Lanier: Yay or Nay

[gillumhouse]

Way to go...that's thinking outside the box...something that I've found very few Innkeepers do. Of course, not everyone is a webmaster, but anyone can do an easy template website...for not much money. My Michigan Inn Guide site has 28 different domain names that point to it.
That's another recommendation I would make.....for $10 each, buy some additional domain names that apply to your Inn and point them to your existing website. My Inn's site has probably half a dozen different domains. Different variations of your name, or "mytownbedandbreakfast", "northwestmystateinn" and the like. A MSN livesearch for "romantic b&b in michigan" brings my Michigan Inn Guide site up three times on page one, under three different domains. This doesn't happen as much on google (although it will help your existing site rank higher), but on MSN and Yahoo, it will list your site under multiple domains. Great results for virtually no additional work..

That's another recommendation I would make.....for $10 each, buy some additional domain names that apply to your Inn and point them to your existing website.
Sorry I disagree with this suggestion. It has the potential to do more harm than good.
Yahoo and MSN are lousy at dealing with multiple domains on the same site and the fact they list multiples of them is not a good reason to support multiple domains with the same site. This is one of the reasons why MSN has such a small market share of users (less than 10%), people don't like bumping into the same thing three times in one search page. If they intend to get better, they will fix it and the advantage will go away.
MSN and Yahoo combined, even with multiple listings, don't usually come close to Google's reach and the method you are using is likely to limit your site's ability to perform as well in Google.
I spell out the gory details here.
This doesn't happen as much on google (although it will help your existing site rank higher),
That is because Google realizes that duplicate results don't benefit users, so they take steps to remove them from their results. The steps they take do not help your site rank higher, in fact it is sometimes the opposite. It comes down to dividing the vote (see the analogy in the link above).
.

Years ago I advised our association to buy several domain names that could possibly be used by people looking for WV bed & breakfasts. We mirrored only the one that was the original when we transferred to the short version when it became available. The reason for purchasing the others was to keep them from become p o r n sites as did happen to a rail-trail group that did not get their renewal done on schedule.

 

[wendydk]

Way to go...that's thinking outside the box...something that I've found very few Innkeepers do. Of course, not everyone is a webmaster, but anyone can do an easy template website...for not much money. My Michigan Inn Guide site has 28 different domain names that point to it.
That's another recommendation I would make.....for $10 each, buy some additional domain names that apply to your Inn and point them to your existing website. My Inn's site has probably half a dozen different domains. Different variations of your name, or "mytownbedandbreakfast", "northwestmystateinn" and the like. A MSN livesearch for "romantic b&b in michigan" brings my Michigan Inn Guide site up three times on page one, under three different domains. This doesn't happen as much on google (although it will help your existing site rank higher), but on MSN and Yahoo, it will list your site under multiple domains. Great results for virtually no additional work..

That's another recommendation I would make.....for $10 each, buy some additional domain names that apply to your Inn and point them to your existing website.
Sorry I disagree with this suggestion. It has the potential to do more harm than good.
Yahoo and MSN are lousy at dealing with multiple domains on the same site and the fact they list multiples of them is not a good reason to support multiple domains with the same site. This is one of the reasons why MSN has such a small market share of users (less than 10%), people don't like bumping into the same thing three times in one search page. If they intend to get better, they will fix it and the advantage will go away.
MSN and Yahoo combined, even with multiple listings, don't usually come close to Google's reach and the method you are using is likely to limit your site's ability to perform as well in Google.
I spell out the gory details here.
This doesn't happen as much on google (although it will help your existing site rank higher),
That is because Google realizes that duplicate results don't benefit users, so they take steps to remove them from their results. The steps they take do not help your site rank higher, in fact it is sometimes the opposite. It comes down to dividing the vote (see the analogy in the link above).
.

The Inngenious article you reference states:
[h2]The Proper Redirect - 301 Redirect[/h2]There are many ways to redirect one website to another, the problem is, only one of them creates no problems for the search engines or site visitors. This trouble free method is called a 301 redirect. The number 301 stands for the response code that the server returns. It tells the search engine, this page has permanently moved to the new location, and immediately takes it there. It doesn't tell the a human visitor anything, it just immediately takes them there and changes the address in the web browser address bar to what is should be.

