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RE: Using a 301 redirect for URL A (alias) to URL B (active website)
I have a marketplace website for equipment (URL B). I have just secured a domain name that is clearly more specific towards why customers would consider visiting my website in the first place - to buy and sell equipment! I am under the impression that I can submit my buy-and-sell-equipment.com alias (URL A) to search engines along with a 301 redirect to my active site (URL B). This way, when people search for places to 'buy and sell equipment' my alias would come up higher in the search results and permanently redirect all to my website. I have read many forum posts on the web and this seems fine.
How does the process work? Do I simply (1)park the domain, (2)set up the redirect, and (3)submit my new alias to Google?
Looking for any relevant feedback...
Thx!
Searchengines only list URLs that return '200 OK' and some content. They do not list URLs that redirect.
Use the new URL simply for type-in traffic, and maybe for some offline branding. Track all clicks through it.
Thanks. I do only wish to use the alias URL simply for type-in traffic. Will search engines find it if there is no content? I was under the impression that I do not have to put any content on it. I just want the domain address to show up when people search for places to buy and sell equipment. How do I best set this up and proceed?
Do not attempt to have the same site contents show up on two different domains. You will be risking the much-discussed so-called "duplicate-content [google.com] penalty." This is not a real penalty, but rather an effective ranking reduction as a result of having two different URLs competing with each other for ranking -- In essence, you are creating competition between and against your own site(s).
Another factor is that the major search engines are likely to eventually detect the duplication of page content between the two domains and remove one of the two URLs for each page... And here's the kicker: *They decide* which one to keep, and which one to discard, not you. You may end up with all URLs from domain A or all from domain B. But more likely, you'll end up with a sloppy and confusing mixture of the two, and a mixture that varies over time... at the search engines' whim.
You have a couple of 'clean' choices: Either permanently redirect the secondary domain to the primary one, or set up an entirely new and unique Web site on the secondary domain -- One that focuses squarely on the specifically-different purpose for which you bought that secondary domain. Link between the sites only when truly beneficial to your visitors, and only when the target of the link is unquestionably appropriate to the current content that the visitor is viewing and is useful in the context of that content.
If you permanently redirect from URL A to URL B, then URL A ceases to exist, except as an invisible "way-point" on the path to URL B. URL A will not appear in search engine results, will not garner any PageRank or link-popularity (or if it does, it will pass it all to URL B), and should never be linked-to from anywhere domain URL B.
Having the same site contents on more than one URL looks 'spammy' to the search engines, and you may expect problems if you do it -- or allow it to happen (intentionally or unintentionally). Stuff like this can put you out of business... more likely it'll just make you suffer, but margins are thin these days.
Please consider all of the potential side-effects when playing with powerful technical functions like HTTP redirection [w3.org].
Much of the above gloom and doom may be seen by some as hyperbole or exaggeration. However, it is far safer to take this too seriously than to treat it in a cavalier manner, especially when the subject is dealt with at an introductory level. If your revenue is at risk, take care: Study the threads here on these subjects, and decide for yourself.
Jim
"set up an entirely new and unique Web site on the secondary domain -- One that focuses squarely on the specifically-different purpose for which you bought that secondary domain. Link between the sites only when truly beneficial to your visitors, and only when the target of the link is unquestionably appropriate to the current content that the visitor is viewing and is useful in the context of that content."
Do you think that simply placing a series of press releases (with link) about my primary site on this new site would work?
What value does this provide to the visitor?
Creating a poorly thought out site to rank for a term does not reflect well on your brand.
Since we know very little about your site take the following with a grain of salt but if you have a strong brand then redirect A to B. If your brand is weak, then consider renaming the site/business and use A and redirect B to A.
