301 redirects

Started by Seofinder, 04-20-2010, 19:57:22

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SeofinderTopic starter

Can someone explain 301 redirects and how effective they are. Remember keep the wording simple you're dealing with someone who knows absolutely no html and is thick headed about learning any.
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Sevam

It's actually very simple.

Open notepad. Save it as ".htaccess" file. Nothing else should be added to it's name.

In the file, type in pages you want to redirect.

Example:

redirect 301 /page001.html

Keep spaces as in example. First URL is your current URL. Second URL is where you want to get redirected.

Do the same for all webpages you are redirecting. Place all codes to .htaccess file and upload it to the root directory.


truffleshuffle

a 301 re-direct is a safe way of telling google or any other search engine for that matter that this page they were looking for has now permanently moved to another location. This allows the search engine to update it's records and will ultimately treat this new page as an existing and established one.

End result, you won't lose your serp rankings for that page and hopefully google will simply replace the url for the ranking you have! Hope that helped.
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WendyK

Quote from: truffleshuffle on 05-02-2010, 22:12:18
a 301 re-direct is a safe way of telling google or any other search engine for that matter that this page they were looking for has now permanently moved to another location. This allows the search engine to update it's records and will ultimately treat this new page as an existing and established one.

End result, you won't lose your serp rankings for that page and hopefully google will simply replace the url for the ranking you have! Hope that helped.

Thanks I was wondering what this meant.  I have a couple broken links on my game design website so I'm going to use a 301 re-direct and hopefully not get punished by SEO :)
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etiergjt

I heard that 301 redirect only works for Google
I have made a 301 redirect recently and I see a traffic down slightly
one of my keyword dropped from #2 TO #9
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  •  


YKG

#5
Imagine you have a website with a specific URL (Uniform Resource Locator) for a page, let's say "www.example.com/oldpage". Now, for some reason, you want to change the URL to "www.example.com/newpage". But what happens to all the people who have bookmarked or shared the old URL?

This is where a 301 redirect comes into play. It's basically a way to tell both humans and search engines that the content they were looking for has been permanently moved to a new location. So, whenever someone goes to "www.example.com/oldpage," they are automatically redirected to "www.example.com/newpage."

Why is this important? Well, it ensures that visitors can still find the content they're looking for, even if the URL has changed. Plus, search engines like Google will transfer the ranking and credibility from the old URL to the new one, which helps maintain your website's visibility and traffic.

details about 301 redirects:

1. Permanent Redirect: The "301" in 301 redirect stands for "moved permanently." It indicates to both users and search engines that the move from the old URL to the new one is permanent.

2. No Manual Action Required: Once you set up a 301 redirect, it works automatically whenever someone tries to access the old URL. Users are instantly redirected to the new URL without any additional effort on their part.

3. Preservation of SEO Value: One key benefit of using a 301 redirect is that it passes along the SEO value (e.g., search engine rankings, traffic, and credibility) from the old URL to the new one. This can help your new page gain visibility in search engine results.

4. Updated Bookmarks and Links: By implementing a 301 redirect, you don't have to worry about visitors accessing outdated bookmarks or clicking on old links. They will be automatically taken to the new URL.

5. Proper Implementation: To set up a 301 redirect, you typically need to modify your website's server settings or use a plugin or tool provided by your website platform. If you're not comfortable with HTML or technical aspects, you may need assistance from a web developer or hosting support.

6. Avoiding Error Pages: Without a 301 redirect, visitors who try to access the old URL may encounter a "404 error" or "page not found" message. This can be frustrating for users and may lead them to leave your website. A 301 redirect helps avoid these error pages by automatically redirecting them to the new URL.

7. Updating Search Engine Index: When search engines crawl your website, they update their index with the new URL when they encounter a 301 redirect. This helps ensure that your website continues to appear in search engine results for relevant queries.

8. Handling SEO Migration: If you're redesigning your website or changing the structure of your URLs, implementing 301 redirects is crucial for preserving your website's SEO value. It helps transfer the SEO signals from the old URLs to the new ones, so you don't lose valuable search engine rankings.

9. Maintenance and Updates: Over time, you may need to make changes to your URLs or remove certain pages. By using 301 redirects, you can maintain a smooth user experience and prevent any negative impact on your website's SEO value.

10. Tracking Redirects: You can use tools like Google Analytics to track how often your 301 redirects are being used. This data can give you insights into user behavior and help you optimize your website's navigation and content structure.

