Should We Switch from Several Exact Match URLs to Subdomains Instead?

[contactatonce]

We are a company with one product customized for different vertical markets. Our sites are each setup on their own unique domains:
contactatonce.com (Brand)
autodealerchat.com (Auto Vertical)
apartmentchat.com (Apartment Vertical)
chatforrealestate.com (Real Estate Vertical)

We currently rank well on the respective keyword niches including:
 - auto dealer chat (exact match), automotive chat, dealer chat
 - apartment chat (exact match), property chat, multifamilly chat
 - chat for real estate (exact match), real estate chat

To simplify the user experience we are considering moving to a single domain and subdomain structure:

contactatonce.com
auto.contactatonce.com
apartment.contactatonce.com
realestate.contactatonce.com

QUESTIONS:
1. Considering current Google ranking strategies, do we stand to lose keyword related traffic by making this switch?
2. Are there specific examples you can point to where an individual domain and subdomains each ranked high on Google across a variety of different niches? (I'm not talking about Wikipedia, Blogger, Blogspot, Wordpress, Yahoo Answers, etc. which are in their own class, but a small to mid size brand).

Thank you,
Aaron

[Bryan_Loconto]

Hi Aaron,

As long as you 301 all the pages to correct locations (autodealerchat.com 301 to auto.contactatonce.com) you will not lose any link juice, and you will keep your rank on the new pages...

Google wants you to simplify everything for their users. In this case you will lose page age, so I am curious to hear what others have to say...

[sprynewmedia]

You would have to employ the GWMT's Change of Address feature to not have link equity dissipate through the 301s, no?

[Bryan_Loconto]

I don't believe so. A google search engine spider reads a 301 and automatically transfers the juice/credibility/authority/social-credit...

See here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=Filv4pP-1nw

[sprynewmedia]

In the video, he directly clarifies 301 redirects dissipate PR.

However, I understand the site move tool is supposed to mitigate this faster.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UU3xyhCXP9Q

I haven't found much credible evidence one way or the other however as it's probably very difficult to test.

To be a paranoid conservative, I'd guess it doesn't transfer 100% PR and any domain migrations must have very strong justifications as there will be an SEO cost.

[Dr-Pete]

I have to disagree with Bryan, I'm afraid - I think you carry substantial risk here, and this is a tricky decision. While EMD influence is declining, it still can carry a lot of weight (and quite a bit more than sub-domain keywords). If most of your traffic is coming from those "head" terms, you may see a serious loss by moving from EMDs to sub-domains.

Sub-domains have other issues, too, like fragmentation. Since the verticals are very different, Google could treat each sub-domain more like a separate domain. Then, your link equity won't consolidate AND you'll lose the EMD advantage. So, there's actually a risk of a worst-of-both-worlds scenario.

Now, to be fair - consolidation can have benefits, like unifying your link profiles, simplifying your other marketing efforts (one site to promote on social media), etc.  Also, since your niches are really just different marketing perspectives on the same product, it's possible that your current sites might look a little thin to Google. In that case, consolidation could help, but "consolidation" would mean thinning out the separate pages, not just moving to one domain with a bunch of sub-domains.

Whether it's better for users really depends on your customer base. Do they tend to look for chat products as a general product, and then decide how it fits their industry, or do they look for products targeted to their industry? If the latter, then the separate domains might actually be more user-friendly.

Sorry, I know this is clear as mud, but I just want you to be aware of the complexity and possible issues. I would not make this decision lightly. Please note, too, that I'm generally in favor of consolidation and am not a big fan of an EMD-based strategy. We have to be realistic about what works now, though, vs. what may work in a couple of years, and I'm just concerend about the short-term impact for you.

My gut reaction, long-term, is that you could build a more product-focused site that has solid landing pages for each vertical, and that each vertical may not need a sub-site. This could create a stronger single site over time. It really depends how much unique content you've got within each vertical, and how your visitors find you. Even if that's a good long-term strategy, it could still have short-term negative impact, so you have to be aware of that and able to weather it.