Add Your Own Custom Domain

Introduction

You can use your own domain to replace the simplebooklet.com part of your Simplebooklet's weblink. A custom domain can point to:

A single Simplebooklet
To a specific Collection
Or as the default domain used for all weblinks in your account


Because you own your domain, only you can set it up to point to your Simplebooklet account. To do this, you need to add a CNAME entry where you purchased and manage your domain name (usually a service like GoDaddy, WIX, bluehost, or many others). This makes sure only you have the authority to decide which services can use your domain.

Also, because your www. domain points to your own website, you'll need to set up a new CNAME. The CNAME is the subdomain portion of your domain (you'll recognize it as the www.mydomain.com portion of your domain URL) and this is where you'll create something unique. For example, many Simplebooklet user's use guide.mydomain.com or brochure.mydomain.com or learn.mydomain.com. You can use pretty much any word or letter combination for the first part of your domain.





Protocol: We'll automatically add an SSL cert to your domain. You don't have to purchase an SSL cert separately for your domain.

Subdomain: This is the part of the URL that you'll be customizing in your DNS manager. It's called a CNAME entry when you add it for your domain. You can add as many as you want.

Your Domain: This is the domain you purchased from your domain managing service (like Godaddy or WIX).

Slug: This is the part of the URL that comes after your domain. This is automatically created in Simplebooklet and uses the filename of your Simplebooklet or the title of your collection. You can change the slug of your URL anytime from the SHARE page of your Simplebooklet.

Parameters: You'll see that we apply parameters to your Simplebooklet as a person flips through your content. This example shows you that "?page-3" on your URL will take your customer to that specific page when they load the URL.

Below are step by step instructions on adding your Domain to your Simplebooklet account. We know this can be daunting, so please feel free to reach out to us via our live chat and we'll help you go through the setup process.




Available on Pro and Business plans.

Benefits

We highly recommend using a custom domain for your Simplebooklet account. It helps built trust and confidence in your content because they recognize your domain name in the URL you've just shared with them.

Step-by-Step Guide

Adding your own domain will require knowledge of your website domain host, or access to somebody with that knowledge. Don't be intimidated, it's a very simple process and takes less than 5 minutes.


Quick tip: Each DNS management service can vary in how you add your CNAME to their records. This is where your "mydomain.com" is registered. Here are a few links to specific instructions for some common domain management services that will help in completing the steps:

Godaddy

Bluehost

WIX

Namecheap

Google


Go to your DNS manager service where your domain is registered.

Navigate to the CNAME entry menu and select Add New CNAME

When in the 'Add New CNAME' entry page, you should see the following fields, hostname, points to, and time to live. You will enter the following :


+hostname: guide (or whatever you have chosen for the sub domain for the domain that will send customers to your Simplebooklets).
+points to: simplebooklet.com
+TTL: 1/2 hour

Each DNS management service may vary on how you get to the ADD CNAME section for managing your domain, as well as slightly different names/labels for the fields to complete in creating a new CNAME entry.

The Hostname field is sometimes referred to as: host, label, or subdomain

The Points To field is sometimes referred to as: value, destination, target

"Save" - This will save your new CNAME domain in your DNS manager. You should see it in your list of CNAME records in your DNS registration page.

Now wait 1/2 an hour while the DNS service notifies other DNS servers about the new entry.

You can verify if your new CNAME is working by going to this link and entering in your new domain (i.e. guide.mydomain.com).

If it's valid, a successful entry will look like this:




If your domain is not resolving, reach out to Simplebooklet from the live chat and we can help you troubleshoot your registration.



Once your CNAME is successfully set up, return to your Simplebooklet dashboard, and in the left hand column, tap the CUSTOM DOMAIN menu.




Tap the ADD button.




Type in the custom domain you are adding to your Simplebooklet account.




Then tab the ADD DOMAIN button.

The domain does not include the https:// portion.

Option: Checking the box "set as default account domain" will apply this domain to all existing and future Simplebooklet's in your account. The old url and the new one with your domain will continue to work.

If you only want this domain used on a specific Simplebooklet or collection, leave this unchecked.

If you didn't check the "set as default account domain" you can now select which Simplebooklet or Collection you want this to point to.





Select APPLY and your domain will now go directly to this Simplebooklet or Collection.

Helpful Hints

You don't need a website at your domain name registration service in order to create a CNAME that points at your account.

Updated on: 23/03/2024