the new provider. Since the domain is yours, links you've already printed or shared keep the same URLs.
- Remove the GeoSwap TXT record.
Next up
Decide who on your team can create, change and delete links.