Nine | Media & Publishing | SEO
- Nine.com.au surged to 4th position in Nielsen’s digital news rankings
- Achieved an impressive overall audience of 4.53 million
- Remarkable 64% audience increase (+2.75 million) from the previous month
The Challenge
Undertaking a domain migration is a formidable challenge, especially for an established site with a significant online footprint. The risk of losing traffic during such a transformation is a well-known concern. In the case of Nine, the magnitude of the rebrand and migration underscored the potential impact on both short-term and long-term search traffic for the entire portfolio of Nine brands. The challenge was clear: execute a flawless migration strategy to minimize disruptions and secure the brand’s digital future.
The SOLUTION
1) Preparation & Planning: Digital Minds initiated a meticulous planning phase to lay the groundwork for a successful domain migration.
- Identification of migration risks to SEO – Conducted a comprehensive analysis to identify potential risks to the sites’ SEO during the migration process.
- Development of domain migration plan – Collaborated with internal stakeholders to craft a detailed plan and schedule for the migration, ensuring alignment with Nine’s overall rebranding objectives.
- SEO traffic forecasting – Leveraged data to forecast SEO traffic and set realistic expectations for the migration process.
2) Migration: The execution phase involved close collaboration with development teams to ensure a seamless transition.
- Worked with dev teams – Collaborated closely with development teams to execute the migration of each domain based on the approved schedule.
- Review of each site – Conducted thorough reviews of each site as it rolled out onto the new domain, identifying and addressing technical issues promptly.
3) Post-Migration: After the migration, Digital Minds monitored and evaluated the performance of all Nine properties.
- Tracking performance – Implemented robust tracking mechanisms to monitor the performance of all Nine properties across various metrics.
- Post-launch reviews – Conducted post-launch reviews at 1, 3, and 6 months post-migration to assess the sustained success of the migration process.
THE RESULT
The meticulous planning and seamless execution of the domain migration and rebranding efforts yielded impressive results for Nine:
- Audience Growth: In July 2016, Nine.com.au surged to 4th position in Nielsen’s digital news rankings, boasting an overall audience of 4.53 million.
- Audience Increase: The audience experienced remarkable growth, with a 64% increase (+2.75 million) from the previous month.
The key to this success lay in the establishment of a robust migration plan, effective process management, and strong collaboration across Product, Development, Operations, and Marketing teams. This case serves as a testament to Digital Minds’ expertise in executing complex domain migrations, ensuring not only the preservation of search traffic but also substantial growth in the digital audience for Nine.
About Nine
Channel Nine is a prominent player in the Australian media landscape, overseeing popular web properties such as Nine.com.au, Wide World Of Sports, 9News, and the streaming service 9Now. As part of a major rebrand from Ninemsn to Nine, Digital Minds collaborated with Nine to navigate the complexities of domain migration for 10 distinct brands over a comprehensive 6-month period. This ambitious undertaking aimed to safeguard the brand’s digital presence while mitigating potential threats to search traffic across all Nine websites.
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