With any redirection, if done right, all of your old URL’s that are listed in Google should automatically redirect to the appropriate page on the new domain, however, having your site indexed, or at least, have the ball rolling with getting your new domain indexed is still very important. There are many ways that you can aid this transition, and I stress that this can be very varied depending on the niche and the webmaster. Choose your own way, and take this as a basic guideline.

My advice is to first, submit your new domain to Google for crawling, then add the new domain to your Google Webmaster Tools, and submit a site map along with it. Another extremely important factor is to submit a change of address request through your Webmaster Tools. This is the fastest way to let Google know that you are redirecting from your old domain to the new domain. This is always a fast track way to make sure that your site is indexed, and in my last domain name transition, indexing of the home page took less than 24 hours.

At the same time, use all the social networks that you use to generate buzz about the impending domain change. Install some new features on the new domain that people will like, create a press release about your new domain name and these new features, and communicate on Social Networks about these changes and improvements.

Another very important factor here is that you will be changing to a new domain name that does not have any PR or even an Alexa rank. Although all of your previous back links will still redirect to the new domain, these will not count, as they are not back links directly to your new domain. So, you will also need to get active and create more and more back links to your new domain name. Contact sites that have created back links for you and ask them to update your links as well.

The most important thing here is to not rush into things too fast. Domain name propagation can take the better part of three days to complete, and in all essence, you should take as much time as you need to make sure that your new domain is indexed and that you generate buzz and back links. Not too much time though, as you don’t want to have pages indexed that are inaccessible for long time frames.

Lastly, do not forget your blog directory listings. It is vital that you do not overlook these, as they do generate a ton of links for most people, they are vital back links, and they are your front to the wider community who have not discovered your blog yet. Make sure to update these links a few days before the domain name transition so that they synchronize with the transition.

So, now you should have generated a ton of buzz, you should have at least some URL’s in the process of being indexed, and you are just about ready to go. Shortly, I will post the finale to this article which will cover how to redirect your old URL to your new domain name.

Remember, the most important thing here is to take your time, and do it right. A slip up here could cost you in the long run. And as always, if you have any tried and tested ways that have worked for you, please post them below.

Remember, you will need to install the Hybrid Framework in order for this theme to work!

DEMO

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Remember, you need to install the Hybrid Framework in order for this theme to work!

DEMO

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Remember, you must have the Hybrid Framework installed in order to use this theme!

DEMO

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Remember, you will need the Hybrid Framework installed in order to use this theme!

DEMO

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Remember, in order to use this theme, you need to install the Hybrid Framework!

If you need a demo of this theme, you are looking at one! Top WordPress Themes uses this theme.

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Remember, you need the Hybrid Framework installed in order for this theme to work!

DEMO

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Based on the Hybrid Framework, this WordPress Theme is extremely heavily customizable, allowing the use of 9 widgets, and 18 page templates, this theme will give you total control over what you would like to do using a WordPress Theme.

Please be aware that in order to use this theme, you will first need to install the Theme Hybrid Framework.

DEMO

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Please note that this framework is to be installed if you want to be able to use any Theme Hybrid WordPress Themes, as this is the framework in which these themes are based upon. This framework is also what we are using on Top WordPress Themes, and as such, is a demonstration of what is possible using this framework.

DEMO

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What we will be talking about today is possibly the most important factor about owning a blog. Blog Hosting. Best web hosting for blogs. This is of course where your blog will reside, and apart from SEO, this is hands down the most important aspect of blogging. Your host can impact your new blog in many different ways. Some hosts will cap you during peak times, meaning that you may see visible slowing of your blog during peak times, and usability may drop. You are also looking for included features, and simplicity of your interface.

Most web hosts will offer you a few things in their packages. First thing that we will talk about is bandwidth. We are talking about the total amount of data that can be transferred into your blog, and out of your blog. Each image and every single file that loads every single time that someone navigates to your blog takes up bandwidth, and this can deplete much faster than you think. For one blog, I would say a minimum of 50 GB should suffice per month based on how graphic intensive your blog is, and how many pages and articles you have to publish. Some providers also offer unlimited bandwidth which is also great, and these offers should be taken advantage of.

Storage space is also a major consideration. In order to store your files, you need space. The average article based blog may never need more than 50mb of storage space, however for those who do provide other downloads (such as this site) several GB’s may be needed. Choose your total storage space wisely.

If you are looking to host just the one blog, then you will only need a host that will allow you to use one domain. If you plan to use several, or are not too sure how many you would like to host, and then seek out offers that allow you to host unlimited domains. You do need to be careful with these however, main reason being that many people do abuse these services, and only the rare host does maintain speed. The only host that I have used that is reliable in this sense is Host Rocket.

Tech Support is also a major consideration in choosing a host. Servers do go down, and whilst it is very hard for a host to offer anything above 98% uptime without a drastic increase in pricing, there are a few out there that are very cost effective that will offer you good uptime. In all cases, having tech support that works around the clock is a major factor in choosing a good web host. If your blog goes down, this can mean a loss in users and revenue in some cases, and having reliable technical support will make sure that your uptime is as good as it can possibly be.

Do I need a Dedicated Server?

In most cases, if you are running a blog, you will not need a Dedicated Server. For those who are not aware of how hosting works, all Web Hosting providers who provide basic hosting packages put multiple users on one server, who all share the total bandwidth and space of that server.

A Dedicated Server on the other hand is a single server that is set up for one user only. That user can set up multiple accounts on that server to host websites, and these are generally extremely fast.

The only reason that you would ever need to use a Dedicated Server is if you are running a very bandwidth hungry website that needs a dedicated line to be able to host that site. In most cases, you will not need a dedicated server. If you do think that you need a Dedicated Server, but are not too sure, then a VPS may be another option for you. These are generally set up so that between 4 and 6 users share one server, and each have their own remote access to a remote desktop or shell. Although this seems similar to basic web hosting, this is different in the sense that there are less users on the one server, and you have a much more customizable server than what you would have access to using a basic web host.

Who do we recommend?

We have had countless good and bad experiences with Web Hosts, and we have picked out three different companies that we cannot recommend highly enough to you.

Host Rocket

Host Rocket are hands down one of the most reliable web hosts that I have ever used. They have lightning fast tech support, and a well above average uptime. They offer basic web hosting plans from $4.99 per month which includes unlimited bandwidth, dynamic (growing) space, unlimited domains, and is just so reliable it is beyond belief. They also offer a wide range of Dedicated Servers, VPS set ups, and reseller hosting as well. Set up is extremely fast as well, which will always get you up and running very fast.

GoDaddy

Whilst I am not vouching for their web hosting service here (I am not a fan), I am mentioning them here because their domain pricings are quite good, and there is generally not a long wait time for DNS propagation as well, which means that when you have purchased your domain and added your own Name Servers, your domain will be viewable.

If you have any other suggestions here, please let us know, we will be happy to try and review potential hosts!