11. Multiple Redirects: It's possible to set up multiple 301 redirects for different URLs that have been changed or moved. This allows you to redirect multiple old URLs to their respective new URLs, ensuring a smooth transition for your visitors.

12. Updating External Links: If your website has external links pointing to the old URL, implementing a 301 redirect ensures that those links still work and direct users to the new URL. This helps maintain a positive user experience and prevents broken links.

13. Considerations for E-commerce: In e-commerce websites, a 301 redirect is crucial when product URLs change or are updated. This ensures that customers can still find the products they are looking for even if the URL structure has changed.

14. Change of Domain: If you're changing your domain name, a 301 redirect is essential to ensure that visitors accessing your old domain are automatically redirected to the new one. This helps maintain your website's traffic and SEO value during the transition.

15. Timeframe for Redirects: Once a 301 redirect is set up, it is generally considered permanent. However, it's important to periodically review and update your redirects if necessary, especially if you're making significant changes to your website's structure or URLs.

16. Mobile Compatibility: 301 redirects work seamlessly across different devices, including desktops, laptops, smartphones, and tablets. This ensures that users accessing your website from various devices are automatically redirected to the new URL.

17. Sitemap Updates: After implementing 301 redirects, it's a good practice to update your website's sitemap. This helps search engines discover the new URLs and ensures they are properly indexed.

18. Communication with Users: While 301 redirects ensure a smooth transition for visitors, it's also helpful to communicate any changes to your audience. For example, you can place a message or notification on your old page or website, informing users about the move to a new URL.

19. Time for Full Impact: It may take some time for search engines to recognize and fully process the 301 redirects. During this transitional period, both the old and new URLs may appear in search results. However, over time, search engines will phase out the old URLs and prioritize the new ones.

20. Regular Monitoring: It's important to regularly monitor your website's traffic, search rankings, and user feedback after implementing 301 redirects. This helps you identify any issues or glitches and make necessary adjustments if needed.

Here are a few examples of how 301 redirects are implemented using HTTP status codes:

1. Apache Server (using .htaccess file):
To redirect an old URL to a new URL, you can add the following code to your .htaccess file:

```
Redirect 301 /oldpage.html http://www.example.com/newpage.html
```

2. Nginx Server (using server block configuration):
To redirect an old URL to a new URL, you can add the following code to your Nginx server block configuration:

```
server {
    listen 80;
    server_name www.old-example.com;

    location / {
        return 301 http://www.new-example.com$request_uri;
    }
}
```

3. PHP (using header() function):
To redirect an old URL to a new URL using PHP, you can use the following code:

```php
<?php
header("HTTP/1.1 301 Moved Permanently");
header("Location: http://www.example.com/newpage.php");
exit();
?>
```

4. WordPress (using redirection plugins):
If you're using WordPress, you can use plugins such as "Redirection" or "Yoast SEO" to easily set up 301 redirects without needing to modify code directly.

JavaScript redirect:
To redirect an old URL to a new URL using JavaScript, you can include the following code in the head section of your HTML document:

```html
<script>
    window.location.href = "http://www.example.com/newpage.html";
</script>
```

Meta refresh redirect:
To redirect an old URL to a new URL using the meta refresh method, you can add the following code within the head section of your HTML document:

```html
<meta http-equiv="refresh" content="0;URL='http://www.example.com/newpage.html'" />
```
CMS-specific redirect plugins:
Many content management systems (CMS) have built-in redirect plugins that make it easy to set up 301 redirects without any coding. For example, in WordPress, popular plugins like "Redirection" or "Simple 301 Redirects" allow you to manage redirects through a user-friendly interface.

Server-side scripting languages:
If you're using server-side scripting languages like Python (with frameworks like Django or Flask) or Node.js, you can implement 301 redirects programmatically based on your specific application logic. The exact implementation will depend on the framework you're using.

Content Management Systems (CMS) Plugins:
If you're using popular CMS platforms like WordPress or Joomla, there are various plugins available that simplify the process of implementing 301 redirects. For example, in WordPress, you can use plugins like "Redirection" or "Yoast SEO" to set up and manage redirects through a user-friendly interface.

CPanel or Web Hosting Control Panel:
If your website is hosted on a server with a CPanel or a similar web hosting control panel, you can typically find a section dedicated to redirects. From there, you can easily set up 301 redirects by specifying the old URL and the new destination URL. This method is convenient for those who prefer a graphical user interface rather than modifying code directly.

