Forum Moderators: Robert Charlton & goodroi
I'm managing a website that has good PR for various keywords. We're about to do a slight rebranding (from yyy analysis to yyy consulting would be the equivalent), and the high ups want to change the domain name (but not 80% of the content, colours, layouts, company name, etc). So, currently registered and PRed well is www.yyyanalysis.com, while we're going to have www.yyyconsulting.com now point to the same site (and be the URL we use, the URL for internal links, etc).
So, this leads to a few questions:
1) Will having the two domains pointing to one site (one will act as an alias for the other) cost PR?
2) Will switching the "primary" domain name cost PR?
3) Are there ways to minimise the google effect on the above?
4) I intend getting everyone we can to switch their links to our site, but will the few that can't be changed make a big difference?
Thanks all for your continuing help - the forums are so useful I normally don't even need to ask! ;)
[edited by: tedster at 6:07 pm (utc) on Jan. 8, 2008]
[edit reason] fix the link [/edit]
has good PR for various keywords
PR is not dependent on keywords or query terms in any way - it is a query-independent factor, calculated only through the presence of links. The reference thread on PR give more detail. Do not confuse PR and rankings.
1. Do not allow a second domain to resolve to the same content - always use a 301 redirect so that only the new domain shows when the content is finally rendered.
2. Yes, your plans to change domain names will cost you both a loss of PR and a loss of keyword rankings for some period of time.
3. The reference thread you linked to discusses the ways you can minimize the problems. You cannot avoid them.
4. Having some un-switched backlinks is unavoidable, so I have no experience to compare where "every" backlink gets changed over.
There are very precise technical steps that need to happen. If the site is of any size, you really need to roll up your sleeves and work hard to get it all right the first time. The worst situations come about when the new domain ends up with bad 301 redirects, canonical problems, multiple urls for the same content of any kind. The repair work then complicates everything for you with Google.
Even getting it all right the first time, expect lower seach traffic for months. That's just the way it is. I think you already understand that, but are hoping against hoope to hear something different. Sorry, this just is the situation.
The Hot Topics area [webmasterworld.com], which is always pinned to the top of this forum's index page, has good reference threads for all these issues. Study them well, execute well, and maybe the bump in the road will be over sooner - but it will still be there.
Yes, I was hoping that there was some easy trick! Still, at least I know what I'm doing now.
