{"id":2278,"date":"2023-11-16T12:55:26","date_gmt":"2023-11-16T17:55:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/kattwagner.com\/?p=2278"},"modified":"2023-11-16T15:19:58","modified_gmt":"2023-11-16T20:19:58","slug":"31-tips-combing-brands-websites-buying-a-business","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/kattwagner.com\/31-tips-combing-brands-websites-buying-a-business\/","title":{"rendered":"31 Tips For Combining Brands and Merging Websites After Buying A Business"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>The decision to merge websites and start combining brands is a necessary one to make when you buy a business that competes with one you already own. How should you deal with a second Google Business Profile (GBP), website, brand, and customer list after buying a competitor&#8217;s business? I&#8217;ve compiled a list of what 31 business and SEO experts had to say.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This food-for-thought experiment started when Nolan Gore posed a question to entrepreneurs on Twitter. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Watch this segment as part of weekly marketing news: <\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe title=\"Marketing News This Week, Plus Tips and Ideas: Google, YouTube, and Business Buying Tips\" width=\"1200\" height=\"675\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/D5V0eo4_Mbw?start=1332&#038;feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=D5V0eo4_Mbw&amp;t=1332s\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Watch the segment<\/a> on Merging Brands After Buying a Business<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Because Nolan is buying a business that competes with his own, there will be two separate Google Business Profile listings with split reviews and two websites. So, he asked some of the best in business for advice on whether they would merge websites and what they would do with the Google Business Profile.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Here is the original post:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\"><p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">I am buying a competitor. We both have great reviews but I have more and better. <br><br>What do I do with their Google listing and website? <br><br> I want to pay someone $100 for 30 min to advise me on this. Who can I talk to? <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/6jsEDbwcs1\" target=\"_blank\">pic.twitter.com\/6jsEDbwcs1<\/a><\/p>&mdash; Nolan Gore | SMB Leadership Guy (@LeadershipAcad1) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/LeadershipAcad1\/status\/1723317409652588958?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">November 11, 2023<\/a><\/blockquote><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Top Tips and Advice to Merge Websites, Google Business Profiles and Start Combining Brands<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Here are tips and advice from others summarized. To read the full tweet\/post for each piece of advice, click the handle to jump to what they said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>1.<\/strong> <strong>Leave digital assets and GBP up for visibility.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Rich Jordan | <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/StrongpointRich\/status\/1723338991812899307?s=20\" target=\"_blank\">@StrongpointRich<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>2. Rebrand the acquired outfit&#8217;s website immediately.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\"><p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Great advice.  But with the acquired outfit\u2019s website  I\u2019d jump on the rebrand asap. Just adjust home page and contact info\u2026 something like \u201ctwo lawn care leaders are now ONE.  Welcome to Top Choice Lawn Care\u201d<\/p>&mdash; Tony Taylor (@tonytaylors) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/tonytaylors\/status\/1723394921728778649?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">November 11, 2023<\/a><\/blockquote><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Tony Taylor | <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/tonytaylors\/status\/1723394921728778649?s=20\" target=\"_blank\">@tonytaylors<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>3. Keep and run the acquired brand separately.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Chris Sosnowski | <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/chrisosnowski\/status\/1723379788784501057?s=20\" target=\"_blank\">@chrisosnowski<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>4. Use a virtual phone system to forward calls to your main number.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\"><p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Literally what I have done and will do in the future. Virtual phone system on Ringcentral, port the number in and have it forward to your main number for your other business. Announce on both websites and GMB and slowly transition.<\/p>&mdash; Steve Porter (@StevePorter37) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/StevePorter37\/status\/1723345999060402201?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">November 11, 2023<\/a><\/blockquote><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Steve Porter | <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/StevePorter37\/status\/1723345999060402201?s=20\" target=\"_blank\">@StevePorter37<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>5. Consider the potential turbulence of a full rebrand.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Blueprintsmb | <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/blueprintsmb22\/status\/1723321289132105928?s=20\" target=\"_blank\">@blueprintsmb22<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>6. Gradually align the two brands and recommend your original business.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Mr. May | <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/Myirha_Mzondi\/status\/1723319738644808180?s=20\" target=\"_blank\">@Myirha_Mzondi<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>7.<\/strong> <strong>Keep both sites open and track business from each.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\"><p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Keep both sites open and track how much business you get from each. Then you can see if the second website is worth keeping open.<\/p>&mdash; XXXXX (@Birdman5541) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/Birdman5541\/status\/1723324154420576332?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">November 11, 2023<\/a><\/blockquote><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>XXXXX | <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/Birdman5541\/status\/1723324154420576332?s=20\" target=\"_blank\">@Birdman5541<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>8.<\/strong> <strong>Keep both brands and change the phone number to route calls to your business.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>DontscalebizGuy | <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/DontscalebizGuy\/status\/1723318416906305546?s=20\" target=\"_blank\">@DontscalebizGuy<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>9.<\/strong> <strong>Keep both brands and consolidate inbound traffic.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Dr. Parth | <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/doctor_parth\/status\/1723319534633754654?s=20\" target=\"_blank\">@doctor_parth<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>10.<\/strong> <strong>Leave digital properties separate, forward phones and emails.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Joel Milne | <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/joelmilne\/status\/1723375478143144229?s=20\" target=\"_blank\">@joelmilne<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>11.<\/strong> <strong>Don&#8217;t merge google business profiles: change only the phone number to forward calls.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Eric Vevang | <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/EricVevang\/status\/1723328488080363668?s=20\" target=\"_blank\">@EricVevang<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>12.<\/strong> <strong>Keep the acquired Google profile and website.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Mike \ud83c\udf31 | <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/mikemcln\/status\/1723514498135306345?s=20\" target=\"_blank\">@mikemcln<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>13.<\/strong> <strong>301 redirect the acquired site to a page announcing the acquisition.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Cole South | <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/ColeSouth\/status\/1723420097518408072?s=20\" target=\"_blank\">@ColeSouth<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>14. Lead all inbound to one team initially.