I spent way too much time trying to make Linktree work.
You know the setup: a perfectly designed landing page with 15 links arranged like a dashboard. Your newsletter. Your products. Your portfolio. Your podcast. Everything in one place. It sounds perfect in theory.
But here's what actually happened: people clicked on my Linktree once, scrolled past half the links, and left. The ones who stayed clicked the newsletter link and bounced. Nobody lingered. Nobody became a repeat visitor. The page got traffic but didn't convert anything meaningful.
That's when I realized the problem wasn't my link-in-bio design. It was the concept itself.
The Fundamental Problem with Link-in-Bio
A Linktree is a traffic intersection, not a destination. Your followers click, they see a landing page, they pick one thing, and they're gone. That's it. No context. No reason to come back. No SEO value. Just a redirect machine between platforms.
Think about what you've actually built: a page that Google ignores, that has zero search visibility, and that exists only because social platforms force you to use it. If you lose your Instagram following tomorrow, that Linktree becomes useless. You've invested zero equity in actually owning your audience.
The worst part? Every click is friction. Most people won't click if there are more than three links to choose from. It's called "decision fatigue," and your curated list of 12 links just became a conversion killer.
Why Your Current Strategy Is Losing You Traffic
Let me break down what's actually happening:
You're getting traffic but not building an asset. Each visitor is anonymous. You don't know who they are, what they care about, or how to reach them again. That click is a one-way transaction. With a Linktree, you're completely reliant on social platforms' algorithms to get people back.
Search engines ignore it completely. Your Linktree gets zero Google traffic because it's thin content with no substance. Meanwhile, your competitors who publish actual articles on their own sites are showing up in search results. They're building search visibility while you're hoping for another viral post.
You're reinforcing the wrong relationship. Every time someone clicks your bio link, they're not visiting you—they're visiting a service that Linktree owns. You're renting that relationship. If Linktree changes their pricing, their design, or their algorithm, you lose control of how your audience discovers your content.
Multiple links confuse conversion. I tested this extensively: when I had 10 links on my Linktree, my newsletter signup rate was pitiful. People landed on the page, felt overwhelmed, and left. When I cut it down to three links, conversion improved, but that meant hiding 80% of what I wanted to share.
It's a lose-lose game.
The Better Alternative: Your Own Platform
Here's what changed for me: instead of a link-in-bio, I built a microblog.
A microblog is different because it's a destination, not a hub. When someone clicks your link, they land on a page with actual content. They see what you're thinking about. They discover new posts. They might subscribe. They might bookmark it. They might come back next week.
That's an asset you own.
Here's what you get that Linktree never gives you:
SEO visibility. Every post on your microblog is indexable by Google. If you write about something people search for, you get organic traffic. Over time, your site becomes a library of content that pulls in visitors searching for answers. Linktree? Zero search traffic.
Audience ownership. People subscribe to your newsletter from your site. They get your email list, not Linktree's analytics. You own that relationship. If you decide to move platforms in five years, you have a list to bring with you.
Better conversion. A microblog converts differently than a hub. Instead of asking people to choose from 10 options, you're showing them compelling content and letting them naturally find what matters. The conversion is higher because it's frictionless. They're reading, not scrolling a menu.
Professional credibility. There's a massive difference between "here's my Linktree" and "here's my site where I publish my thoughts." One looks like you're outsourcing your online presence. The other looks like you actually own your platform.
Compounding traffic. Blog posts don't expire. A good article about your industry keeps bringing traffic months or years after you publish it. Your Linktree from six months ago is the same Linktree today. It's static. A microblog compounds.
What This Actually Looks Like
I'm not talking about a massive blog with 100 articles. I'm talking about a simple, clean site where you share regularly—maybe weekly, maybe biweekly. Short-form content that's actually useful.
Someone lands on your link-in-bio, they see your latest post about what you're working on. If it resonates, they stick around. They see previous posts. They learn about your projects. They find the newsletter signup. It's all there, but it doesn't feel crowded because the design is minimal and the focus is on content, not links.
The email signup isn't a competing link—it's the natural next step in a conversation they're already having.
The Transition
If you're thinking "sounds good but I've already got Linktree setup," I get it. You don't need to delete your Linktree tomorrow. But I'd start thinking about what you want to own versus what you want to rent.
Your Twitter bio link should point to your site. Your Instagram bio should point to your site. Your newsletter should send people to your site. That site becomes your actual platform—the one that can't be taken away, that Google will rank, that your audience can rely on.
The link-in-bio stays as a hub for social traffic, but you're converting that traffic into something you control: readers, subscribers, search visibility, and audience ownership.
It's not complicated. It's actually simpler than trying to optimize your way around a Linktree.
Ready to own your link-in-bio instead of renting it? Jottings makes it trivially easy to start your own microblog. No technical skills required. No complexity. Just a clean, fast site where you share your thoughts and let your audience find you. Get started free.