When changing a domain name in WordPress, it’s important to do it correctly to avoid any negative impact on your website’s performance and search engine optimization (SEO).

Whether you’re rebranding, consolidating multiple websites, or simply looking for a better domain name, this guide will provide the steps to make the transition smooth and hassle-free.

And if you’re thinking about also changing your hosting provider, take a look at our Wordpress hosting provider recommendations.

Key Highlights

• Preparation is Key: Begin by creating a backup of your website and testing the new domain in a staging environment
• Update WordPress Settings: Change the domain name in your WordPress settings and update URLs in the database to ensure everything works correctly
• Redirect Old URLs: Preserve your SEO rankings by setting up 301 redirects from the original domain to the new domain
• Update External Links: Update any external links pointing to your website with the new domain name to avoid broken links
• Thorough Testing is Crucial: Test your website thoroughly to ensure everything works correctly after the domain name change, and keep your audience informed about the change
• Monitor your website’s performance and address any issues that arise

Preparing to Change Your Domain Name

Changing your domain name can significantly impact your website’s search engine rankings and traffic. If you plan to switch to a new domain name, it’s important to prepare beforehand to minimize the impact on your website’s performance.

Taking the necessary steps can ensure a smooth transition and prevent any negative consequences- such as a drop in search engine rankings or a loss of traffic.

Here are some key steps to take before changing your domain name:

Choose a New Domain Name

When choosing a new domain name, it’s important to pick a name that aligns with your brand and is easy to remember and spell. It’s also essential to ensure the domain name is available for registration.

One way to develop ideas for a new domain name is to consider using a domain name generator. These generators can provide suggestions based on keywords related to your brand or business. These tools can help you find a domain name that fits your needs.

Update Your Content

Once you’ve chosen a new domain name, it’s essential to update all the content on your website to reflect the change. This includes updating links, images, and internal references from your current domain name.

Updating your content can ensure that visitors can find the correct pages on your site and that search engines can properly index your new domain name.

Redirect Old URLs

To avoid losing search engine rankings and traffic, setting up redirects from your old domain name to your new domain name is crucial. A 301 redirect is a permanent redirect that sends users and search engines from the old URL to the new one.

This helps preserve your website’s SEO and ensures visitors are redirected to the correct pages. Setting up 301 redirects can be done through your website’s hosting provider or by using a plugin if you’re using a Content Management System (CMS) like WordPress.

Notify Search Engines

Search engines use complex algorithms to determine which pages should appear in search results for a particular query. They crawl and index web pages, analyzing factors like content relevance, quality, and authority.

When you change your domain name, it can affect how search engines work on your website. Notifying search engines about the change can help them understand that your website has moved to a new domain and preserve your SEO efforts.

Update Your Social Media and Backlinks

Social media and backlinks are two crucial components of a website’s online presence. However, as your information changes, it must be kept up to date. Updating your social media profiles and backlinks can reflect the change to your domain name and help your visitors find you on all platforms.

Test Your Site

The last thing you want when changing your website’s domain name is to lose your valuable audience due to a malfunctioning website. Ensuring everything is in order includes testing all your images, links, and pages. But don’t let this daunting task discourage you; there are tools available to make it easier.

The Google Search Console is designed to assist you in making sure everything is working as it should be. It’s user-friendly and will notify you of any issues or broken links preventing users from accessing your valuable content.

Changing Your Domain Name in WordPress

Changing your domain name in WordPress may seem challenging, but you can easily do it with the right tools. Here is a step-by-step guide to help you change your domain name on WordPress.

Backup Your Website

Backing up your website will ensure you have a copy of your website files and database, which you can restore in case something goes wrong during the domain name change.

There are several ways to backup your website, including using a backup plugin or your hosting provider’s backup tool. Some popular backup plugins for WordPress include UpdraftPlus, BackupBuddy, and VaultPress. These plugins make it easy to create a website backup with just a few clicks.

You can also manually download a copy of your website’s files and database and store them in a safe place, such as your computer or an external hard drive. This way, you’ll have a backup copy that you can use to restore your website if needed.

Update Your DNS

The Domain Name System (DNS) is a vital component of how the internet works, allowing users to access websites by translating domain names, such as www.example.com, into IP addresses that computers can understand.

It’s important to update your DNS regularly, as it allows you to point your domain name to a new website. This process can be done through your domain registrar or hosting provider. You must also keep your DNS up to date to direct traffic to your new domain.

By updating your DNS, you can ensure that your website remains accessible to your visitors and that your domain name always points to the right location.

Update Your WordPress Address and Site Address

To change the domain name in WordPress, the first step is to update both the WordPress Address (URL) and Site Address (URL) settings in the admin dashboard. Here’s how to do it:

• Log in to your WordPress dashboard
• Navigate to Settings > General
• In the WordPress Address (URL) and Site Address (URL) fields, update the domain name to your new domain name
• Click the “Save Changes” button to save the new settings

Once you’ve updated these settings, your website should be accessible via the new domain name. However, you may need to clear your browser cache or wait a few minutes for the changes to take effect.

