Inspect the customer’s path
List each domain, registrar owner, hosting owner, public purpose, canonical destination, contact routing and renewal responsibility. Record existing URLs and any available search or referral evidence. Keep credentials out of the worksheet. A domain extension or a larger domain collection does not by itself establish a search advantage.
A worked example
Fictional situation: a company has a current business site, an older duplicate site and a separate hiring page on a campaign domain. The duplicate repeats old hours and a former number; the hiring destination serves a different task. Consolidating the duplicate may be sensible after mapping its URLs, while the hiring experience needs its own purpose and maintenance review.
Choose the next action
Decide which destination should own each task. For a genuine consolidation, map relevant old pages to the corresponding current pages and review technical migration guidance. Preserve domain ownership and renewal continuity. Do not abandon an old domain before understanding customer links, email dependencies or provider commitments associated with it.
Check whether it worked
Verify redirects, contact links, canonical URLs and email-related dependencies through the appropriate owners after changes. Monitor actual search and referral observations with dates and limits stated. If the remaining sites still contradict each other, resolve the approved business facts before adding another domain or city page.
Put it to work
A record you can use
- Domain and business purpose
- Ownership and renewal owner
- Existing URLs and observed value
- Canonical destination decision
- Migration and dependency checks
Plain text. No email required. Store completed records in your approved business systems.
Next useful step
Need help applying this to your marketing? A strategy call starts with your business and the evidence you have.
Talk through your next step →For a general editorial question, email Chris. Please leave out customer details. Questions are private, and no response time is promised.