How to create 301 redirect in wordpress

How to Create 301 Redirects in WordPress

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Are you currently using WordPress on your new website? Have you been noticing broken links or 404 errors? It may be time to create some 301 redirects. To start, “.htaccess” is a configuration file for web servers running Apache Web Server. When a .htaccess file is placed in a directory which is in turn ‘loaded via the Apache Web Server’, then the .htaccess file is detected and executed by the Apache Web Server. For SEO, a .htaccess file something you are going to have to get used to. From editing to even creating. Although, many easy backends, like WordPress, help more than you think with SEO. Plug-ins like ‘Yoast SEO’ can help you access files such as ‘Robots.txt’ or ‘.htaccess’.

The main reason to edit a .htaccess file is for 301 redirects. A 301 redirect is a permanent redirect which passes ‘link juice’ (ranking power) to the new redirected page. You’re going to need to do this if you are seeing broken links via Webmaster tools or noticeable on the front-end. As an SEO, redirects are your bread and butter. Whenever you change a URL, it needs to be redirected to the new URL. Here’s a plugin I personally use to create 301 Redirects in WordPress.

WordPress plugins to Use

If you’re using WordPress, you going to want to use a WordPress plugin for redirects. Not only is it easier to create, but it’s also easier to manage. The best redirect plugin that I’m currently using is ‘Quick Page/Post Redirect Plugin’. It allows you to easily and quickly create redirects to any of your broken links.

Having used this plug-in for a while, sometimes it doesn’t work. (usually based on the host of the website). When these don’t work, I have to go and create the redirect via .htaccess file.

Create via .htaccess

Sometimes redirects may not work properly with some WordPress plug-ins. If you find yourself in this position, you’re going to want to create the redirects manually in the .htaccess file.

There two ways to access the .htaccess file on a WordPress website.

FTP login

FTP login is the best way to approach this if you have access to that information.

Yoast SEO plug-in

The is the easier way to access the .htaccess file in the WordPress backend. This a method used when you don’t have login information to the FTP provided by the host of your website.

Create a site-wide redirect via .htaccess

If you’re having an issue where you need to redirect a whole site to another site, you can do that in the .htaccess file as well. For example, if you need to redirect www.something.com to www.somewhere.com, it is possible if the site files are in the same root folder of the website.

Alright, so there you have it. These are the best ways to redirect WordPress websites. If you have any questions or concerns, go ahead and leave a comment below. Be sure to browse our site for more helpful web tutorials from Extima Web Development.

The End of Intrusive Pop-Ups is Near

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online marketingWhile they’ve become a staple of online marketing, we all know how annoying pop-ads can be—especially on a mobile device. They overtake your entire screen and are difficult to make go away. Now Google is taking matters into their own hands by penalizing pages with these intrusive pop-ups, formally known as interstitials. Web pages that do not provide a smooth transition from search results to content will not rank as highly as those where content is easily accessible.

The thought behind this move is to improve the user experience and make mobile searches more efficient. Google announced that penalties would commence after January 10, 2017.

What are Intrusive Interstitials?

Google’s Webmaster Central blog defines three types of interstitials that will be penalized from now on.

1. A Pop-Up That Covers a Site’s Main Content
This is the type of annoying interstitial that hides a page’s main content from you. It may pop up immediately or a few seconds or longer after you enter the site. This type of interstitial requires some sort of action from you to get rid of it and access the content again. In the past, it was a mainstay of online marketing, as it was a solid way to capture leads. These pop-ups will now cause a site to be penalized and will demote its ranking in Google searches.

2. The Standalone.
This type of interstitial locks all of the content on a page and must be dismissed before you can access the site. This is now considered a red flag to Google and can quickly affect your bounce rate, as many visitors will immediately leave the site rather than taking action to access the content, especially mobile users.

3. A Pop-Up With Content Inlined Underneath the Fold
In this example, an above-the-fold part of the page looks like a standalone, but the original content is actually inlined underneath it.

Which Pop-Ups Can Still be Used?

If you do choose to use an interstitial on your site, make sure it doesn’t block mobile visitors from accessing your content. The types that are permitted on a WordPress site include the following:

1. Pop-ups used for age verification or to inform visitors of a legal notice or cookie usage.

2. Banners that are easy to dismiss and occupy a small amount of the screen, approximately 10 to 15 percent. Some good examples are the app install banners provided by Chrome.

3. Banners appearing in the sidebar.

4. Login dialogs for sites that feature private, unindexable content.

If you use any of the newly-banned forms of intrusive pop-ups, it may be best to turn them off now, at the very least for mobile users. The good news is, if you used plugins to create pop-ups, many of these will offer updates with Google-approved options. Either way, this new Google announcement will result in an improved user experience and may usher in creative new ways for content to be delivered online.

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