Is it Easier to rank High Authority Websites?

[aldona00]

I have been doing SEO for several years and I know LOTS of things play into factor when it comes to rankings, but what's your thoughts on ranking pages on a high authority websites vs a fairly new website?

I'm thinking about buying an old domain and building links to it, rather than continuing with my fairly new domain. Do you think I have a better chance taking this route??

[CommT]

It depends entirely upon the domain you buy. If you buy a domain with a poor history which has been spamming the world for viagra then this strategy will never work for you (or anyone). If on the other hand, you buy something that is relevant to your niche, not spammy and for some reason affordable, then I see no reason not to employ this method.

It took me nearly 2 years to build our site up into a fairly highly ranked site within our niche. Then we moved it to another new domain (set up a new business). It is possible to rank on a new domain, but it does take longer.

However, your end result is likely to be 'purer'. You won't have to worry about dodgy links (unless you build them).

I'd work out the pros and cons on a bit of paper before you go ahead. Buying existing domains can be costly, if it doesn't work then it could be an expensive mistake.

Best of luck,

Amelia

[KempRugeLawGroup]

I may not be remembering this correctly, so you'll need to double-check it, but it's my understanding that old domains don't really help anymore...especially if you transfer ownership.

[Ron_McCabe]

Like everything it depends...If the domain has good quality links, has generally performed well and is relevant to your category it might make sense.  If you are considering this you should evaluate the links closely to make sure that there is not a predominance of spammy ones.

If this is a locally relevant domain Local directory links are OK as long as they are relevant. Links from blogging or other attractive content are more valuable.  I would value the domain based on how much time it would take to get your domain to the same place versus what you think your time is worth.  A directory takes about 22 minutes and a higher value link(attractive content)  takes at least one hour on average.  I would add up the time and multiply this by your least expensive hourly rate and see if it makes sense.

I know this is a somewhat general response but the situation is somewhat fluid and requires some judgement calls.

All the best!

Ron

[David-Kley]

I agree that old domains can help if they have a good history. No matter what people say about older domains or sites not having weight I have seen it not be true over and over again. Thin, graphic heavy, poorly laid out, sales message in your face sites that have been around since the dinosaurs have weight. Google can see from the registration date that Joe Business has owned Joe's Company and domain since 1990, and they will take that into consideration. Before everyone cries foul, I'm not saying it is a huge factor, but it's there.

I think the easiest place to see this is in local search results than national or ecom. I am not saying this applies to all, but I think to deny the fact that domain and site age plays a part in ranking would be foolish. Try saying that next time you are trying to outrank Jims Waterproofing, who has been around since the "when AOL was popular" days, with Joes Waterproofing who just started. If both are clean, well written sites, with good backlinks, I'm betting Jim's will still have a slight advantage. (no idea if Jims or Joes waterproofing already exist)

A few questions:
Does the domain contain a brand that consumers can remember easily? Be careful of buying branded domains just because of age. If another company had a bad reputation, you dont want to be associated with them.

Does the domain contain keywords for what you what to rank for, or your main service/product?

If the domain already has backlinks pointed to it, just park the older domain onto your new one, so Google can see where the destination domain is. No need to replace yours, or build a whole other site.

[Dr-Pete]

Some valid comments here, but I'd generally have to agree with Ron - IF the domain really has authority (solid, trusted links, isn't spammy, decent traffic, social signals, etc.) and IF that domain is relevant to your topic, then it could give you a solid boost. As @KempRugeLawGroup said, though, there are cases where Google may not pass the authority of the site after an ownership change, especially if you completely overhaul the site and it's an entirely new topic.

Unfortunately, there are no guarantees. A lot of this is at Google's discretion. If you bought a high-authority site about bass fishing and then turned it into an affiliate site for WordPress templates, and the domain was "bobsbassfishing.com" and 80% of the inbound anchor text was "bass fishing", then Google's going to catch on pretty fast. If you actual sell fishing products and keep the brand, but slowly redesign and add new, relevant content, then it's entirely possible that old domain will work in your favor.

If you just buy an old domain and then 301-redirect to a current or new and barely relevant domain, then it's at best a crap-shoot. That game has been played far too much.