CMS-Specific redirect rules:
Some CMS platforms allow you to set up redirects directly within their configuration files. For instance, in Drupal, you can set up 301 redirects by adding custom redirect rules in the .htaccess file or using modules like "Redirect" or "Pathauto". Similarly, Joomla offers redirect functionality through plugins like "SH404SEF".

E-commerce Platforms:
If you're running an online store on platforms like Shopify or Magento, they often provide built-in tools or extensions to handle URL redirects. These tools enable you to set up 301 redirects when changing product URLs or when redirecting traffic from old URLs to new ones.

Localized Redirects:
If you have multiple versions of your website tailored to different regions or languages, you can use 301 redirects to automatically redirect users to the appropriate localized version based on their location or language preferences. For example, if a user from France tries to access "www.example.com", you can redirect them to "www.example.com/fr" using a 301 redirect.

Redirect Chains:
A redirect chain occurs when there are multiple redirects in a sequence before reaching the final destination URL. It's generally recommended to avoid redirect chains as they can slow down page loading times and negatively impact SEO. By implementing 301 redirects directly to the final destination instead of having multiple intermediate redirects, you simplify the redirection process.

HTTP to HTTPS Migration:
When transitioning your website from HTTP to HTTPS for secure communication, you'll need to implement a 301 redirect from the HTTP version to the corresponding HTTPS version of your website. This ensures that visitors accessing the non-secure version are automatically redirected to the secure version.

Changing Permalink Structure:
If you're using a content management system like WordPress and decide to change your permalink structure (the format of your URLs), you should set up 301 redirects from the old URLs to the new ones. This helps maintain SEO rankings and ensures that visitors can still access your content using the updated URLs.

Renaming or Rebranding:
If you rename your business or rebrand your website, it's essential to set up 301 redirects from the old domain or URL to the new one. This helps ensure that users can find your website under the new name and old links pointing to your website continue to work.

Deleted or Archived Content:
If you have removed or archived a page on your website, it's a good practice to set up a 301 redirect from the old URL to a relevant and similar existing page. This ensures that visitors who may still have the old URL bookmarked or linked to externally are redirected to alternative content, reducing the chances of encountering a "page not found" error.

URL Parameter Changes:
If you change the structure or parameters in your website's URLs, setting up 301 redirects from the old URLs to the new ones is crucial. This helps preserve SEO value and ensures that users who access the old URLs are automatically redirected to the updated versions.

Changing Domain Extensions:
If you have multiple domain extensions for your website (e.g., example.com, example.net, example.org) and want to consolidate them under one primary domain, you can set up 301 redirects from the secondary domains to the primary one. This helps streamline your web presence and avoids diluting SEO efforts across multiple domains.

Fixing Broken Links:
If you have broken internal or external links on your website that point to non-existent pages, using 301 redirects can help salvage some of the link value. By redirecting those broken links to relevant, existing pages, you retain some of the SEO benefit and provide a better user experience.

Handling Duplicate Content:
If you have multiple versions of the same content accessible through different URLs (e.g., www.example.com and example.com), search engines may view this as duplicate content. To consolidate the content authority and eliminate the duplication issue, you can set up a 301 redirect from one version to the preferred version of the URL.

Hogward

http://www.webconfs.com/how-to-redirect-a-webpage.php - Go through this site, you will get an clear idea about 301 redirects.. :)
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Smith Jones

Quote from: Seofinder on 04-20-2010, 19:57:22
Can someone explain 301 redirects and how effective they are. Remember keep the wording simple you're dealing with someone who knows absolutely no html and is thick headed about learning any.

301 redirects are permanent redirects from one page file to another. They are used when the file name of a website page is changed or the domain name of a website is changed. Here is an example:

You have a page on www.yourwebsite.com and the page file name is called -

www.yourwebsite.com/page1.html

Say you want to change the page file name to more accurately reflect the page contents (let's say wildlife in this example). The new page file name you want is -

www.yourwebsite.com/wildlife.html

You would need a 301 redirect to point to the new page. This would tell the search engines that "page1" is now the "wildlife page" on "yourwebsite". Hope this helps.

Regards,
- Smith Jones.


seo-expert

301 redirect is the best way to ensure that users and search engines are directed to the correct page. The 301 status code means that a page has permanently moved to a new location.


offshoreaccouting

a 301 re-direct is a safe way of informing search engines or any other seo for that matter that this web page they were looking for has now completely shifted to another location. This allows search engines optimization to bring up to date it's information and will eventually cure this new web page as an current and established one.
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