301 redirect

The term 301 redirect refers to a permanent redirection of one web address to another. Usually, a 301 redirect is necessary, if a URL / permalink has changed. For example, an existing page is being updated and changes the existing web address:

You have a page on your website that lists “the best road bikes 2023”. You update the page and change the old URL from /road-bikes-2023/ to /road-bikes-2024/. In this case, you need a 301 redirect, so that the old URL will automatically redirect to the new URL.

301 redirects in .htaccess file

If your website has been developed on an Apache server, then the most common way to add a 301 redirect would be a new line in the .htaccess file. For the above example, the line could be similar to this:

Redirect 301 /road-bikes-2023/ https://yourdomain.com/road-bikes-2024/.

If you need assistance with adding 301 redirects to your .htaccess file, then do not hesitate to get in touch with our experienced web development team.

A 301 redirect will be oftentimes added in the .htaccess file

In some cases, you do not have access to the .htaccess file or your web hoster first needs to give you the necessary rights, so you can edit it.

Importance of 301 redirects for SEO

Not only for SEO purposes, you need to make sure that your 301 redirects are in place. Let’s say you have changed the URL as described above but forgot to add the 301 redirect. In this case, website visitors might end up visiting a (not anymore) none existing page.

Or even worse: you had a backlink to your old URL, and this backlinks does not work anymore, since the old web address does not exist anymore. So, you do not only lose a user but you will also use link power.

A 301 redirect will make sure that the website visitor will find the new page, and also the old link target will be redirected to the new link / web address.

However, we recommend adjusting the old link target as well – this has to do with the concept of “link juice” (not all of it will be passed on to a redirected link).

301 redirects in WordPress

If you run a WordPress website, then there are a couple of plugins that can help you to manage your redirects. Many users have Yoast SEO in place where you will be able to edit the .htaccess file in the tools section. Another very common plugin would be “Redirection” that helps you to add 301 redirects but also other (temporary) redirects.

You can also read about 301 redirect, backlinks, CRM, Google Analytics, Google Search Console, Inbound Marketing, Screaming Frog, ROI, Bounce Rate, CRO, Wordpress, Serprobot, Basic HTML, Skyscraper Technique, Mastery of Content Creation, Content Marketing Trends and many more topics in our knowledge hub.