In the previous article, we discussed four factors that you need to consider before buying a domain. Today, we will look at four more additional considerations that shouldn’t be ignored before making this important decision. Remember that in the current digital world, any decision that you make regarding your site can boost or compromise your SEO efforts.
Blacklist Status
Google and other search engines have a set of rules and regulations that all webmasters are required to abide by. Failing to comply with the regulations can results in the site being blacklisted. Blacklisted sites are not displayed on SERPs.
Site Securi is one of the best tools that you can use to know if the domain you are planning to purchase has ever been blacklisted and the reasons why it was blacklisted. You should avoid sites that have been blacklisted in the past to avoid compromising the credibility and reputation of your business.
Local Citations
If your target audience is in a particular geographic location, you need to come up with local SEO strategies to make sure that your site is displayed to this audience. A local citation, that is, your business name, address, and phone number, is one of the factors that Google uses to know that your business exists and offer a particular service or product in a particular region. These citations are published on websites and authority local business directories.
Before migrating to a pre-owned domain, you need to identify these citations and update them to avoid confusing potential customers. For example, you can reach out to the directory webmaster and request them to update the information or create new local citations.
Hosting Location
Singapore SEO experts agree that hosting location is not one of the strongest and direct SEO ranking factors. However, it is recommended to have your website hosted in the same country that you operate. This is because IP location has a significant direct impact on page speed and we all know that page speed influences site’s SEO performance. There are advanced IP location tools that you can use to know the accurate know your site is hosting location. Since most hosting companies have servers distributed across the globe, you can request the support team to make the necessary changes.
Page Speed
You have less than 4 seconds to impress a new web visitor. If the page takes more than 4 seconds to load, the potential customers will not hesitate to move on to your competitors’ sites.
One of the factors that affect page speed is site’s architecture. If you intend to use the same content management system used by the previous owner, make sure that you are using the latest version before transferring your content to it.
Conclusion
Once you acquire full ownership of the domain, ensure that its Google Analytics, Google Search Console and Bing Webmaster Tools are properly set up. These three tools will help you to monitor its performance and make the right decisions before implementing any changes.
