Ensuring the validity of authority domains is crucial, especially when considering purchasing expired domains for a new website. It is essential to verify the authenticity, credibility, and history of these domains to maintain website integrity, SEO rankings, and user trust. Conducting thorough checks helps prevent digital fraud and confirms the legitimacy of potential investments in your digital strategy and below here is how you do it :
Google Search Console –
Verification Techniques and Tools
Examine the Backlink Profile
Tools
Use tools like Page Keyword Research to assess the quality and quantity of backlinks. A strong profile with links from reputable sites often indicates a credible domain.
What to look for
Keyword Intent (Commercial, Information etc)
Contextual Keyword Structure meaning which category this keyword categorized if you doing backlinking between different contextual content from different domains it will effect the SEO outcome cause Google can`t determine which category your website in and Algorithm automatically decrease the value of domain authority (DA)
Red Flags
Watch out for a high volume of poor quality or spammy backlinks, which can be a sign of manipulation.
Use SEO tools like SEMrush or Page Keyword Research to determine referring backlinks if they flagged as Spam or 404 or removed it will effect the SEO outcome which this kind of Red Flags is a deal breaker for the Authority of the Domain.
Assess DA-PA Values in Context
Contextual Check:
DA (Domain Authority) and PA (Page Authority) are good indicators, but they should be considered alongside other metrics. A domain with high DA and PA but low traffic is suspicious.Also most important metrics for us from the past experience is DR (Domain Rating) it’s a like combination of DA and PA and several metrics. Which kind a shows the the actual value and the relative interaction of the domain and its real value.
if the website being used in a real way traffic and general SEO score should be between DR 2-24
If the website is not active it should be between 0.10-14 obviously this is our average findings for a niche site more content driven sites well above this numbers.
Tool Recommendation:
Use tool like Page Keyword Research to check these metrics easily.
With these additional fields :
Cost Per Click :
Competition Level :
Average Volume :
Monthly Traffic Change :
Verify Website Traffic
Analytics Tools:
Applications like Google Analytics and Yandex Metrica provide insights into the volume and sources of traffic to a domain. If you access them as a report.
*What to look for in the traffic ?
Total Number of Clicks: How many times people clicked and visited your website.
Total Impressions: How many times showed your site in the Search Results.
Average CTR (Click through rate – meaning the how many users actually clicked on your website)
Average Position : Which level of Google ranking your website on.
Consistency Check
Look for domains with consistent traffic sources and levels; erratic traffic patterns can indicate deceptive practices.
If the traffic jumps and falls dramatically : That could be indication of CTR Manipulation which considered as Black Hat SEO technique and Google penalty these situations heavily. This could result as De-Indexing from Google itself. So before purchasing a domain been used before make sure check the previous dramatic traffic fluctuations.
Content Quality Check
Manual Review
Read through the website’s content to evaluate its quality and relevance.
Not all tools can understand like human did. If you see a contextual irrelevance or wrong topical authority been build previously on the site consider this also a deal breaker simply cause it will took months to redirect the topical authority and topical category on Google.
Plagiarism Check
Tools like SpinCloud can help verify if the content on the domain is original or plagiarized. Scanning from different Ai`s the content being actually generated with their Artificial Intelligence or recognize as a A.I generated content.
Here are the ai engines being checked :
- Page
- GPTZero
- Bard
- OpenAI
- Writer
Check Major Site Metrics
Comprehensive Evaluation
Review DR (Domain Rating), SS (Spam Score), TF (Trust Flow), CF (Citation Flow), and RD (Referring Domains)
Correlation Analysis
Ensure these metrics correlate well without drastic unexplained variations, signaling a healthy domain.
If there is a major difference between your domain and relatively similar site with same contextual content and intent.
for example DA 70+ PA 40+ website with DR 7 doesn`t make much sense cause at least DR needs reach at least 30+ on this case. So be careful on the metrics wise in the end most important metric you can is these values.
Audit for Google Penalties
Google’s Webmaster Tools
Check for any manual actions reported against the domain that might affect its credibility and search visibility.
Penalty Indicators
Sudden drops in traffic can sometimes indicate a penalty which can reflect on the domain’s authority.
Also good idea to check Google Disavow Requests to make sure domain in subject doesn’t have a bad history.
Evaluate Domain History
Historical Data
Platforms like Wayback Machine can show the archived versions of the domain, which can be useful to identify any previously spammy or malicious use.
Ownership Changes
Frequent changes in domain ownership can be a red flag for potential fraudulent activities.
Conclusion
Regarding the question of whether purchasing expired domains for a new website is a good idea, the answer hinges on careful validation of the domain’s past. Expired domains can offer valuable established SEO benefits such as existing backlinks and historical authority. However, they come with risks if previously associated with spammy practices or penalties. Prior to acquisition, it’s essential to conduct a thorough examination of the domain’s history, review its backlink profile, check for any Google penalties, and ensure it aligns with the ethical and operational standards you uphold for your business. Successful integration of an expired domain requires meticulous vetting to confirm its alignment with your objectives and its free-standing credibility.
