I've read through most of the previous posts on this topic but opinion seems to be divided. My current site is a .com (hosted in the US), but I also have the same .co.uk domain. Now, which is the best way to ensure that my site is returned in the local (UK) SERP results: i) Duplicate the site at the .co.uk domain and host the .co.uk in the UK; ii) Host the .com in the UK; iii) Duplicate the site at the .co.uk and then setup a .301 redirect from the .co.uk to the .com Which of the above would be more beneficial? Some seem to think that merely hosting in the UK would ensure local SERP results but I’m not convinced. Surely the best thing to do would be to duplicate the site at the .co.uk domain and redirect all traffic to the .com …? Or should I just host an identical .co.uk site in the UK?
The extension doesn't really matter for ranking purposes though for UK people searching UK specific info a .co.uk is preferential over a .com. Hosting it in the UK is a must if you want to rank well when they tick the 'UK Search Results Only' box when searching. So... Ideally, move site to a host physically in the UK, move site to .co.uk and then 301 all pages from the US .com to the UK .co.uk.
Alarm bells ring when I see this!....do the options, some or all, that tops30 suggests, but make sure that you DO NOT duplicate the content! It should exist on one site or the other - never the two together.