{"id":4550,"date":"2018-09-13T07:00:23","date_gmt":"2018-09-13T14:00:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.inmotionhosting.com\/blog\/?p=4550"},"modified":"2024-01-23T15:08:15","modified_gmt":"2024-01-23T20:08:15","slug":"avoid-errors-when-you-remove-a-wordpress-page-or-post","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.inmotionhosting.com\/blog\/avoid-errors-when-you-remove-a-wordpress-page-or-post\/","title":{"rendered":"Avoid Errors When You Remove a WordPress Page or Post"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\nAvoid<\/p>\n

As a business owner, you know that quality content is the key to getting search engine rankings and drawing in visitors. That means constantly updating blogs and articles to keep them fresh and relevant. Occasionally, this will require that you know how to delete a WordPress page. You may ask, how can I delete a WordPress page and make sure people who go to that page don\u2019t get an error<\/em>?<\/p>\n

It can be frustrating when you really want to read an article, but the link is broken and gives an error. Today, we\u2019ll share information about the proper way to remove pages and prevent errors.<\/p>\n

404 Errors<\/h2>\n

On the internet, nothing ever dies. What\u2019s that mean for you?<\/p>\n

It means that simply deleting a WordPress page is not enough. Once a link is out there, it\u2019s out there \u2013 search engines have indexed it, other pages may have linked to it, you probably shared it on your social media or in a newsletter.<\/p>\n

Unfortunately, when you delete a WordPress page or post, or even just rename it, that page or post is no longer accessible using that prior link or URL. When someone in your audience finds that old link and clicks on it, they\u2019re going to get a 404 error page: the dreaded \u201cpage not found. This creates a terrible customer experience and it\u2019s something that should never happen. Luckily, it\u2019s not overly difficult to solve this problem.<\/p>\n

301 Redirects<\/h2>\n

A 301 redirect is a permanent redirect from one URL to another.<\/p>\n

This means when someone clicks on your old link, they\u2019ll be sent to a new location. From the internet user\u2019s standpoint, the whole thing is completely seamless: they click on a link and they\u2019re taken to a page. They never even know that they are being redirected.<\/p>\n

Where you choose to send your visitors is up to you: It might be an updated version of the same post or page, or it might be something completely different. Often, a business owner will choose to set up a special landing page just for 301 redirects. It will say something along the lines of, \u201cThe page you\u2019re looking for is no longer available, but here are some other articles we think you might find interesting.\u201d<\/p>\n

The key is to keep your audience interested and engaged without causing any frustration.<\/p>\n

How Do I Setup a Redirect?<\/h2>\n

A 301 redirect is done by adding a special statement to your .htaccess file. Unless you are a web designer or developer, though, it\u2019s not recommended that you change that file on your own. Making just one error can cause serious damage to your website.<\/p>\n

Instead, there are several WordPress plugins available for 301 redirects. Two of them that we like are Simple 301 Redirects<\/a> and Redirection<\/a>. Once a plugin is installed and active, you will see it added to your WordPress menu. From there, you simply put in the old URL and then put in the new one you\u2019d like to redirect to.<\/p>\n

Testing Your Redirects<\/h2>\n

Never just assume that something works without testing it! Setting up a 301 redirect would be pointless if your audience is just going to end up with the same 404 error message.<\/p>\n

Luckily, testing your redirects is simple. Just go to a web browser and plug in the old permalink or URL. If it takes you to the new page, you know that your redirect is working. If you want to double check, there are lots of free redirect testing tools available on the internet. A quick Google search will bring up several including Redirect Check<\/a>.<\/p>\n

If you find that it isn\u2019t working, make sure the plugin is properly installed.<\/p>\n

A Note on SEO<\/h2>\n

While 404 errors don\u2019t officially hurt your SEO, they can affect it in several ways.<\/p>\n