Importance of WMT change of address and problem doing it
-
Hi,
How important is it to submit a change of address in WMT?
I say that because I am having problems doing it so wondered if it was worth the hassle in trying to fix it.
I am getting the error: "We couldn't verify website.co.uk. To submit a change of address, website.co.uk must be verified using the same method as www.website.co.uk. Add website.co.uk to your account and verify ownership, then try again."
I have looked on the web to try and find an answer and have come across 2 suggestions:
-
You might have lost the verification with the redirect. If you used a metatag on the home page, the home page is now redirecting. If you had uploaded a verification text file, that file is probably now gone and redirecting as well. You probably need to re-verify the site. Either re-upload the text file and configure it not to redirect (may be difficult) or use the DNS server verification method.
-
You need to verify the non www. version of the website because that's the way Google like it.
Not sure why solution 2 would be necessary but it does seem to be what WMT are getting. Because the site already redirects, 1 would then come in to play.
Is it worth persevering with because IT will be getting a long list of stuff to do from me as it is....
Thanks all
-
-
Yes that is one way.
Here is a link to a bunch of methods to verify your site
https://sites.google.com/site/webmasterhelpforum/en/verification-specifics
If you have access to the Registrar (or know who does) then it's much easier to verify that way.
-
Thanks again.
At https://support.google.com/webmasters/bin/answer.py?hl=en&answer=44231 it says:
"Generally, once you have verified one version of the domain, we can easily verify the other using the original verification method. However, if you've removed the file, meta tag, or DNS record, you'll need to repeat the verification steps."However, I can't see a way of Google verifying the non www versions using the same code. When I added a non www version to WMT it gives me new code. The www. site has meta tag with verify-v1 but the new code generated for the non www. is meta name="google-site-verification".
Do I just try and verify the non www. as if it were an unconnected site?
-
The first thing you will need to do is add the opposite www version of the site you have already verified to Google WMT.
For instance. If you have already verified example.co.uk you'll need to add a new site for www.example.co.uk
If the verification code is already on the site you should be good to go by clicking verify. If however, it is not, you can add it with the instructions given on WMT.
The end result is that you will have two version of your site in WMT dashboard. the www and the non www version of your site. Let me know if you need a few screenshots or more info.
-
Thanks.
We have stopped using a few old domains which are the ones I am trying to change the address of.
The new domain is one we were already using anyway.
How do I now verify the non www versions of the old domains? What do I need to ask IT to actually do?
-
I generally only submit a change of address if my root domain is changing. If you are doing a compete root domain change (ie. example.co.uk to website.co.uk) I would highly recommend doing a change of address.
If however you are just getting this error you'll need to verify both the www and non www versions of your site. You won't be able to set a geographic target, preferred version and other features until you do this.
Got a burning SEO question?
Subscribe to Moz Pro to gain full access to Q&A, answer questions, and ask your own.
Browse Questions
Explore more categories
-
Moz Tools
Chat with the community about the Moz tools.
-
SEO Tactics
Discuss the SEO process with fellow marketers
-
Community
Discuss industry events, jobs, and news!
-
Digital Marketing
Chat about tactics outside of SEO
-
Research & Trends
Dive into research and trends in the search industry.
-
Support
Connect on product support and feature requests.
Related Questions
-
Change in Meta Description - 320 to 160
Why google showing only 160 Char, instead of 320? Is there any official announcement from @Google? I have noticed form last week in Google SERP, Description is showing 160 again. Please help me with valuable information.
Technical SEO | | HuptechWebseo3 -
Https - should I do change of address on WMT
We have added a SSL cert to our site - Should I submit change of address on WMT and submit a new sitemap from the http?
Technical SEO | | webguru20140 -
How to change the woocommerce product page permalink
Sorry Posting it again. How I can change the product URL structure. Please let me know how to fix woocommerce permalink in wordpress. My current URL is http://www.ayurjeewan.com/product/divya-ashmarihar-kwath and I want to like (only post name) http://www.ayurjeewan.com/divya-ashmarihar-kwath Attached is the screenshot of option available. qa2hZMP.jpg
Technical SEO | | JordanBrown0 -
Wordpress Hatom problem
Hi, in Webmaster Tools i receive the following warnings: hatom-feedhatom-entry:Warning: At least one field must be set for HatomEntry.Warning: Missing required field "entry-title".Warning: Missing required field "updated".Warning: Missing required hCard "author".I googled a few strategies how to solve this problem but is it for SEO purpose really necessary to edit Theme core code to satisfy google's warnings?
Technical SEO | | reisefm0 -
Canonical: Is this a problem?
Hi!!
Technical SEO | | petrospan
I am running a small wordpress website and i have a question because i am a litle confusic about Rel Canonical notices in the crawl diagnostics! I have the seo by yoast and i have fix all the canonical url for my page, but i take notices. I must worried about it or is something that inform me that everyting is ok? rel.jpg rel.jpg0 -
Facebook likes for a blog - are posts or root domain more important?
I've just added the facebook plugin for my wordpress blog. I've activated the like buttons on each post and I share the posts on facebook - so when someone likes it on facebook, it reflects on the blog post. In my blog sidebar I've added the Like widget. I can either put the URL for it as my blog root domain (not many likes yet) or my facebook page (lots of likes, so more impressive) I've been hearing about Likes etc counting towards SEO, so I'm wondering if anyone can tell me whether developing Likes for my blog root domain will have any significant benefit over the Likes I am getting for the individual posts?
Technical SEO | | AISFM0 -
Problem With Video Sitemap Becuase All Videos Are in he Same URL
Hi, I created a video sitemap and now I'm getting an error on webmaster tools because the location for some of the videos is the same. It says: Duplicate URL - This URL is a duplicate of another URL in the sitemap. Please remove it and resubmit. What can I do if all my videos are located in the same URL?? Thanks
Technical SEO | | Tug-Agency0