What Is a 301 Redirect and Do They Impact Your SEO?

A 301 redirect is a permanent redirect from one URL to another. When you apply a 301 redirect, you’re telling search engines and browsers that the page has permanently moved to a new location. This type of redirect passes on most of the link equity - the value transferred from one page to another through hyperlinks —from the old URL to the new one, ensuring that any SEO value built up on the old page is retained.

For example, if you have a product page that has moved to a new URL, a 301 redirect will ensure that users and search engines are directed to the new location seamlessly, meaning you won’t lose any SEO value or confuse your audience. Understanding what a 301 redirect is and how to use them effectively is key to effectively managing your site's URL structure. 

From an SEO perspective, a 301 redirect is essential because it ensures that link equity and traffic are passed from the old URL to the new one. Without this redirection, search engines would treat the new page as a completely separate page from the old one, potentially causing a loss in rankings and traffic.

Below are a few reasons why 301 redirects are crucial for SEO:

1. Protect SEO Value: By using a 301 redirect, you help preserve any backlinks pointing to the old URL ensuring that the SEO value built up over time is transferred to the new page and not lost.
2. Prevent Broken Links: 301 redirects ensure that users don’t land on a ‘404 Not Found’ page when accessing outdated or deleted content, which enhances user experience.
3. Improve Crawl Efficiency: Search engines such as Google crawl your site to index and rank your pages. When pages are redirected properly, search engine bots are automatically sent to the new page, allowing them to update their index.

Without a 301 redirect, anyone who tries to access the old URL will get a 404 error which is bad for user experience and likely will cause people to bounce from your site.

A 301 redirect is an important tool in SEO strategies but it’s extremely important to know when to use it correctly. Below is a list of common scenarios where a 301 redirect would be appropriate to use:

• When You Move a Page to a New URL
  
  One of the most common reasons for using a 301 redirect is when you move a page to a new URL. For example, if you’ve redesigned your website and decided to change the URL structure you will need to use 301 redirects to guide both users and search engines to the new URLs.
  
  For instance:
  
• Old URL: https://www.zelst.co.uk/blog/is-seo-worth-it-in-2024/ - including the year ‘2024’ in this URL means that any time we republish this piece, we need to update the year in the URL – this can create a lot of unnecessary redirects.
• New URL: https://www.zelst.co.uk/blog/the-value-of-seo/ - by changing the URL to exclude the number completely, this page can be refreshed or republished as many times as we like, with no need for any further redirects!

• When You Merge Pages

If you've merged two or more pages with similar content to avoid content duplication (find tips for resolving duplicate content issues) a 301 redirect needs to be set up from the old pages to the new one.

• When You Remove or Delete a Page

If you're removing or deleting a page that has backlinks, you should always apply a 301 redirect to another relevant page on your site. Without a redirect, users will encounter a 404 error and search engines will drop the old page from their index; this can potentially impact your rankings.

• Fixing Broken Links/URL Structure

Sometimes our URLs contain typos or are unnecessarily complex which can harm your SEO. For instance, if a URL has a spelling mistake or is hard to read, you may choose to fix it for better user experience. By implementing a 301 redirect, it ensures the users and search engines are sent to the correct page, even if they enter the old, incorrect URL.

However, there are situations where a 301 redirect may not be the best option for your page. This will occur when:

• There is a Temporary Page Move: If you plan to move a page temporarily or are undertaking website maintenance, a 302 redirect (temporary redirect) might be the most appropriate to use.
• Redirect Chains: A old page may be redirected to a new page, but often the new page will change, meaning another redirect is set up. This then means that page A is redirected to page B, which then redirects to page C. Sometimes there are multiple instances of this. Conducting regular redirect audits is advised to remedy this.
• Redirect Loop: This is sometimes but not always linked with the above, where a redirect goes from page A and ends back up at Page A. This causes an endless loop and often leads to server crashes (500 errors). This is the most dangerous of them all.

As with everything, 301 redirects have both positive and negative impacts. Let’s delve into both of them:

• They Maintain Link Equity: The most significant benefit of 301 redirects is that they transfer almost all of the link equity from the old page to the new one. This means that any backlinks you have acquired won’t be lost.
• They Improve User Experience: 301 redirects help avoid broken links, which can create a poor experience for the user. By using a permanent redirect, it means if someone lands on a deleted page, they’ll be automatically redirected to a relevant alternative.
• Improved Crawl Efficiency: By guiding search engines to the new location of your content, 301 redirects help ensure that your pages get properly indexed, thereby improving crawl efficiency.

• Loading Time May Increase: While the impact may be minimal, redirects can slightly increase page load times. Search engines prefer fast-loading pages, so having too many redirects could hurt your rankings over time.
• Implementation Mistakes: Improper implementation of 301 redirects (e.g., pointing to the wrong page) can confuse search engines and negatively impact your SEO efforts.

Now that you understand what a 301 redirect is and when to use it, let’s look at how to implement one on SEMrush.

1. Audit Your Website with Semrush

• In Semrush, navigate to the Site Audit tool, which is located under the projects section.
  
  Once the audit is complete, Semrush will provide a detailed analysis of any errors on your site, including broken links and any redirect issues.
  

2. Identify Redirect Issues

• Under the audit results, go to the section that identifies redirects.
• Semrush will highlight any issues related to 301, 302 or missing redirects.

3. Set Up the 301 Redirects

• While Semrush does not allow direct redirect setup within its platform, it provides you with a complete report on all the pages that need a 301 redirect. You can then use this information to manually implement the 301 redirect.
• Semrush will track the effectiveness of your 301 redirects once they are set up, helping you keep an eye on any changes in your site's SEO performance.

4. Track Changes

• After implementing your 301 redirects, return to Semrush and rescan your site to ensure that all issues have been fixed.

Semrush will show whether your 301 redirects have been successfully implemented and if there are any other redirects that need your attention.

Implementing the 301 redirects may seem straightforward but there is much more to it than simply redirecting one URL to another. Improperly-done redirects can cause crawl issues, lose valuable link equity and even result in penalties. At Zelst, we specialise in SEO strategy and technical optimisation, helping businesses like yours implement effective permanent redirects that improve SEO performance.

We make SEO migration and technical improvements simple, ensuring your 301 redirect strategy aligns with your overall SEO goals. By partnering with an experienced company like ours, we’ll ensure that your website is optimised for search engines while providing the best possible experience for your users. If you want to improve your website’s SEO and streamline its structure, get in touch with us today.

If you’re looking for more information on SEO, read about our SEO expertise on our blog or learn more about Zelst as a company.

• What’s the difference between 301 and 302 redirects? A 301 redirect is permanent, while a 302 redirect is temporary. You would use a 302 redirect if you expect the page to return in the future.
• Can you undo a permanent redirect? While you can technically undo a 301 redirect by removing it, doing so can cause broken links or loss of SEO value. It’s best to take time and plan your redirects carefully before implementing them.

To improve your SEO strategy today, find out more about the services we offer.