Domain Muck Up

[Lee_Owen]

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What have I done?

I've dominated, for years a single keyword, usually holding four or five of the top ten positions. it was for a redirected domain and it would seem that held the key. Recently I had to change nameservers on the .co.uk so I could get the .com transfered - email was needed for transfer key.

So I changed nameservers on the .co.uk from 123-reg to hostroute for a week. Then after transfer was completed, I changed nameservers back to 123-reg but as they weren't quick enough, I changed again to heartinternet before redirecting back.

Now heartinternet don't have meta tagging of any bloody sort and I didn't think about this until after the move - so that's quite frustrating to start with. Today a user tells me I've completely bombed in the serps, barely clinging on to tenth, with the .co.uk and all others that were possibly linked in, vanishing.

So what have I done, I'm on bended knees. Can I get the position back by moving back to 123-reg and setting up meta keywords and title again? Is that the only reason, is it possible to regain that position? I've been second and third for years, used to be first at the outset.

Please tell me this can be rectified overnight by moving back. Or would it be best now, as it was a redirect domain to a site, would it be best now, to attach the domain via nameservers to the subdomain of the network, set up metas and possibly benefit from a higher PR in the long term, it should really be a five plus rather than a four.

What's the answer? any clues?

Thanks in advance
Lee

[Lee_Owen]

OK, I've changed tags back to 123reg and set up redirection again.

Is there any way of getting a cache of the domain from a month back, including meta title, keywords etc? I've tried urltrends, archive and google, nothing there.

Is there any chance, once I've replaced everything, that it will go back to second spot? What a disaster.

*It's alright, I notepadded most of the metas before the move, what a clever boy.

[limboInternet]

waybackmachine? they link to that from alexa, I recon that would have snapshotted meta data as well possibly, view the source of thier snapshotted page.

[Lee_Owen]

I'll have a look, I have the meta wording now though from a saved file, just wondering something else. On 123 reg forwarding, non framed, it has meta details below, does the engine pick that up on redirect without frame or only when framed?

I ask because heartinternet, the previous owners of 123-reg, they only have meta set up on framed forwarding and not on automatic redirect, so doesn't the engine pick up meta details on auto redirect? if that makes sense.

Well I've returned everything to how it was, only time will tell. I should have known what I did was wrong. Ah well, fancy losing second spot after seven years due to a silly mistake like this.

[drivetowin]

I would be pretty certain that it only uses the meta details if the redirect is framed - but that's only an inspired guess on my part..

[Lee_Owen]

I'm back in at number three tonight, with the BBC moving in above me, that's not good but at least I'm back, I can work on second spot.

[Ste]

I had sort of the same thing happen to me, bought a new server and moved one of my bigger shops over form a US host, man was that a big mistake – the site had had the same IP number since ’99, til I decided to change hosts – now its no-where to be seen!

Don’t care what anyone says, IP numbers are a factor with SEO.

[Lee_Owen]

Back into third, get in there, I had moved down to fourth and behind wikipedia. I put the domain on framed re-direct which has unfortunately locked a few out of using the site but they're getting around it. I've regained 9th as well and I'm waiting in the wings in 12th and moving up. I will have my spots back.

It probably was the nameservers but the blank index on hosting wouldn't have helped during that week either. It does get spidered a lot. Well I learned my lesson but I had to get the transfer key for the .com. It's amazing how when one domain loses its authority that rejigs everything else, it's been quite interesting.