A shorthand vanity URL - one without a /user/ or /c/ - is useful to use to promote your channel. In the past, that short URL was most often based on the /user/ URL for the channel. Now that's changed. Shorthand URLs are now based on the new /c/ custom URL, not the old /user/ URL.
If your channel's old and new custom URLs are different, you should check to be sure the old shorthand URL still leads to your channel.
Not sure if your channel has new-style custom URL set? Check your channel's Advanced Account Settings (https://www.youtube.com/account_advanced).
Why does my old shorthand vanity URL now direct to the wrong YouTube channel?
As with every change, there may be complications:
If your /c/ custom URL matches your channel's old /user/ custom URL, then the same shorthand URL will continue to work as usual. No problem.
Also, if your channel never had a /user/ custom URL, then this is a great new feature that allows your channel to have a shorthand URL for the first time.
But what happens if your channel's /c/ custom URL is different than the old /user/ custom URL? The old shorthand URL may now direct to someone else's channel if that channel has claimed the equivalent /c/ custom URL!
If your channel has a /user/ custom URL, but no new /c/ URL, currently your old shorthand URL still works, as long as no other channel has claimed the equivalent /c/ URL for their channel.
Confused? Here is an example:
I have two channels with old style /user/ custom URLs.
- old-style custom URL: www.youtube.com/user/peggykyt
new-style custom URL: www.youtube.com/c/PeggyKTC - old-style custom URL: www.youtube.com/user/PeggyKTC
new-style custom URL: none
The way the shorthand URLs used to work:
- www.youtube.com/PeggyKTC redirected to www.youtube.com/user/PeggyKTC
- www.youtube.com/peggykyt redirected to www.youtube.com/user/peggykyt
The way the shorthand URLs work now:
- www.youtube.com/PeggyKTC redirects to
www.youtube.com/user/peggykyt
because it has the new-style custom URL www.youtube.com/c/PeggyKTC - www.youtube.com/peggykyt currently ALSO redirects to
www.youtube.com/user/peggykyt
(no channel currently has the URL www.youtube.com/c/peggykyt)
There is no longer any shorthand URL for www.youtube.com/user/PeggyKTC, because a different channel has the custom URL www.youtube.com/c/PeggyKTC
The only way to get a shorthand URL for www.youtube.com/user/PeggyKTC would be to add a new-style /c/ custom URL, but that would not match the old /user/ custom URL (because it's already taken).
Complicated!
If your YouTube channel's old /user/ and new /c/ custom URLs are different, make sure that any links and promotional materials are updated with the correct new URL. You wouldn't want to send potential viewers to the wrong channel!
Complicated!
If your YouTube channel's old /user/ and new /c/ custom URLs are different, make sure that any links and promotional materials are updated with the correct new URL. You wouldn't want to send potential viewers to the wrong channel!
Hi, Peggy!
ReplyDelete1. So, if I understood: http://youtube.com/"blahblah" (just an example) redirects me to http://youtube.com/user/"blahblah" but just because no one had reclaimed "blahblah" as a channel name, right? So, once reclaimed http://youtube.com/"blahblah" will redirect me to http://youtube.com/c/"blahblah"
2. In channel settings, my only channel custom url is http://youtube.com/c/"blergh" (again, just an example), I dont really remember setting up this name (the same as my Google+ profile, by the way). I dont have any suscriber (until now) and below my channel custom url theres a text: "Our Custom URL system has changed. Learn more." Why Google show me that if http://youtube.com/c/"blergh" is permanent? Can I still change that url and at last reclaim http://youtube.com/c/"blahblah" for myself after the 100 suscribers rule?
Hope you can help me trying to understand this. I´ve breaking my head for days and this post is the only thing clear enough.
Thanks :)
Hi Fixionauta!
Delete1. That's right. Once someone claims youtube.com/c/blahblah the short URL youtube.com/blahblah will redirect there instead of to youtube.com/user/blahblah
2.Custom URLs are shared between G+ and YouTube. If you have a custom URL on Google+ that is plus.google.com/example, the YouTube channel connected to that Google+ will be www.youtube.com/c/example
There is no way to change that once it is set.
If you moved your YouTube channel to a different Google+ Page or Profile with the custom URL plus.google.com/+blahblah then the YouTube custom URL would change.
But that has drawbacks: comments after November 2013 and private messages will stay with the old Google+, and not move with the channel.
There is also no guarantee a new Google+ will be offered the custom URL +blahblah
How to move your channel:
http://www.peggyktc.com/2015/03/transfer-youtube-channel-google-plus.html
Hi,,,i have no personal website or domain name. I want custom url on YouTube without 100 subscribers, is it possible?
ReplyDeleteHi Jimmy: If your channel uses your Google account name (aboutme.google.com), and you have a personal Google+ Profile, then you just need 10 Google+ followers to be offered a custom URL. But if your channel is using a business or other name, you either need 100 subs or a website.
DeleteHi Peggy how are you.Have 2-3 issues and i am sure only you can solve them.Can i request you to give your whatsapp number i wanted to talk with you ?
DeleteHello Peggy :)
ReplyDeleteYou are not on facebook ?
can i request you to share your whatsapp no. i wanted to talk with you ?
Hi Dominic: the best place to get assistance is the official YouTube help forum: productforums.google.com/forum/#!forum/youtube
DeletePlease help me
ReplyDeletei don't like my short URL on youtube when be like this www.youtube/c/***
i want it be like this
www.youtube/user/****
How i can do it by "user" not by "C"
Thanks
Egyptian Gull Life: YouTube stopped offering the /user/ URLs a couple years ago. The /c/ URL is the only option.
DeleteWow. You know a lot. I'm still confused. A little back story. I reserved an account with the username I want which matches mydotcom. Didn't log in for a minute and google deleted the account a few weeks ago. They're saying I filed to restore it too late and make a new one, but they kept the username! Anyhow, I created a new account using me@mydotcom instead of mydotcom@gmail (cause I couldn't) as my login and am wondering if I'll be able to get youtube.com/mydotcom back. I want it to be clean, exactly the way I originally set the brand up. Also, did I understand correctly that I could bypass the 100 users to get the vanity url? I would like to have the vanity url set up before I publish to the world. Thank you for this website!
ReplyDeleteIt's definitely complicated. There isn't currently any way to bypass the requirement for 100 subscribers to be eligible for a custom URL - it used to be possible, when custom URLs were shares with Google+, but now they are separate.
DeleteSo it's a possibility that you will be offered the same custom URL that you had before, but there is no guarantee. Custom URLs are usually based on the channel name, especially for newer channels.
Do you know anything about vanity URLs that has no /c/?
ReplyDeleteFor example:
youtube.com/c/yourname
youtube.com/yourname
The only channel I can think of is: https://www.youtube.com/leecs
When you try to switch to each tabs it doesn't show the /c/
All custom URLs are in the form www.youtube.com/c/[name]
DeleteThere is usually also a short vanity URL that will also direct to your channel. In most cases that is www.youtube.com/[name].
So you can reach my channel at www.youtube.com/PeggyKTC (notice no /c/ in the URL).
But that is only set after you add a custom URL.