If you already have multiple domains make sure they are redirected correctly using a 301 redirect. Do not assume that your past designer knew what they were doing. Most do not fully understand the concept of redirects or multiple domains.
This is what I do, and while I can only speak from my own experience, I find it to be beneficial to have multiple domain names, for both of my websites. From a keyword standpoint and from a ranking standpoint....on google as well as on yahoo and msn. Thanks for posting the article, though!
.

From a keyword standpoint and from a ranking standpoint....on google...
If you are doing a proper 301, then in Google's eyes the other domains do not exist. Any benefit you perceive in Google is due to something else. If you care to share a few of your forwarded domains, I can show you more details. (If you don't that's ok too)
.

Thanks Swirt, for all of your comments....helpful and enlightening as always!

 

[swirt]

Way to go...that's thinking outside the box...something that I've found very few Innkeepers do. Of course, not everyone is a webmaster, but anyone can do an easy template website...for not much money. My Michigan Inn Guide site has 28 different domain names that point to it.
That's another recommendation I would make.....for $10 each, buy some additional domain names that apply to your Inn and point them to your existing website. My Inn's site has probably half a dozen different domains. Different variations of your name, or "mytownbedandbreakfast", "northwestmystateinn" and the like. A MSN livesearch for "romantic b&b in michigan" brings my Michigan Inn Guide site up three times on page one, under three different domains. This doesn't happen as much on google (although it will help your existing site rank higher), but on MSN and Yahoo, it will list your site under multiple domains. Great results for virtually no additional work..

That's another recommendation I would make.....for $10 each, buy some additional domain names that apply to your Inn and point them to your existing website.
Sorry I disagree with this suggestion. It has the potential to do more harm than good.
Yahoo and MSN are lousy at dealing with multiple domains on the same site and the fact they list multiples of them is not a good reason to support multiple domains with the same site. This is one of the reasons why MSN has such a small market share of users (less than 10%), people don't like bumping into the same thing three times in one search page. If they intend to get better, they will fix it and the advantage will go away.
MSN and Yahoo combined, even with multiple listings, don't usually come close to Google's reach and the method you are using is likely to limit your site's ability to perform as well in Google.
I spell out the gory details here.
This doesn't happen as much on google (although it will help your existing site rank higher),
That is because Google realizes that duplicate results don't benefit users, so they take steps to remove them from their results. The steps they take do not help your site rank higher, in fact it is sometimes the opposite. It comes down to dividing the vote (see the analogy in the link above).
.

The Inngenious article you reference states:
[h2]The Proper Redirect - 301 Redirect[/h2]There are many ways to redirect one website to another, the problem is, only one of them creates no problems for the search engines or site visitors. This trouble free method is called a 301 redirect. The number 301 stands for the response code that the server returns. It tells the search engine, this page has permanently moved to the new location, and immediately takes it there. It doesn't tell the a human visitor anything, it just immediately takes them there and changes the address in the web browser address bar to what is should be.

If you already have multiple domains make sure they are redirected correctly using a 301 redirect. Do not assume that your past designer knew what they were doing. Most do not fully understand the concept of redirects or multiple domains.
This is what I do, and while I can only speak from my own experience, I find it to be beneficial to have multiple domain names, for both of my websites. From a keyword standpoint and from a ranking standpoint....on google as well as on yahoo and msn. Thanks for posting the article, though!
.

From a keyword standpoint and from a ranking standpoint....on google...
If you are doing a proper 301, then in Google's eyes the other domains do not exist. Any benefit you perceive in Google is due to something else. If you care to share a few of your forwarded domains, I can show you more details. (If you don't that's ok too)
.

From a keyword standpoint and from a ranking standpoint....on google...
If you are doing a proper 301, then in Google's eyes the other domains do not exist. Any benefit you perceive in Google is due to something else. If you care to share a few of your forwarded domains, I can show you more details. (If you don't that's ok too)

I have for example from my web hoster's advice purchased the common second spelling for Arcady aimed at my website (Arcadie) so this is good. I have purchased a couple others like monticelloappellation because I think it will one day be valuable. So I might point that at my wine tour website. That's not something that would make Google mad, would it?
Riki
.

