If you are looking to merge two brands into one on the web then the SEO considerations of doing this need to be part of the plan.
Whether you are taking over another company or merging two company websites together there are a number of steps that need to be taken to ensure that all of the search engine goodness from the website which is closing is transferred across. You also want to make sure that your website users are aware of why the branding is different and reassured that they will receive the same level of service even though they are now on a new website.
Firstly make sure that you have a landing page on your main website for the old company or website, including the logo and some introduction copy to the fact that the two brands/websites have merged together. On this page it’s a good idea to include some internal links to the pages where the products and services offered by the old company can be found. This will help your visitors easily pick up their regular services on the main site, even if they have never visited it before.
Make sure that the old site is fully 301 redirected to the landing page, so that both visitors and search engines can see that the sites have merged. This will help some of the search engine goodness from the old site transfer over and benefit the main site.
You can also let Google know that the domain name has been transferred over by using the “Change of Address” tool in Google Webmaster Tools, however you do need to have the www. and non www. versions of both sites verified before you can do this.
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