iamned.com

Dispelling the ‘old domain’ and sandbox myth

There is a rumor on the interwebs that you can evade the google sandbox as well as other aged related google filters by buying an old domain. However, this simply isn’t true through personal experience. It is true that buying an established, aged domain can allow to bypass these filters provided that the domain is sufficiently aged and has enough authority, but most old domains are lacking in both.

I once had a domain that had been in google for about a year and had a pagerank of three. Last June I changed the theme of the site and pointed some links to it as well as added hundreds of new pages. Initially the site ranked well, but a harsh penalty was imposed and the site now no longer ranks for anything.

Last month I tried a similar technique on a domain that was one year old. I pointed about a dozen low pageranks links to it and within a few days it was penalized. It no longer ranks of its own domain and was stripped of its pagerank.

But aren’t old domains immune? Apparently not. Google’s algos are receptive to unusual linking patters regardless of domain age. Most people when they buy an old domain aren’t aware of this. Since most parked domains have only one or two inbound links a sudden increase in linkage is an invitation for a google penalty because it appears unnatural.

How long does this penalty last? I dunno. Maybe a few weeks or possibly a year. The moral of this story is that old domains aren’t immune from google’s penalties.

One Response to “Dispelling the ‘old domain’ and sandbox myth”

Comment from Sucker
Time February 26, 2008 at 1:45 pm

Were all the “old” domains about a year old? I always thought of aged domains more like 5 years old.

Anyway, doesn’t really matter, because I’ve had old domains that don’t rank all that well and some new domains that rank surprisingly well. I’d agree this theory is indeed a myth.