301 redirect of a popular domain to my own webpage

[dailypress]

hi all,

I recently purchased a popular domain with over 7000 visitors/day (and 2 spikes of over 40,000 visitors within the past few months) for a couple thousand dollars.

Google shows 184,000 results when you search the domain name.

This domain is listed as #1 for a popular keyword. I was wondering if I 301 redirect the domain to my own site, will my site show up in the SERPS and rank #1?

The domain I purchased had only 1 page, but due the amount of backlinks it received it always ranked well on Google, Yahoo and other search engines.

thanks in advance for your help.

[g1smd]

Most probably not. If only it were that easy!

The change of ownership will likely reset many of the site's "scores".


Redirects are funny things. Funnelling a large number of redirects to a single new URL is a "signal of poor technical quality". When you redirect multiple URLs, this should be where the new page closely matches the content of the old page.

For a single page site, the answer is not so clear cut. As for visitor numbers, was that "quality" traffic?

[dailypress]

Its not multiple URLS! Since it was a 1 page website all the backlinks are linked to Example.com front page. There were no other pages or internal links.

I can afford to lose some score. I'm wondering if I should setup a similar 1 page website or redirect to my other site which also received lots of back links. I just hope neither of them get penalized.

[superclown2]

It had over 7,000 links but only one page? There must have been some spectacular content on that page - either that or the links were gathered by a method Google wouldn't be very impressed with. There are indications - not evidence, but pointers - that Google pays particular attention to some 301'd sites. I would tread very carefully. Can you not monetise the visitors on the existing domain instead of risking your main site?

[g1smd]

Its(sic) not multiple URLS!

I know. Hence the bit that starts "For a single page site, ...

[walkman]

You'll probably get a manual review.

[alexsel]

Depends how similar the content is on the two different pages. The issue is when you redirect to a page that does not have relevant content to the previous location. I wouldn't recommend this process because it's not organic (I can hear a lot of people saying, "who cares!")There's also the issue that 100% of the link juice might not pass through redirect.

A safer option would be to add links back to your site with desired anchor text. That should help your rankings.

[aakk9999]

Why don't you develop the purchased site more instead?

[dailypress]

thanks for your comments.

The content was not spectacular. It was the idea.

I may link to my own site and keep a similar page although I'm still not sure about it.

the owner sent me his traffic stats, and his site had more traffic than he advertised on Sedo. (im not sure why that is)

Most days he had over 15-20K visitors/day. Im still waiting for the domain to transfer.

p.s.> btw im okay even if 60% of the link juice pass through. I may risk redirecting the site after I earn what I paid for.

[nippi]

15-20,000 visitors per day, to a one page site? So a one page site is ranking well in a super competitive niche?

Oh... and the buyer wanted only a couple of grand for it, when from this traffic you could make this in less than a week just from adsense?

I think you've been conned.

but to answer your question, if your site topics are the same and you 301 it, yes, expect to see the rankings transfer. i have done exactly this on many occasions

[dailypress]

one page site is ranking well in a super competitive niche?

Yes.

Im not sure if his Google Adsense account was banned or not. But I havent seen google ads on it for the past 9 months.

I think you've been conned.

Im not sure. I highly doubt it but we will see. I will let you know once it has been transferred hopefully within a few days.

but to answer your question, if your site topics are the same and you 301 it, yes, expect to see the rankings transfer.

I checked Alexa ranking and his traffic beats 7K/visitors a day, unless its an Alexa trick.

He emailed me after I purchased the domain (still pending transfer) and said I can make what I paid for in a month if I do things right. He sent me his earning stats as well as traffic stats.

In regards to the domain and number of backlinks and Alexa ranking see:
[webmasterworld.com...]

[topr8]

>>and said I can make what I paid for in a month if I do things right

surely this begs the question as to why he sold it?

[dailypress]

surely this begs the question as to why he sold it?

Yes I agree. But i figured ill take the risk. I think his Google Adsense was blocked on this site.

[dailypress]

I just received an email from the owner. Here is his comments:

1) His Google Adsense account was blocked with a pending payment of over $4,000.

2) He was tired of DOS attacks and wanted to focus on his studies instead of managing websites.

3) He already made over $100K from this one website never mind the many other sites he owns. Money was no longer a concern for him.

4) He advised me not to 301 redirect to my site, but simply add a link/banner on the top left corner of the page.

He said, I would be loosing traffic if I changed the content for several reasons and listed a few and provided stats to prove his point.

5) he recommended using chitika and infolinks for 3rd party ads instead of attempting to use Google Adsense on a 1 page site cause I may also be risking my G.Ad account.

I think you've been conned.

I highly doubt it especially after speaking to him via phone. He gave lots of hints and advice and also sent me his files and scripts (coded by himself)