Can I retain my backlinks if I change domain name?

aspe_heat · May 1, 2014

Hey guys,

I have a domain name which has well, quite many backlinks. However, I want to change the domain, so I am wondering if I will keep those backlinks if I change my domain because this domain will redirect to the new domain. Will Google consider my new domain as it has 0 backlinks or redirects will help it?

Basically, I have some backlinks to domain1.com/article-1 and I want to create domain2.com which will then have domain2.com/article-1. Whenever someone goes to the first URL, he will be redirected to the second one. So basically, I will keep backlinks for the first domain, but will it affect my Google rank? Or is it even allowed to do this?

Thanks!

poetry1969 · May 1, 2014

I'd like to know this too. I have read that a 301 will preserve the ranking, but I have not personally tried it when switching to a new domain entirely. Has anyone actually done this?

lucardk · May 1, 2014

301 will preserve rankings for a while... Google still wants you to try to get those links directly pointed to your new domain so apparently over time the 301 will dilute some value. This at least is what they say officially...

aspe_heat · May 1, 2014

So it's white hat and legit? I don't want anything which could get me penalized as I want this to be a long-term project.

lucardk · May 1, 2014

It is the standard thing to do when you change domain names, there isn't anything wrong with it, you can even find the guidelines from google on how to change domain names without losing rankings. http://googlewebmastercentral.blogspot.com/2008/04/best-practices-when-moving-your-site.html

aspe_heat · May 1, 2014

lucardk said:
It is the standard thing to do when you change domain names, there isn't anything wrong with it, you can even find the guidelines from google on how to change domain names without losing rankings. http://googlewebmastercentral.blogspot.com/2008/04/best-practices-when-moving-your-site.html

Much appreciated! Thanks a lot!

sakabaro · May 1, 2014

301 redirections are white hat and should preserve ranks.
However, it's not recommended, as you are loosing the domain authority of the former domain. (Like the years it has been active, its citation rates though the past...)
I would keep the former domain name if I am not 100% obligated to change.

aspe_heat · May 1, 2014

sakabaro said:
301 redirections are white hat and should preserve ranks.
However, it's not recommended, as you are loosing the domain authority of the former domain. (Like the years it has been active, its citation rates though the past...)
I would keep the former domain name if I am not 100% obligated to change.

I own a .us domain and I am not a resident of the US so...need to keep it under radar.

SEO_Alchemy · May 1, 2014

I own a .us domain and I am not a resident of the US so...need to keep it under radar.

that's not a good or wise reason to start messing around with 301's

ICANN is not going to go after you, and google rankings have nothing to do with this. If your site is ranking well, this is not a good move.

You will lose all your rankings for at least a week, sometimes more as the redirect is propagated. You will get back 90% of rankings... usually. You will lose some of the age, trust, and authority you current domain has aquired, which could negatively impact your rankings and traffic.

Unless you are facing legal issues, this is not something you want to consider lightly.

aspe_heat · May 1, 2014

SEO_Alchemy said:
that's not a good or wise reason to start messing around with 301's

ICANN is not going to go after you, and google rankings have nothing to do with this. If your site is ranking well, this is not a good move.

You will lose all your rankings for at least a week, sometimes more as the redirect is propagated. You will get back 90% of rankings... usually. You will lose some of the age, trust, and authority you current domain has aquired, which could negatively impact your rankings and traffic.

Unless you are facing legal issues, this is not something you want to consider lightly.

Thank you! I might not change it then.

However, how serious is it to have a .us domain "ilegally" ? If they do come after me, can I just abandon the domain or there will be some charges or something? I am not very familiar with this online legal stuff and when I google it, there are many different opinions and answers.

SEO_Alchemy · May 1, 2014

I couldn't answer the legal aspects, but I would imagine that unless you were a big fish with a multi-million dollar enterprise, ICANN could not care less of where and how you are registering your domains in relation to where you live. If you've successfully registered your domain, I think you're all set. And this only concerns ICANN... google, etc. are not enforcers and have no interest in the realm of domain registration issues.

lucardk · May 1, 2014

aspe_heat said:
Thank you! I might not change it then.

However, how serious is it to have a .us domain "ilegally" ? If they do come after me, can I just abandon the domain or there will be some charges or something? I am not very familiar with this online legal stuff and when I google it, there are many different opinions and answers.

What are you doing with your .US? SEO_Alchemy is correct, the chances of Neustar noticing you are not a U.S. resident are low, but if for any reason a competitor reports it you can kiss your domain domain goodbye... If you are looking into a long term project I would consider doing everything as legit as possible, better lose some rankings today and have the time to get them back then having to start from scratch a few years from now losing an established website. This is just my personal opinion...

aspe_heat · May 1, 2014

lucardk said:
What are you doing with your .US? SEO_Alchemy is correct, the chances of Neustar noticing you are not a U.S. resident are low, but if for any reason a competitor reports it you can kiss your domain domain goodbye... If you are looking into a long term project I would consider doing everything as legit as possible, better lose some rankings today and have the time to get them back then having to start from scratch a few years from now losing an established website. This is just my personal opinion...

.com got swept by AdSense as someone was sending fake traffic to my website then I switched to .us since I target US audience...bad, I know. So now if I want a .com domain, I'll need to be creative with a name or just do rebranding.

Thanks for your advice!

Can I retain my backlinks if I change domain name?

aspe_heat

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