Google's John Mueller said that using expired domains, and repurposed domains are "SEO-flotsam, index-cruft." John went on to add that search engines have had a lot of practice with dealing with that appropriately."
Flotsam is defined as the wreckage of a ship or its cargo found floating on or washed up by the sea.
This is just a great quote, so I had to share it:
Many expired, repurposed domains are SEO-flotsam, index-cruft, and luckily search engines have had a lot of practice with dealing with that appropriately. Build a new site if you want, don't assume there's old & tasty SEO-juice to lick up just by placing a site on an old domain.
— John Mueller is mostly not here 🐀 (@JohnMu) December 9, 2022
Yes, John went on to add that you can "build a new site if you want," but he said, "don't assume there's old & tasty SEO-juice to lick up just by placing a site on an old domain."
We wrote about this topic a lot, a lot, Google knows when domain names change ownership and Google can remove or keep any signals it wants from the old domain.
Here are some older stories on this topic:
- Google Penalties Might Follow You To A New Domain Name
- Reminder: When Buying A New Domain, Check Its History
- Buying a Used Domain? Submit a Reconsideration Request to Google
- Google's Matt Cutts On How To Buy Domain Names
- Submit a Reconsideration Request to Google if You Buy a Banned Domain
Forum discussion at Twitter.
