Marketing & search · Website help · Canonical and URL variants

The canonical points at the old domain

A site moves to a new domain but retains canonical URLs copied from the old template. The public destination contradicts its own preference.

What to change

The preferred address may be assembled from a shared site setting rather than each article's content. Ask the developer to trace that configuration and inspect several page types before and after correction. Include older pages and newly generated guides to catch inconsistent build paths. The owner should receive a short list proving that navigation, discovery files and page declarations now reference the same approved production domain.

A worked example

Illustrative example

Illustrative test: Choose one article that existed before the move and one added afterward.

How to check the result

Both declare the approved live domain and no template retains the retired host.

A mistake to avoid

Changing only the homepage leaves contradictory signals throughout the library.

Your action checklist

Use these checks to prepare a discussion with your team or supplier. Tick a check when you have recorded the decision or evidence, rather than when a feature has simply been promised.

Decisions to record

Entries stay in this page and are not submitted to Kay & Co. Download your notes before leaving; the page does not save them.

Healthcare SEO research with a search-results page, inspection lens, location pin and service card.
Match a useful service page to the searcher's task.
Healthcare technical SEO illustrated by a page hierarchy and connected internal links.
Give visitors and crawlers clear routes through the website.
Healthcare SEO measurement with unnumbered reporting charts, a source document and review checklist.
Read search evidence alongside useful enquiry outcomes.

Further reading

These primary sources provide additional context for the project decisions above.

Related decisions

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