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Redirecting your domain name

When you redirect a URL or web address, you send the visitor who types in the address to another URL (another page within your domain or to another domain). If you have, for example, a free website or a Facebook page, you can make sure that people searching for your domain name will be directed to that page.

What types of redirect are there?

Permanent Redirect or 301 Redirect

 A permanent redirect is used when you have permanently linked your website to another domain name, and you want the redirect to persist forever.

This type of redirect tells the search engines that the two domains count for the same site, but that the website linked to by the redirect is the real source for that domain.

Temporary redirect or 302 Redirect

A temporary redirect is used when you temporarily redirect to another website, such as during maintenance work. This redirect tells the search engines not to index this change because it is only temporary.

A cloaked redirect

A cloaked redirect is possible with both 301 and 302 redirects. You use it when you want to hide the destination address. Your visitor will only see the original address in his or her address bar. The content of the website the redirect leads to is displayed in a frame.

Search engines are not very fond of this technique, however, and some browsers do not support frames.

Why create a redirect?

There can be several reasons for redirecting your domain name:

You devise a special campaign to promote your apples.  You register the domain name littleapplesforarainyday.be. You have it redirected to a special page on your normal website www.appels.be/campaigns/littleapplesforarainyday. Anyone typing in littleapplesforarainyday.be will be directed to that page and won't have to type in the long address.

You have chosen a new domain name, or your company has merged into a larger group. You have your old domain name redirected to your new domain name.

You have a domain name that you want to link to your free website at, e.g. WordPress.com. With a cloaked redirect, your visitor will see your domain name in the address bar, but the content of the WordPress page will be displayed. Please note: if you create a redirect to your Facebook page, the Facebook address will always be displayed in the address bar - cloaked redirect is not possible.

How to create a redirect?

With most hosting companies, you create the redirect in your control panel. You will usually find the option "Redirect" or "Web forward" next to your domain name.

You enter there the web address you want to redirect and the destination web address. Consult the support files of your hosting provider or contact the helpdesk.