When a website site is new, the necessity for redirects could seem foreign. A fresh website with just a couple of pages is simple enough.
But over time, websites grow. As you add more pages and build out more categories, you begin to possess more URLs to affect. you’ll realize late within the game that your URLs are more complex than you’d like.
Or a website audit may lead you to pages that aren’t performing well that ought to be removed or combined with others. Then what does one do about those old URLs?
Almost all website owners will at some point face the necessity to line up a redirect.
What is an internet site Redirect?
A website redirect points your old URL to a replacement page. When anyone types in or click thereon original URL they’ll be taken to the page you set the redirect up to instead. It ensures visitors don’t find yourself on a 404 page and instead find something relevant to what they were originally trying to find. And it keeps you from losing the worth of any links you’ve built there to your page which is vital for Search Engine Optimization (SEO), also because of the user experience of anyone that clicks one among those links.
Knowing the way to find out a redirect may be a valuable skill for anyone that runs a website. you’ll implement redirects on a page-by-page basis, or at the domain level.
3 sorts of URL Redirects
There are three main sorts of redirects to remember, although most website owners will only get to use the primary.
- 301 Redirect
A 301 redirect may be a permanent redirect. this sort of redirect takes place on both a browser and server level. It’s the foremost commonly used and powerful redirect. It passes on all the SEO authority of the prevailing URL. And search engines recognize and index this type of redirect, making it the simplest choice for SEO.
In most cases, this is often the sort of redirect you’ll want to use.
- 302 Redirect
A 302 redirect may be a temporary redirect. It should only be used once you have the intention of moving back to the old URL at some point. If, for instance, you’re redesigning your site, but want to direct users to a special domain while you finish. Or if you would like to A/B test two different versions of a page, before committing to a replacement version.
302 redirects aren’t used fairly often. If you’re considering employing a 302 redirect, consider carefully whether you would possibly be happier employing a 301 redirect.
- Meta Refresh
Have you ever landed on a page and been greeted with a message that says, “The original URL has moved, you’re now being redirected? Click here if you’re not redirected in 5 seconds”? Then you’ve experienced a meta refresh.
A meta refresh may be a redirect that functions by telling the browser to travel to the new page, without updating the server. When fixing a meta refresh, you’ll clarify the quantity of your time it should deem the redirect to the new page to occur. Sometimes search engines interpret a meta refresh within the same way as a 301 redirect, especially if the time allotted is zero or one second. But it’s not entirely consistent how search engines read a meta refresh, and that they create a worse user experience by making the visitor wait to urge to the page they’re seeking.
In instances where you’re considering a meta refresh, you’re likely to be happier with a 301 redirect.
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