... I have purchased a couple others like monticelloappellation because I think it will one day be valuable. So I might point that at my wine tour website. That's not something that would make Google mad, would it?

Pointing it at your wine tour site (via a 301 redirect) would not anger google in any way. When it comes to redirects Google doesn't get mad or penalize for the duplicate content but there is a fine line between what I call a penalty and a possible loss of search engine position due to splitting the vote. Redirecting the domain would be fine, just don't bother building links to that domain, link build to the end destination, not the one being redirected.
However, if you are interested in building the value of the domain, you'd be better off building a unique website for it with a little bit of good content (an article about the appellation or something like that) and let the domain start building up some of its own history...you could even advertize your wine tour and B&B on it.

 

[egoodell]

Way to go...that's thinking outside the box...something that I've found very few Innkeepers do. Of course, not everyone is a webmaster, but anyone can do an easy template website...for not much money. My Michigan Inn Guide site has 28 different domain names that point to it.
That's another recommendation I would make.....for $10 each, buy some additional domain names that apply to your Inn and point them to your existing website. My Inn's site has probably half a dozen different domains. Different variations of your name, or "mytownbedandbreakfast", "northwestmystateinn" and the like. A MSN livesearch for "romantic b&b in michigan" brings my Michigan Inn Guide site up three times on page one, under three different domains. This doesn't happen as much on google (although it will help your existing site rank higher), but on MSN and Yahoo, it will list your site under multiple domains. Great results for virtually no additional work..

That's another recommendation I would make.....for $10 each, buy some additional domain names that apply to your Inn and point them to your existing website.
Sorry I disagree with this suggestion. It has the potential to do more harm than good.
Yahoo and MSN are lousy at dealing with multiple domains on the same site and the fact they list multiples of them is not a good reason to support multiple domains with the same site. This is one of the reasons why MSN has such a small market share of users (less than 10%), people don't like bumping into the same thing three times in one search page. If they intend to get better, they will fix it and the advantage will go away.
MSN and Yahoo combined, even with multiple listings, don't usually come close to Google's reach and the method you are using is likely to limit your site's ability to perform as well in Google.
I spell out the gory details here.
This doesn't happen as much on google (although it will help your existing site rank higher),
That is because Google realizes that duplicate results don't benefit users, so they take steps to remove them from their results. The steps they take do not help your site rank higher, in fact it is sometimes the opposite. It comes down to dividing the vote (see the analogy in the link above).
.

The Inngenious article you reference states:
[h2]The Proper Redirect - 301 Redirect[/h2]There are many ways to redirect one website to another, the problem is, only one of them creates no problems for the search engines or site visitors. This trouble free method is called a 301 redirect. The number 301 stands for the response code that the server returns. It tells the search engine, this page has permanently moved to the new location, and immediately takes it there. It doesn't tell the a human visitor anything, it just immediately takes them there and changes the address in the web browser address bar to what is should be.

If you already have multiple domains make sure they are redirected correctly using a 301 redirect. Do not assume that your past designer knew what they were doing. Most do not fully understand the concept of redirects or multiple domains.
This is what I do, and while I can only speak from my own experience, I find it to be beneficial to have multiple domain names, for both of my websites. From a keyword standpoint and from a ranking standpoint....on google as well as on yahoo and msn. Thanks for posting the article, though!
.

From a keyword standpoint and from a ranking standpoint....on google...
If you are doing a proper 301, then in Google's eyes the other domains do not exist. Any benefit you perceive in Google is due to something else. If you care to share a few of your forwarded domains, I can show you more details. (If you don't that's ok too)
.

From a keyword standpoint and from a ranking standpoint....on google...
If you are doing a proper 301, then in Google's eyes the other domains do not exist. Any benefit you perceive in Google is due to something else. If you care to share a few of your forwarded domains, I can show you more details. (If you don't that's ok too)

I have for example from my web hoster's advice purchased the common second spelling for Arcady aimed at my website (Arcadie) so this is good. I have purchased a couple others like monticelloappellation because I think it will one day be valuable. So I might point that at my wine tour website. That's not something that would make Google mad, would it?
Riki
.

