Shorten.REST

@Shorten.REST create a short link for https://docs.example.com/onboarding/new-hire-checklist-2024 that we can share in the welcome email

Created short link: https://short.rest/a3k9m → https://docs.example.com/onboarding/new-hire-checklist-2024. The link is active immediately and will track click counts. You can view analytics or update the destination URL later through the Shorten.REST dashboard. This link does not expire unless you set a custom expiration policy in your account settings.

This example shows basic link shortening — the core use case. The MCP requires an API key with write permissions. Be aware that short links are public by default; anyone with the shortened URL can access the destination. Check your account's link quota if you're on a free tier.

@Shorten.REST get click stats for short.rest/a3k9m from the last 7 days

Link short.rest/a3k9m received 47 clicks in the past 7 days. Top referrers: Direct (23 clicks), Slack (14 clicks), email clients (10 clicks). Geographic breakdown: US (31), Canada (9), UK (7). Peak traffic occurred on Tuesday between 9-11 AM UTC. No bot or suspicious activity detected.

This demonstrates analytics retrieval. The level of detail depends on your Shorten.REST plan — free accounts may see aggregated data only. The MCP returns what the API provides; it cannot infer user intent from raw click counts. Useful for measuring campaign reach or document engagement.

@Shorten.REST list all short links I created this month that point to our staging environment, then summarize which ones got the most traffic

Found 8 short links created in January 2025 pointing to staging.example.com domains. Top 3 by clicks: short.rest/b7x2p (staging.example.com/feature-preview, 89 clicks), short.rest/c4n1q (staging.example.com/beta-signup, 62 clicks), short.rest/d9m5r (staging.example.com/api-docs, 41 clicks). The feature preview link saw a spike after your January 15 announcement. The other 5 links received fewer than 20 clicks each.

This example pairs the MCP's list/filter capability with AI reasoning to surface insights. The MCP fetches links matching your criteria; the AI interprets traffic patterns. Requires API access to list links (some plans restrict this to links you own). Useful for auditing campaign performance or cleaning up unused links.

When short links keep support responses consistent

A 6-person support team answering 200 tickets a week needs stable links to docs, troubleshooting guides, and video walkthroughs. Shorten.REST works here because the team can create branded short URLs once, drop them into Switchy prompts as reusable macros, and never worry about broken links when the underlying doc moves. The MCP requires an API key but no OAuth dance, so setup takes under 5 minutes. The trade-off: if your team already uses Bitly or a marketing short-link tool with analytics dashboards, Shorten.REST won't replace that — it's better suited to internal workflows where you need programmatic link creation without leaving the AI workspace. If you're writing the same 8 links into every support reply, this MCP pays for itself in week one.

When a 2-person marketing team needs trackable links fast

A startup's first product launch involves 15 different UTM-tagged URLs for email, social, and partner channels. Shorten.REST fits this scenario because the MCP can generate short links on-demand inside Switchy while the team drafts launch copy, eliminating the copy-paste loop between a separate link shortener and the workspace. The API key setup means no per-user seat costs. The boundary: if your launch involves A/B testing or you need click heatmaps, you'll still want a full marketing platform — Shorten.REST handles creation and basic redirects, not analytics. But for a scrappy team that just needs clean, branded links without opening another tab, this MCP turns a 10-minute chore into a 30-second prompt. If you're launching in 48 hours and don't have a link strategy yet, start here.

When HR needs evergreen links across 12 onboarding docs

A 10-person company onboards 3 new hires a quarter, and the onboarding Notion doc has 40 links to benefits portals, Slack channels, and internal wikis. Shorten.REST makes sense here because HR can create short links for each resource once, embed them in the onboarding template, and update the destination URL when a portal moves without touching the doc. The MCP's API key auth means the HR lead can set it up without IT approval. The catch: if your onboarding is fully automated in an HRIS like Rippling, you don't need this — Shorten.REST shines when humans are assembling docs by hand and need links that survive infrastructure changes. If you've ever had a new hire report 6 broken links on day one, this MCP prevents that. Set it up once and forget it.