Know Why is it Important for Search Engines to Know About Site Address Change?

Online marketing is not an easy game. There is a subtle difference between competitors. When it comes to online marketing, the very important asset that helps you lead and stay ahead of competition is your WEBSITE. It undoubtedly is a huge part of your name & also works as a magnetic to attract clients.
There are many reasons why businesses decide to change the domain name like –

1. Availability
2. Branding
3. Re-Branding
4. Promotional Value and so on
The reason can be any, but it is inevitable to understand what happens next.

Today, let us see what happens when you decide to change your domain name and what are the ways to communicate this change to search engines like Google to not lose out on search traffic.

Well! Yes, it is 100% possible to not loose search traffic even when you change the domain name. But once the name is changed, some post-site address change routine needs to be ensured to make sure not to lose on organic traffic. If Google is not informed about this change, then to a large extent you are risking your site’s organic traffic. We are here to save you from potentially big errors like these.

Let us begin with understanding, how an existing website URL can be changed.

This process demands precision to confirm that search traffic is not lost. Moving detail from an old domain name to the new one takes a lot of efforts.

When URL’s are changed, the very basic thing one should take care of is 301 re direction. In such scenarios, every page from “Domain A” now needs to point “Domain B”. This process can be verified by using an online redirect checker.

We are sure the above has made the basics strong. It’s time we move on to steps that need to be followed to place a site address change request.

Let us now learn the format in which site address change can be done using Google Search Console-

1. Login to Google Webmaster Tool account

2. Open the website you desire to move

3. Click on the “Gear” icon & select “Change of Address”

4. The next page will allow you to choose the site of your choice from the list

5. Make sure that 301 – redirects are working right

6. Check if the verification methods are still present

7. Once everything is confirmed, hit on “Submit”.

Now we reveal the mystery of what happens after the request for site address change is put forward. This request permits Google to index the brand-new URL at the new address, simultaneously minimizing the after-effect impact to the current ranking in Google Search Results.

Ultimately, all Google Search results for the website will now be redirected to the new domain automatically for 6 months. It is still required, that you update any resources on the site like tags or headers that have reference to the old domain.

This routine helps confirm, that traffic fluctuations because of URL change will not be that impactful. We hope this information will ease out your process of changing your domain name, without hurting the search traffic.