... I have purchased a couple others like monticelloappellation because I think it will one day be valuable. So I might point that at my wine tour website. That's not something that would make Google mad, would it?

Pointing it at your wine tour site (via a 301 redirect) would not anger google in any way. When it comes to redirects Google doesn't get mad or penalize for the duplicate content but there is a fine line between what I call a penalty and a possible loss of search engine position due to splitting the vote. Redirecting the domain would be fine, just don't bother building links to that domain, link build to the end destination, not the one being redirected.
However, if you are interested in building the value of the domain, you'd be better off building a unique website for it with a little bit of good content (an article about the appellation or something like that) and let the domain start building up some of its own history...you could even advertize your wine tour and B&B on it.
.

However, if you are interested in building the value of the domain, you'd be better off building a unique website for it with a little bit of good content (an article about the appellation or something like that) and let the domain start building up some of its own history...you could even advertize your wine tour and B&B on it.

Thanks, Swirt, that is my intent when I have some time to do so. I started and maybe now we have a part time housekeeper I might have the time to start writing it.
Riki

 

[wendydk]

I got at least three bookings last year from Lanier. I'm staying because it paid for itself and I can always use the refering site to help my rankings. They do have a following of older users, but I think that the future travelers will not recognize the name and it will continue to fall out of use..

The following of older users would explain why I don't see much from it. The bulk of our guests are young and extremely active...and lots of "first-timers" who have never experienced the pleasure of B&B.
An "AHA" moment.

 

[Morticia]

I got at least three bookings last year from Lanier. I'm staying because it paid for itself and I can always use the refering site to help my rankings. They do have a following of older users, but I think that the future travelers will not recognize the name and it will continue to fall out of use..

The following of older users would explain why I don't see much from it. The bulk of our guests are young and extremely active...and lots of "first-timers" who have never experienced the pleasure of B&B.
An "AHA" moment.

.

The following of older users would explain why I don't see much from it. The bulk of our guests are young and extremely active...and lots of "first-timers" who have never experienced the pleasure of B&B.
An "AHA" moment.

Heck, you're not allowed in my place without an AARP card! And I got nothing from Lanier.

 

[SweetiePie]

I got at least three bookings last year from Lanier. I'm staying because it paid for itself and I can always use the refering site to help my rankings. They do have a following of older users, but I think that the future travelers will not recognize the name and it will continue to fall out of use..

The following of older users would explain why I don't see much from it. The bulk of our guests are young and extremely active...and lots of "first-timers" who have never experienced the pleasure of B&B.
An "AHA" moment.

.

The following of older users would explain why I don't see much from it. The bulk of our guests are young and extremely active...and lots of "first-timers" who have never experienced the pleasure of B&B.
An "AHA" moment.

Heck, you're not allowed in my place without an AARP card! And I got nothing from Lanier.
.

You're too funny Bree. Ditto on Lanier.

 

[Jeff Gauvin]

I have kept Bnbfinder for the simple fact that I am the only B&B listed in Salt Lake City. Have not missed Laniers at all.

 

[gillumhouse]

I have kept Bnbfinder for the simple fact that I am the only B&B listed in Salt Lake City. Have not missed Laniers at all..

None of us have - and if you ever met her, feel that doubly

 

[EmptyNest]

A BIG NO!!!
to lan ier

 

[egoodell]

Never head anything good about them an they don't come up on the first page of a "google" search for my town B&B so I don't bother with them.
RE print - none of my guests find me in print - only online
Riki

 

[EmptyNest]

Never head anything good about them an they don't come up on the first page of a "google" search for my town B&B so I don't bother with them.
RE print - none of my guests find me in print - only online
Riki.

I see we are replying to a really old thread!!! I should have paid closer attention...I was on my tablet so wasn't watching. But...the reply still stands

 

[egoodell]

Never head anything good about them an they don't come up on the first page of a "google" search for my town B&B so I don't bother with them.
RE print - none of my guests find me in print - only online
Riki.

I see we are replying to a really old thread!!! I should have paid closer attention...I was on my tablet so wasn't watching. But...the reply still stands
.

oops I didn't notice either. not enough coffee yet...
RIki