Subdomain SEO question (php script on domain + wordpress on subdomain)

[marcandre]

Hi Moz fellows,

I am doing my first website which is entirely .php scripted. But I would like to have a wordpress blog to create content and blog posts, while the .php side of the website is more for sales pages and user generated listings.The only way to do this is to install wordpress on a subdomain "blog.website.com"

QUESTION: If all my keywords targeted content is on the subdomain's Wordpress blog, but all my guest blogging efforts link to my main website, which one will rank? The subdomain or the domain?

I need the domain to rank well as it is a Fiverr-like script, so if tons of people land on my "blog.website.com" subdomain, they will not convert into users...

Let me know if you have experience with such a scenario, and thank you all in advance for your help!

-Marc

[stukerr]

Hi Marc,

When you say Wordpress blog do you mean you'll be hosting the WP blog on your own server? Or you're using one hosted on wordpress.com (albeit via blog.yoursite.com) ?

If you are hosting it yourself then WP runs on PHP so normally plays pretty nicely with other PHP sites, just install it in a subfolder (so www.yoursite.com/blog/) and you should be good to go (unless you have any re-write rules that could mess with what wordpress is trying to do - just make sure thay they don't touch on  the /blog/ sub-directory).

If you are hosting on wordpress.com then why not install WP on your actual site and use the above method?

I won't go into the merits of guest blogging as a link building strategy here

Best wishes,

Stuart

[MoosaHemani]

People who will land on your blog will probably not convert!! I believe this is very much depends upon how you are going to use it. If you utilize your side bar properly and in your content if you can smartly encourage your users to shift to the main website the conversion rate from the blog can be vital.

As far as the rankings are concern, page with better content and more quality links will rank better as compare to the one that contain low quality content and no or low quality links on it.

If you want your main commercial pages to rank then tray to get links to the main page plus increase your domain authority of the website and as subdomain are now considered as a part of the main domains, getting links on the blog will also help you rank better as a whole.

Hope this helps!