Changing Web Address

[luwhosjack]

What would be the best way to change a web address without loosing google rankings?

Currently we have whosjack.org and wjlondon.com redirecting to that address.

We want to switch that around but I am aware that this will change all the links.

Is there any way to do this without killing our site rankings?

[Matt-Williamson]

Hi

You are obviously going to need to change around the 301 redirect and do it on a page by page basis, so that any links gained on those pages will pass the authority gained to the corresponding pages.

If you don't do it at this level you will end up with an increased bounce rate and this is likely to impact your rankings as visitors that find a current page in the search engine results aren't likely to search your site again if they are just taken straight to your homepage - they are likely to just assume that this content no longer exists.

You will also need to set the change of address in Google Webmaster Tools to help Google figure out your change.

I would recommend you read this great article in relation to minimising the impact of a change on your rankings -

http://www.seomoz.org/blog/achieving-an-seo-friendly-domain-migration-the-infographic

Also have a look at the other articles mentioned in this one.

Hope this helps!

[McTaggart]

This is a very useful resource indeed: http://moz.com/blog/web-site-migration-guide-tips-for-seos - there are a few gems here too, inc useful pointers from Google: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/04/26/business/smallbusiness/newark-nut-company-buys-a-perfect-domain-name-yet-sales-suffer.html and http://boss.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/05/01/debating-the-right-way-to-change-a-domain-name-and-brand-a-nut-retailer/?_r=0