The issue here was with my long-time client Grillo Services. A few years ago, they created a separate WordPress site for their Dumpster Rentals business segment while keeping their main site.
Over time, the original site was used more, ranked higher in searches, and it became logical to consolidate the two.
Sometimes you have to try things out. Sometimes it works out, sometimes it doesn’t. I’ve had a few of these types of jobs lately. My advice: Keep it all in “The Mothership”. Don’t spread thin. Don’t create multiples to manage when you can have 1 really powerful presence.
Merging an older site back into the main site helps avoid redundant and duplicate information, simplifies maintenance and security, especially in e-commerce contexts, and enhances local SEO. Also reduces costs for upgrading customizations, subscriptions like hosting and WooCommerce plugins. The main site’s longevity ensured it consistently performed better in search results compared to the spinoff site.
The process:
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Review the installation, existing ad campaigns, social media etc for references to the 2nd site. Make any notes for them to take action on ahead of the merge. Once these internal issues are addressed we then proceed.
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Back up, update all themes, scripts, plugins
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Save the 2nd site homepage template in Cornerstone as a .tco (Template)
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Import template into the existing site, carrying over the specific creative assets that were created for the second site.
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Install 301 redirect plugin.
TIP: A 301 redirect is a permanent URL redirect that tells search engines and browsers the original page has moved permanently. It preserves SEO rankings and directs users to the new URL, maintaining search engine visibility and traffic.
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Push all live links from duplicate site to the new location on original site
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Make a few menu adjustments
- Completely disable and delete all plugins, themes other than 301 redirects on 2nd site and update Wordpress. This ensures that while we get set to terminate hosting, nothing can be compromised.
- Prepare to terminate the hosting environment, domain name. Allow a bit of time for the 301’s to take hold.