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301 redirect question

by Romson
3 replies
  • SEO
    • |
Hi All, i have a few 301 redirects questions.

1- Is it ok for seo to do a URL redirect to a domain on the same server?
2- How to add noindex, nofollow on .htaccess URL redirects (Redirect 301 / http://www.new-site.com) or is this not necessary on these type redirects?
3- Is it ok for seo to redirect a new shorter url to an aged long url?

Basically i want to know if these will cause possible SE penalties.
#301 #question #redirect
  • Profile picture of the author rooze
    1- Is it ok for seo to do a URL redirect to a domain on the same server?

    Yes. If you're redirecting a whole domain then it's clear that you own both it and the target domain, so having them on the same host server won't be an issue.

    2- How to add noindex, nofollow on .htaccess URL redirects (Redirect 301 / http://www.new-site.com) or is this not necessary on these type redirects?

    It shouldn't be necessary, unless you have something unusual in mind? The point of a 301 (permanent) redirect is to pass link-juice through to the target domain, so I can't think of a case where you wouldn't want to do that, unless the domain being redirected is a 'bad neighborhood' domain with lots of spammy links pointing at it. In which case, I wouldn't want to direct it to a good domain anyway.


    3- Is it ok for seo to redirect a new shorter url to an aged long url?

    Yes, just don't start submitting the domain being redirected to search engines. It's fine if you use it in emails and other marketing material, but don't go to Google and submit the domain directly for indexing.

    Also, there's a trick with 301's in .htaccess with getting the whole site to redirect and not create 404 errors on the target site.

    Once you've setup your redirect, type in the old domain name including a page filename and make sure it redirects without creating a 404. Most people just enter the domain name and if it redirects OK they think that's it. It isn't.

    You need to check it using this:

    www.your-old-domain.com/any-page-name.htm and see if that works without producing a 404 on the target.

    If it doesn't let me know and I can send you the appropriate code for Apache full-domain redirects via .htaccess
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    • Profile picture of the author Romson
      Rooze,

      Thank you for your reply.

      What i wanted to do is redirect a short new (customer friendly) URL to a long existing EMD. So if i understand it correct, unless i go and add it in SE's it won't be indexed?

      Is there a possibility that even if i don't do this that it will get picked up by SE's? When customers call i give them the short URL instead of the long hard to remember EMD.
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      • Profile picture of the author rooze
        Originally Posted by Romson View Post

        Rooze,

        Thank you for your reply.

        What i wanted to do is redirect a short new (customer friendly) URL to a long existing EMD. So if i understand it correct, unless i go and add it in SE's it won't be indexed?

        Is there a possibility that even if i don't do this that it will get picked up by SE's? When customers call i give them the short URL instead of the long hard to remember EMD.
        Hi,

        Ok, now that I know it's a new URL and isn't an old website with a bunch of pages, then your task is simpler.
        You don't need to do a 301 redirect, you can simply park the domain via your Domain control panel. If you login to where you registered the domain you'll see options for park and point. This is fine, since it's a new domain and it won't be passing any link-juice anyway. To do a 301 you'd need to setup a hosting account, and there's really no advantage to doing that with a new domain.

        So yes, you can then use the short domain however you want, just don't submit it to SE's, as it may be considered spam.
        Google will find the domain eventually on its own, but since there's no content on the domain there's nothing to index, so it will just pass through to your main domain and look at that content.

        Rooze
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