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Levi | <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/levitijerina\/status\/1723379249002766424?s=20\" target=\"_blank\">@levitijerina<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>15.<\/strong> <strong>From an SEO perspective, don&#8217;t change anything immediately.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Patrick Gallagher | <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/gridpane\/status\/1723318523504599448?s=20\" target=\"_blank\">@gridpane<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>16. Keep both brands running with a new tagline.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>H\u00e9yaw | <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/Heyawneh\/status\/1723551918159532207?s=20\" target=\"_blank\">@Heyawneh<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>17.<\/strong> <strong>Keep both brands, roll up operations and back office.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Mike Hauptman | <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/HauptmanMichael\/status\/1723342912467911110?s=20\" target=\"_blank\">@HauptmanMichael<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>18.<\/strong> <strong>Keep the acquired brand for a period and slowly transition.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Joey Martin Offi\u0107ial | <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/jmarteen\/status\/1723351959426543693?s=20\" target=\"_blank\">@jmarteen<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>19<\/strong>. <strong>If the new site doesn\u2019t rank very well redirect it all.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Dan Wolfe | <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/danthewolfe\/status\/1723342176183312781?s=20\" target=\"_blank\">@danthewolfe<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>20.<\/strong> <strong>Decide on redirect based on the ranking of both sites.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\"><p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Could keep the old phone number that a lot of people already know and might have on fridge magnets or other things and re-route those calls to his main phone number. Not sure if it\u2019s that easy, but just an additional thought.<\/p>&mdash; Matthew Binzer (@matthewbinzer) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/matthewbinzer\/status\/1723357871562182856?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">November 11, 2023<\/a><\/blockquote><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Matthew Binzer | <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/matthewbinzer\/status\/1723357871562182856?s=20\" target=\"_blank\">@matthewbinzer<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>21.<\/strong> <strong>Keep both, RE direct after year 1, or differentiate for different segments.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Alan K | <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/itsalankline\/status\/1723667883639599610?s=20\" target=\"_blank\">@itsalankline<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>22.<\/strong> <strong>Keep them as separate brands, unify the backend.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Dan Goldstein | <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/daniellgoldstei\/status\/1723520541817032764?s=20\" target=\"_blank\">@daniellgoldstei<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>23.<\/strong> <strong>Keep both brands to set a market price for quality.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>SH\u039eRKHAN.S\u25ceL | <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/sherkhantx\/status\/1723326509950067192?s=20\" target=\"_blank\">@sherkhantx<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>24.<\/strong> <strong>Keep both brands for diversified reach.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Jesse Cunningham V | <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/jcunninghamseo\/status\/1723355474156720323?s=20\" target=\"_blank\">@jcunninghamseo<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>25.<\/strong> <strong>Be #1, 2, and 3 on Google for better visibility.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Chadd G | <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/Twenty7Trades\/status\/1723422749291638822?s=20\" target=\"_blank\">@Twenty7Trades<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>26.<\/strong> <strong>Update the GMB name, have 2 locations for increased search density.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Bogdan Constantin | <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/bconstantin\/status\/1723391935304389032?s=20\" target=\"_blank\">@bconstantin<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>27. Retain all assets, create an integration strategy.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>David Crysler | <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/DavidCrysler\/status\/1723412411489636507?s=20\" target=\"_blank\">@DavidCrysler<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>28.<\/strong> <strong>Differentiate products and target segments with two brands.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"541\" height=\"248\" src=\"https:\/\/kattwagner.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/image-1.png\" alt=\"Screenshot of a tweet with advice on combining brands when buying a business. The advice is to keep the separate to target different market segments.\" class=\"wp-image-2285\" srcset=\"https:\/\/kattwagner.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/image-1.png 541w, https:\/\/kattwagner.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/image-1-300x138.png 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 541px) 100vw, 541px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Tomris Dilhun | <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/buyukraslanti\/status\/1723484092765794798?s=20\" target=\"_blank\">@buyukraslanti<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>29. Redirect the acquired website to yours.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Chris Stephenson | <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/TopherNOW\/status\/1723335620313874827?s=20\" target=\"_blank\">@TopherNOW<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>30. Put a post on their home page saying we now operate under a new brand and link to the new site.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Consentuality | <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/consentuality\/status\/1723696767496007721?s=20\" target=\"_blank\">@consentuality<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>31.<\/strong> <strong>Build a second homepage announcing the change.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Alejandro A. | <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/crossborder_AA\/status\/1723389545364729932?s=20\" target=\"_blank\">@crossborder_AA<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Alright, folks, we&#8217;ve got a mix of strategies here for the acquisition rodeo. I&#8217;ve spilled the tea, now spill yours! What would you do? What kind of data would you look at to make your decision?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/kattwagner\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Connect with Katt on LinkedIn<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>What happens when you buy a business similar to one you already own? If you&#8217;re debating whether to merge brands and assets or keep them separate, here are some tips and advice from SEO and entrepreneurs with experience.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2286,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_eb_attr":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[92,105,106],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kattwagner.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2278"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kattwagner.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kattwagner.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kattwagner.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kattwagner.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2278"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/kattwagner.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2278\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2293,"href":"https:\/\/kattwagner.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2278\/revisions\/2293"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kattwagner.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2286"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kattwagner.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2278"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kattwagner.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2278"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kattwagner.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2278"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}