Slug redirect

[nunob.staredition]

Hi All,

I'm facing a small yet big problem on one of my sites that I'll try to explain:

I have a site with thousands of URL's, all with an odd link structure, like index.php/modules?=name=Video , etc I want to build a proper link structure and for that I'll have to replace that links. My question is:

1. Will I have any relevant SEO problem to do 301 redirects from the old links to the new?
2. Should I do it all at the same time or do it by parts?
3. What options do I have to avoid give not found errors / redirects for the old links?

Thanks for the help.

[Kurt_Steinbrueck]

Hi Antoine,

Since this is a really big project, you may want to consider outsourcing it.  The biggest part of the project is creating a database (or spreadsheet) of all the old page URLs and their new corresponding page URLs.  That work doesn't require much skill.  So, you may be able to save tons of time hiring a contractor through odesk (or some other site) and it wouldn't have to cost a lot.

Kurt Steinbrueck
OurChurch.Com

[nunob.staredition]

Hi,

Thanks for your feedback.
It's going to be a little hard to redirect all at the same time because the structure is really, really big, however we will proceed accordingly.

Cheers!

[CleverPhD]

Ditto on those points.

[Kurt_Steinbrueck]

I agree with Lesley for all three.

-Kurt Steinbrueck

[Clickatell2]

Hi answers to questions below:

1. Will I have any relevant SEO problem to do 301 redirects from the old links to the new?

• If you using 301 redirects to new URLs you should not have any issues, its time consuming and no easy work around since you need to point old urls to new ones but definitely wont loose any rankings.

2. Should I do it all at the same time or do it by parts?

• If you are changing all the urls then do it at once.

3. What options do I have to avoid give not found errors / redirects for the old links?

• Use webmaster tools to assist you with not found errors. I have switched from a static html php site to Wordpress about 2 years ago with approx 2000 pages indexed. Im still receiving not found errors therefore its a good idea to monitor this daily and fix asap.