Adding Wordpress On Separate Server w/ subdomain = SEO Issues?
-
I have a client that wants to setup wordpress for their business site. However, they are really concerned about the load time a wordpress install creates on their site in the root. So, they want to setup wordpress with a sub-domain on a separate server. For example:
As far as SEO is concerned with the main site, what are the advantages and disadvantages for using a separate server w/ subdomain?
-
I would be jumping to a new host right away!
-
I'm trying to decide the exact same thing - but less because of performance and more because our server cannot handle the most updated version of wordpress.
I would classify that as a performance issue. WordPress is the world's most popular CMS. Most hosting companies offer an auto-install package for the latest major version of WP. When you say your server "can't handle" WP, I presume it requires an update of PHP to meet the minimum requirements. If that is the case simply ask your host to update the server.
I am not aware of any major host who's server hardware cannot easily handle WordPress. If the software can't handle the latest version, it is usually a very fast, simple and free to update to the latest software versions required for WP. In the unlikely event your host is not willing to comply, change hosts.
-
I'm trying to decide the exact same thing - but less because of performance and more because our server cannot handle the most updated version of wordpress. It seems like keeping the blog on the main domain is best for SEO. Better for gathering incoming links, ect.
Are there any benefits at all to keeping the blog on a subdomain?
-
With respect to the performance issue, it comes down to a few possibilities:
-
something went wrong in the installation process
-
an independent issue arose with your server or host whose timing coincided with the WordPress install
-
there is an issue with the server itself which needs to be fixed
I would suggest troubleshooting the issue, determine the root cause and fix it rather then giving up on the idea.
To respond to your primary question, I first need to emphasize that whether you decide to locate the sub-domain on a separate server or the same server is completely irrelevant to SEO.
The subdomain would be it's own independent site. The main site would not benefit from links to the subdomain.
-
-
I would get a new host.
-
Thanks for responding. The client placed the WP blog on a test site within the same server and witnessed poor performance with the rest of the site. So, their concern is that will also happen with the main site.
The content on the blog most likely won't be considered 'high-value'. However, I want to make sure that the main site (root) will improve domain authority from inbound links to the blog.
In your opinion, will the inbound links to the blog help the domain authority of the main (root) site if the blog is in a subdomain on a separate server?
-
Thanks for the quick response.
The client has set up a wordpress install in a subfolder on a test site within the server. They noticed a fairly significant delay in load times with the rest of the test site.....that is their primary issue.
I guess my primary question is, will the main site (root) improve domain authority from inbound links to the blog if the blog is set up in a subdomain on a separate server?
-
With respect to SEO, the physical server involved makes no difference. I am making basic assumptions such as the other server is with the same host, does not have any major performance issues, etc.
In general you have the following advantages / disadvantages to consider when deciding whether to go with a subdomain vs a folder on your primary domain:
-
Any acquired links add value to your primary domain
-
Your blog would benefit from your primary domain's current Domain Authority
-
cookies and other data can be passed much easier within your current domain
-
many licenses apply on a domain basis and extra fees or licenses may be required for the subdomain
-
will this blog be used to cover topics directly related to the business? If so it would make more sense to have it on the primary domain. If this blog will cover personal topics or may branch into areas not related to the business, it would make more sense to separate it from the business site.
Wordpress can be installed in it's own directory so it's URL would be domain.com/blog. What specific performance concerns does your client have? It sounds like he may have had a bad experience once, or have heard some information that may not apply to his current situation. A properly configured wordpress install should not lead to load time issues for his existing site.
Further reading on the topic: http://www.seomoz.org/blog/understanding-root-domains-subdomains-vs-subfolders-microsites
-
-
If the wordpress site is going to be used for low-value content then a subdomain is probably OK. However, if the wordpress site will contain high value content that has the potential of attracting links then I would not place it in a subdomain. The reason: if the high value content is in a folder then the links into it will give strong benefit to the entire site, but if it is on a subdomain then those links will be of very little benefit to the main site.
If this was my site I would try two things.... First, I would place the WP blog in a folder and see exactly how it performs. You might be surprised. Second, if that does not work I would look for higher quality hosting.
Another thought... if the wordpress blog is not performing well there might be problems with the code or problems with the amount of processing that the host will allow. Wordpress blogs generally work well. Hosts are sometimes known to throttle processing.
I have a wordpress blog in a folder of my site. It is a very busy blog with thousands of posts and lots of traffic. Thousands of visitors per day. No issues in five years.
