BWMagic’s Internet Marketing Newsletter
How To Recover Your Deleted/Lost Web Content
In the past, there have been a few cases when I needed to
recover deleted or lost content from the web. Now I keep
several backups of all my sites, but I can remember 2 or
3 years ago, when the server hosting my main site crashed
and everything was lost.
No big deal, I just had to upload my site again to a different
server, which I quickly did. Couple of hours of work and I
was back in business. However, this site had a WordPress
blog and database which were also deleted when the server
crashed. I did not make regular backups of this database…
something that was inexcusable but hey, we all make mistakes.
What to do?
I had a lot of unique content and postings on that blog,
it was a vital part of my overall site. Besides, having
all this content suddenly go missing would not help with
my search engine rankings. Too many “not found” links
or files is especially frowned upon by Google, where the
visitor’s experience is paramount.
That’s when I remembered hearing about the “Wayback Machine”
somewhere along the line… could they possibly have copies
of my lost blog content?
To my surprise and delight, this site had numerous full
captures of my site going back many years, including the
WordPress blog. All I had to do was retrieve this content
and re-post it on the new server. Now, because of the coding,
you won’t be able to directly download the HTML files for
this content – but all your text, links and content is there.
For me, this site was and is a true lifesaver. It really is
another backup of your web content that you may not even be
aware of, especially if you’re new to the webmaster field.
The URL for the WayBack Machine is:
web.archive.org
Later, I learned some savvy online marketers even use this
site and service to find online opportunities which are worth
pursuing. This marketing strategy goes along the following lines.
These marketers research expired domains for something that
they believe can be viable and profitable. They then use the
WayBack Machine to see if this extinct domain and site has plenty
of original content that can be used. These domains may even have
plenty of existing backlinks and PageRank. If everything looks
enticing, they buy the domain and contact the previous owner to
buy the old content and/or site.
Keep in mind, there are virtual versions of “house flippers”
on the web. They find/buy old websites and fix them up to keep
in their own portfolio or to sell. Sometimes it is just a matter
of framing the lost content in a different light or angle to make
it shine.
Regardless, the next time you’re scratching your hair out because
you have lost or accidentally deleted content from the web – don’t
panic. And before you put your head in that gas oven, try the
WayBack Machine.
It can really be a lifesaver.
…
Here’s a great free site for checking to see if webpages
are unique and original. You can also check to see if anyone
is using your own content…
Helping People Succeed Online Since 2002!
Kind Regards,
Titus Hoskins
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