As someone experienced in digital marketing, it’s crucial to recognize the impact of the .htaccess file on your website’s performance and user satisfaction. The .htaccess file acts as a tool that lets you customize your Apache web server settings without delving into its configurations.

Just imagine having the capability to customize directory settings, manage access permissions and effortlessly create user URLs that are optimized for search engines. That’s where the beauty of .htaccess lies.

Let’s say you have used one of the htaccess redirect generator tool. Now, let me tell you how and where you can post the generated 301 redirection code.

2 methods to put htaccess redirection code

Method 1: Using .htaccess

1. To access the root directory of your WordPress site, you have a couple of options. You can use an FTP client like FileZilla to access the file manager provided by your hosting provider.
2. Once you’re in the root directory, you’ll need to locate or create a file called “.htaccess”. This file is typically found in the folder of your WordPress installation. If it doesn’t exist, you can easily create one.
3. Before making any changes to the .htaccess file, it’s crucial to back it up as a measure. Simply make a copy of the file. Store it in a location on your computer.
4. Now that you have your backup ready, open the .htaccess file using a text editor. Add the code you copied from htaccess redirect generator to implement a 301 redirect.

Method 2: Using WordPress Plugin

1. Log in to your WordPress admin dashboard. Navigate to “Plugins” > “Add New.”
2. Search, for a redirection plugin like “Redirection” or “Yoast SEO“. Install it.
3. Once installed activate the plugin.
4. Look for the section that manages redirects usually labeled as “Redirection” or “Tools,” in the WordPress admin menu.
5. In this section create a redirect by specifying both the new URLs.
6. Make sure to select the type as “301 Permanent Redirect.”
7. Save your changes. The plugin will take care of handling the redirection for you.

By following these steps, you’ll be able to configure and utilize a redirection on your website.

Want to know more about htaccess redirects? Please keep reading…

.htaccess redirects:

301 Redirect (Permanent Redirect):

• • Redirects permanently from one URL to another. It’s commonly used when you want to indicate that a page has moved permanently, and search engines should update their indexes.

Redirect 301 /old-page.html http://example.com/new-page.html

302 Redirect (Temporary Redirect):

• Redirects temporarily from one URL to another. It’s used when you want to temporarily send traffic to a different page, but you expect to return to the original URL in the future.

Redirect 302 /temp-page.html http://example.com/new-temp-page.html

RewriteRule Redirect (mod_rewrite):

• Offers more flexibility using regular expressions for redirect conditions. It’s a powerful tool for creating complex redirect rules.

RewriteEngine On
RewriteRule ^old-page\.html$ http://example.com/new-page.html [R=301,L]

RedirectMatch:

• Allows you to use regular expressions for more advanced matching patterns in redirects.

RedirectMatch 301 ^/category/old-category/(.*)$ http://example.com/new-category/$1

Redirect to HTTPS:

• Forces users to access your site over HTTPS instead of HTTP.

RewriteEngine On
RewriteCond %{HTTPS} off
RewriteRule ^ https://%{HTTP_HOST}%{REQUEST_URI} [L,R=301]

Redirect to www or non-www:

• Forces the use of www or non-www version of your domain.

RewriteEngine On
RewriteCond %{HTTP_HOST} !^www\. [NC]
RewriteRule ^ http://www.%{HTTP_HOST}%{REQUEST_URI} [L,R=301]