Negatives to using custom sub domain?
-
So - being photographers, we have our main website, but also, we use a hosted service for all our client galleries (www.zenfolio.com)
So, in effect, we have two websites:
- Our main informational website
- Our client gallery/proofing website
The client gallery has back links to our main website - so, when people are viewing their gallery, they can easily get back to our main site. We also have thrown a few of our preferred keywords in there for SEO purposes. The gallery has thousands of pages which link back to the main site.
So.. the client gallery URL can either be: http://ourbusinessname.zenfolio.com OR we can have it so it uses our own domain, such as: http://gallery.ourbusinessname.com
The question is, which domain name will benefit the back links more? Our custom subdomain (which links to our main domain) or, using the Zenfolio domain (which is external to our site). Or, is there no real difference either way?
Or.. do I make no sense?
-
Thanks everyone.
So - it is all agreed that using my own domain (in some form) is definitely the best option. That's good.
**In regards to Sub Domain V Folder. **
Before tackling that issue fully - Just to be clear, the Gallery is a hosted solution, so, I can not just pick it up and move it to wherever I like.
I can however, create a CNAME record and redirect it that way. BUT Im no expert in this area - I know I can use a CNAME record to redirect to a sub domain, but can you redirect to a folder?
-
There is a big debate of ourbusinessname.com/xxxx and sub-domains but let's not get into that
The challenge with our not discussing the topic is it leaves blitzna with trying to make a decision, and the results of his decision will differ depending on which route he chooses.
If he chooses the subdomain path: http://gallery.ourbusinessname.com, then he actually gains no ranking benefit at all from the move, and he will lose ranking based on the juice lost from the 301 redirect. There may still be financial benefits from not having to support two distinct websites, but that is not related to ranking.
If he chooses the folder approach: http://ourbusinessname.com/gallery then the main site will increase their DA (assuming the gallery has backlinks or will gain backlinks) which offers a benefit for both the original site and the gallery.
What advantage do you see being offered from choosing the subdomain approach in this instance?
-
I agree with most of what Mysterio shared, but I prefer a third option that was not mentioned.
If your current site is ourbusinessname.com then I prefer your gallery to be at ourbusinessname.com/gallery
By combining both sites under the same domain, you will combine your Domain Authority from both sites, which should offer a ranking benefit to both sites.
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
-
Does a similar article title bring negative impact to seo?
I am wondering if a similar article title may bring negative impact to seo, such as: 1. The benefits of eating potatoes 2. The benefits of eating tomatoes 2. The benefits of eating apples. Any idea? Thanks.
On-Page Optimization | | tangjianghuan0 -
Linking back to the homepage im trying to rank - Using exact match anchor? Linking from footer?
Hello, Our site is an basically advertisements / listings website. Structure is as following <last 200="" adds=""> (homepage trying to rank) < category 1 > < category 1 > < category 1 > < category 1 > < category 1 ></last> My question - each of the categories links back within the menu back to homepage. The link text currently is last 200 adds. Can i use exact match anchor? Or should i use just last 200 ads? The issue is that one of my categorys (category 1) has already the exact match anchor im trying to rank for. So i can not use the same to link back to homepage. Im worried that google does not see any exact keyword anchor texts back to homepage hence will rank my homepage with lower strenght for that keyword . Im also worried that the category 1 page might now compete with the main homepage for this word (even tho at the moment category itself does not rank for this keyword) Can i link from footer back to homepage with an alternative keyword then to give some "context" to google more? Would this be spamming?
On-Page Optimization | | advertisingcloud0 -
I have a site with jokes. What schema markup could I use?
My site is about jokes. I wonder what schema markup could I use to be more visible in the search results.
On-Page Optimization | | MichaelJanik0 -
How defined does the anchor text need to be for a domain url?
Ok, I'm looking to clean up my domain with irrelevant Anchor text linking to specific URL's. Whether, it's my root domain or a particular product URL. I'm finding a wide variety of terms (anchor text) pointing to my homepage, category and finally my product pages. Example, the Anchor text "Paragon Print Systems" is pointing to my homepage "barcodefactory.com" does this hurt my homepage enough to either have the link/anchor text removed from linking to my homepage? thanks much!, Warren
On-Page Optimization | | Warren.W0 -
Will pushing a visitor to a conversion page hosted on a 3rd-party domain hurt the landing page ranking
Had an interesting question from a client. The client has a page that is optimized for a specific term. The goal of the page is to push users to sign-up for a trial. The trial registration (conversion) page is hosted by a third-party. Will pushing users to the conversion page cannibalize the SEO authority of the landing page. My reflexive answer is to say no, but now am not so sure.
On-Page Optimization | | infoblue0 -
How to use canonical with mobile site to main site
I am pretty sure that the mobile version of the main site needs to be the same canonical link from what I understand. I am trying to find good docuementation that supports this. Even better if its from Google or Matt Cutts. I have a main domain like http://www.mydomain.com the mobile version of this is http://www.mydomain.com/m/ Should my canonical be rel="canonical" href="http://www.mydomain.com"/> for both these pages?
On-Page Optimization | | cbielich0 -
SEO pluses/minuses of Content used in pop-up windows
I am curious to know what advantages/disadvantages there are to placing content in pop-up windows ( lightbox, etc.). My understanding is that the content can be heavily optimized, but if a user lands on the page where the content is, how will they find it if it is hidden within a pop-up? I guess it is more a of a user experience issue rather than an SEO issue? or not? Hopefully that makes sense. Gary
On-Page Optimization | | Apptixweb0 -
Can A Blog post impact negatively on Google rankings?
We used to rank fairly highly on Google for our preferred search term, but once we introduced a blog (or rather the blog excerps) onto our home page we dropped from page 1 to page 3 for our preferred search term. We have made the assumption this may be down to diluting of keywords and therefor the key phrase or message to the Search Engines was not as clear as it was before. Is this generally accepted as being the case ? If so - should each and every blog post excerpt start with the key seo search phrase to maintain the integrity of that search phrase ? or perhaps even better still is it best to have the blog on a dedicated page only with no excerpts on the home page ? We are using Wordpress and also using multiple categories within the blog - is it perhaps best to just have all blog postings on the one page and use TAGS more often? Thanksing you in advance.
On-Page Optimization | | kiswebsltd0