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
-
SEO advice on ecommerce url structure where categories contain "/c/"
Hi! We use Hybris as plattform and I would like input on which url to choose. We must keep "/c/" before the actual category. c stands for category. I.e. this current url format will be shortened and cleaned:
Technical SEO | | hampgunn
https://www.granngarden.se/Sortiment/Husdjur/Hund/Hundfoder-%26-Hundmat/c/hundfoder To either: a.
https://www.granngarden.se/husdjur/hund/hundfoder/c/hundfoder b.
https://www.granngarden.se/husdjur/hund/c/hundfoder (hundfoder means dogfood) The question is whether we should keep the duplicated category name (hundfoder) before the "/c/" or not. Will there be SEO disadvantages by removing the duplicate "hundfoder" before the "/c/"? I prefer the shorter version ofc, but do not want to jeopardize any SEO rankings or send confusing signals to search engines or customers due to the "/c/" breaking up the url breadcrumb. What do you guys say and prefer from the above alternatives? Thanks /Hampus0 -
Redirect of https:// to http:// without SSL. Possible or not?!
Good afternoon, smart dudes : ) I am here to ask for your help. I posted this question on google help forum and stackoverflow, but looks like people do not know the correct answer... QUESTION: We used to have a secured site, but recently purchased a separate reservation software that provides SSL (takes clients to a separate secured website) where they can fill out the reservation form. We cancelled our SSL (just think its a waste to pay $100 for securing plain text). Now i have so many links pointing to our secured site and i have no idea how to fix it! How do i redirect https://www.mysite.comto http://www.mysite.com.Also would like to mention that i already have redirect from non www to www domain (not sure if that matters): RewriteEngine onRewriteCond %{HTTP_HOST} ^mysite.com$ [NC]RewriteRule ^(.*)$ http://www.mysite.com/$1 [R=301,L]As i already mentioned....we do not have SSL!!!! None of those 301 redirect codes i found online work (you have to have SSL for the site to be redirected from https to http | currently i get an error - can't establish a secured connection to the server ). Is there anything i can do???? Or do i have to purchase SSL again?
Technical SEO | | JennaD140 -
How to fix this issue?
I redesign my website from Wix to HTML. Now URLs changed to _ http://www.spinteedubai.com/#!how-it-works/c46c To http://www.spinteedubai.com/how-it-works.html Same for all other pages. How I can fix this issue and both pages were also indexed in google.
Technical SEO | | AlexanderWhite0 -
Do I have panda issues?
Hi , I m looking for suggestions for my website i believe is suffering from the panda updates. Can someone point out what possible issues within the site that might be causing with recent panda updates? here is the link http://goo.gl/St3aP thanks nick.
Technical SEO | | orion680 -
Change e-commerce platform and domain name SEO issue.
Hi, We are looking to switch from Bigcommerce to either Magento or Shopify, but we have some concern about the redirecting of all URL and not sure where to help. Also, we are looking to remove "hyphen" www.ide-home.com.au in our domain name, again it is all about 301 redirecting. We need SEO expert to help us with all changes that minimize the effect on Google. Does anyone can suggest which company or who we can ask for help? Thanks very much.
Technical SEO | | ide-home020 -
Creating in-text links with ' 'target=_blank' - helping/hurting SEO!?!
Good Morning Mozzers, I have a question regarding a new linking strategy I'm trying to implement at my organization. We publish 'digital news magazines' that oftentimes have in-text links that point to external sites. More recently, the editorial department and me (SEO) conferred on some ways to reduce our bounce rate and increase time on page. One of the suggestions I offered is to add the 'target=_blank" attribute to all the links so that site visitors don't necessarily have to leave the site in order to view the link. It has, however, come to my attention that this can have some very negative effects on my SEO program, most notably, (fake or inaccurate) time(s) on-page. Is this an advisable way to create in-text links? Are there any other negative effects that I can expect from implementing such a strategy?
Technical SEO | | NiallSmith0 -
Fixing a wordpress 404 error for /feed and /comments/feed?
I have a wordpress site that does not have a blog currently. I'm getting a 404 for /feed and /comments/feed. Anyone know how I can fix?
Technical SEO | | DM50 -
Subdomain for a blog
My client has a site hosted with a company that allows very little customization including I am unable to add a blog to the site. As he has a fair amount of time & money invested in the site, he is reluctant to start over. So my question is this. His blog is currently hosted off site, would it benefit him if I had them add a cname or a record to show his blog at blog.mydomain.com? Or does Google recognize that it is still a separate site and treat it as such? Finally does it matter how they set it up cname, a record or redirect? This is definitely not my area of expertise (if that is not already obvious from the question!). Thanks for your help! Matthew
Technical SEO | | farlandlee0