Update Your Permalinks

Permalinks are the permanent URLs for your pages and posts, and they play a crucial role in search engine optimization. By updating your permalink structure to reflect your new domain name, you can ensure better visibility and accessibility for your website.

Here’s how to update your permalinks:

1. Log in to your WordPress dashboard
2. Navigate to Settings > Permalinks
3. Choose your desired permalink structure “name” or “Custom Structure” options, and update the domain name to your new domain name. For example, if your old domain name was “www.example.com” and your new domain name is “www.newexample.com,” you would update the permalink structure from “www.example.com/%postname%/” to “www.newexample.com/%postname%/”
4. Click the “Save Changes” button to save the new permalink structure

Update Your Content

After changing the domain name, you must align the website’s content with the new domain, especially if you’ve mentioned the brand name on your website. Failing to update your content may result in misleading content, broken links, missing images, and other errors that can harm your website’s SEO and user experience.

Redirect Old URLs

Redirecting your old URLs to your new site not only helps your visitors easily find your website but also helps search engine robots find you’re new URL.

Setting up 301 redirects can be frustrating, but with the help of plugins like Redirection, you can easily put those worries to rest. Not only will this redirect your old URLs, but it also helps speed up your site when visitors are trying to access pages.

Notify Search Engines

To let search engines know about your new domain name, use their webmaster tools to send an indexing request. The search engine bots will crawl your website and index its pages.

Here are three simple steps to take when notifying search engines of your new domain name:

1. Sign Up for Webmaster Tools – Sign up with the respective webmaster tools offered by popular search engines like Google and Bing. These tools provide vital information regarding how your website is indexed in the SERPs and offer a direct way to communicate with search engine crawlers.
2. Submit your Website – After signing up, you can submit your website’s individual pages to Google and Bing. This process is simple and shouldn’t take more than a few minutes to complete. Remember that submitting your site doesn’t guarantee indexing.
3. Optimize Your Site – To maximize your chances of getting indexed and ranked, you must ensure that your website is properly optimized for the search engines. This includes ensuring that all your pages have unique titles and meta descriptions, optimized images and redirects set up.
4. Build Links – Building quality links to your website can also help increase your search engine visibility. Quality links come from websites with high domain authority, meaning they have a lot of authority in the eyes of search engines. You can build links through guest blogging, link exchanges, and directory listings.

Update Your Social Media and Backlinks

With new domain names come new SEO strategies, and ensuring that all of your online platforms reflect your newest change guarantees that visitors can always find you. Without updated social media and backlinks, potential visitors may be led astray, and your website’s integrity could suffer.

By making these simple adjustments, you can do your part to keep a strong, consistent online presence. Here are a few ways to update your social media and backlinks:

• Ensure all the accounts associated with your website are updated with the new domain name. This includes any blog, podcast, or web page you may have associated with your old domain name.
• Update any bio links you have on other online platforms like LinkedIn or Facebook with your new website’s URL
• Check all of the backlinks you have pointing to your website and ensure they are pointing to the correct domain name. You may need to contact the webmasters hosting these links and request them to update them
• If you’ve got any outdated content, update it with the new domain name
• Make sure any tracking tags, analytics scripts, or other third-party tools are updated with the new website’s URL.

Test Your Site

You’ve just made the big switch to a new domain name, but before you relax, it’s important to test your site to ensure everything is working smoothly. After all, broken links or missing pages can deter potential customers and harm your brand’s credibility.

Luckily, there are tools available to make the process easier. Google Search Console is a useful tool that can help identify any errors or broken links on your site, ensuring that you are providing the best user experience possible.

Here are three ways you can use Google Search Console to test your new domain:

1. Submit Your Site to Google
2. Monitor Your Site’s Performance
3. Analyze Your Search Traffic

Updating Your Website on the New Domain

When you successfully change your website’s domain name, it’s important to update your website to ensure that it’s functioning correctly on the new domain. Here are some steps you can take to update your website after changing your domain name:

Verify Your Website

The first step is to verify your website on Google Search Console and Bing Webmaster Tools using the new domain name. This will help you monitor the performance of your website and track any errors. To do this, you’ll need to add the new domain name to your Google and Bing accounts. Next, you will have to verify ownership of the new domain name.

Update Your Analytics

Update your Google Analytics to track your website’s traffic with the new domain. For this, you’ll need to update the website URL in your Google Analytics account.

Update Your Sitemap

Generate a new sitemap for your website and submit it to search engines. This will help search engines crawl your website and index your pages correctly. You can use a sitemap generator tool to create a new sitemap and then submit it to Google Search Console or Bing Webmaster Tools.

Check Your Internal Links

Check all the internal links on your website to ensure they’re pointing to the correct pages on the new domain. You can use a broken link checker to identify any broken links. Once you identify broken links, update them with the correct URLs.

Update Your External Links

If you have links that point to your website, you must request website owners or administrators to update them using your new domain name. This will ensure you do not miss out on prospective traffic.

Monitor Your Traffic

You must monitor your website’s traffic closely after the domain name changes to ensure no significant drops in traffic. If you notice any significant drops, check for errors or issues affecting your website’s performance. You can also monitor your website’s search engine rankings to ensure that the domain name change does not negatively impact them.

