Member Avatar for tadisaus2

Hello Friends,

I like to thank you for reading my post today. I have one question about converting 2 of my 4+ years old sites into 1.

My 2 sites are PR4 and PR3. Both are free dating sites. I like to keep PR4 site.

What options should I select? What option is good in SEO to double traffic for PR4 site?

1. Redirect PR3 site to PR4 site.
2. Keep PR4 site intact, create some pages on PR3 site to link to PR4 site.
For example: on PR3 site, create some links on this site, and link to PR4 site.
Using PR4 keywords such as 'free dating sites', 'free dating service', when user click on these links on PR3 site, they will go to PR4 site.
Then, imgrate members from PR3 site into PR4 site

In this case, is my PR4 site considered to be duplicated content?

Any help is appreciated.

Thanks.

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  • Latest Post Latest Post by mauconline

Dani AI

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Short answer: option 1 — do a proper server-side 301 redirect from the PR3 site to the PR4 site and consolidate content on the PR4 domain. That is the cleanest way to preserve link value and avoid creating thin “funnel” or doorway pages; it is the approach Google documents for site merges and domain moves. See Google’s site-move and redirect guidance for the exact mechanics. Google: Site moves and redirects (developers.google.com)

Practical checklist (high level): crawl both sites and export all live URLs; map each old URL to the best matching new URL (1:1 when possible); implement server-side permanent redirects (301) from old -> new; avoid redirect chains; update internal links, XML sitemaps and robots rules; verify both sites in Search Console and submit a Change of Address if you are moving the whole domain; keep redirects in place (Google recommends keeping them for at least a year and preferably longer) and monitor traffic/coverage after the move. Redirects and site-move steps (developers.google.com)

About duplicate-content and the “linking-from-PR3” idea: if you leave near-identical pages on both sites without redirects, Google may pick one canonical and ignore the other — or treat the extra pages as low-value duplicates. Using PR3 to host thin pages that exist only to link into PR4 (keyword-heavy anchors or template pages) risks being seen as doorway/link-scheme behavior; that can hurt rather than help. Prefer redirects or true unique content and use rel=canonical only when you cannot redirect. Canonicalization guidance · Doorway pages warning. (developers.google.com)

Operations and monitoring notes: expect short-term ranking/traffic fluctuation while Google processes redirects; test a small section first if you’re unsure; use Search Console URL Inspection and the Links report to confirm signals moved; outreach to any high-value referring sites and ask them to update their links (helps speed recovery). Don’t chase old public “PR” numbers — the Toolbar PageRank metric was removed years ago, so focus on real signals (Search Console, organic sessions, conversions, backlink quality). On Toolbar PageRank being retired. (searchengineland.com)

Notes tied to the thread: ’s instinct to redirect was sound. — follow the mapping -> 301 -> monitor workflow above and avoid adding thin funnel pages on the old domain.

Member Avatar for mauconline

I would choose option 1 as your best bet. The other options 'seem' to me, would trigger a negative reaction from the big G.

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