Tips to Maintain Your SEO Rankings

Altering your domain name can have a noteworthy influence on the SEO rankings of your website. Nevertheless, you can take a few initiatives to limit any adverse effects and sustain your rankings. Here are some guidelines that can assist you in upholding your SEO rankings after modifying your domain name:

Set up 301 Redirects

A 301 redirect impacts SEO in a multitude of ways. Primarily, it involves redirecting traffic from your old domain to your new one, ensuring that any links pointing to your old domain will be redirected to the new domain. This ensures that visitors can still find your website and that broken links will not negatively affect your search engine rankings.

To set up these redirects, you can use a plugin like “Redirection” if you’re using WordPress. This plugin will enable you to redirect all your old pages to their new corresponding pages on your new domain. You can also manually edit your .htaccess file to redirect all traffic from your old domain to your new one.

• It’s necessary to redirect all important pages on your website, including your homepage.
• The transfer of link equity can be as high as 99%.
• A 301 redirect can help ensure that your backlink profile remains intact and your rankings don’t take a hit.

Update Your Internal Links

To update your internal links, you can start by using the search and replace function in your website’s content management system (CMS). This will enable you to replace all mentions of your old domain name with your new one. Additionally, you can manually check your website’s navigation and footer to ensure all links point to the new domain.

You can also use a link checker tool to ensure all links are updated on your site. This tool will scan your website and identify any broken links or links that still point to your old domain name.

It’s essential to update all internal links to prevent visitors from encountering broken links, which can negatively affect their user experience and cause them to leave your website. Additionally, broken links can harm your rankings, as search engines prioritize websites with high-quality content and user experience.

Update Your Backlinks

It’s crucial to identify all the backlinks pointing to your website and contact the website owners to update the links to the new domain. Fortunately, tools like Ahrefs or Majestic can help you do this quickly and easily and prioritize backlinks from high-authority websites.

By focusing on these important links, you can make the most of your website’s SEO and ensure that it’s sending the right message to search engines and potential visitors.

Update Your Social Media Profiles

Updating your social media profiles to reflect the new domain name is important to ensure that visitors can find you on all platforms and that your social media authority is maintained. Here are some steps to follow:

1. Update your profile picture and cover photo: Use your new branding to update your profile picture and cover photo on all social media platforms
2. Update your bio: Update your bio to include your new domain name and any relevant keywords that will help your profiles appear higher in search results
3. Update your website link: Make sure to update the website link in your profile to the new domain name
4. Update your social media handles: If your social media handles include your old domain name, you can update them to your new domain name to maintain consistency

Update Your Business

You need to update your business listings on Google My Business, Yelp, and other directories to ensure local customers find your website easily. Here are some steps to follow:

1. Update your business name: Update your business name to include the new domain name
2. Update your address and phone number: Make sure your address and phone number are up-to-date across all directories
3. Update your website link: Update your website link to the new domain name
4. Add the new logo: Update your business photos to include your new branding
5. Respond to reviews: Respond to any reviews that mention your new domain address and thank customers for their support

Monitor Your Rankings

Here are some steps you can take to monitor your rankings:

• Track your keyword rankings: One of the most effective ways to monitor your website’s rankings is to track your keyword rankings. You can use tools like Ahrefs, SEMrush, or Moz. These tools will help you monitor how your keywords perform over time.
• Use Google Analytics: Google Analytics is a powerful tool that can help you track your website’s traffic and monitor how users interact with your site. You can use Google Analytics to monitor your organic traffic, bounce rate, and other important metrics. If you notice a significant drop in traffic or other metrics, it could be a sign of an issue with your rankings.
• Use Google Search Console: Google Search Console is another important tool that can help you monitor your website’s rankings. It provides valuable insights into how Google crawls and indexes your website. You can use it to monitor your organic search traffic, click-through rates, and other important metrics.

Conclusion

Changing a domain name in WordPress is surprisingly simple. This step becomes even more straightforward if you are working with a custom domain. With the help of third-party tools and manual input type, you can easily transfer your current domain name to a new one in just a few clicks. Be sure to consider factors like branding and SEO when selecting your next domain name.

Additionally, make sure to take the necessary steps to keep your website secure once the new URL has been entered into WordPress. It’s also important to remember that while this process is not particularly difficult, it is better to hire experienced website builders, like Host Advice, who know exactly what steps to take when making a change like this. Hire the best website builders for success today!

Next Steps: What Now?

• Read About Wix to WordPress Free Website Conversion Methods
• Learn to Install and Set up WordPress Manually
• Explore the Fundamentals to Build Your Website
• Learn the Pros and Cons of Shared Hosting
• What is a Top Level Domain

Learn More About Changing Domain Name

• How To Change a Domain Name in 6 Simple Steps
• How to Change Domain Name on Wix: Step-by-Step Guide
• What Happens to SEO When Changing Domain Name & How to Preserve Your Traffic
• How to Change Domain Name on Shopify in 5 Easy Steps
• Changing Built-in and Custom Domain Names on Squarespace
• Changing Domain Name on GoDaddy: Everything You Need to Know
• Changing Primary and WordPress Website Domains on Bluehost