Web & SEO
What is a microsite?
A microsite is a small, self-contained website built for a single campaign, product, event, or audience, kept separate from the main site.
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Technical definition
A microsite usually runs on its own domain or subdomain, carries its own navigation, and holds a handful of pages. That distinguishes it from a landing page, which is a single page, and from a section of the main site, which shares that site's navigation and domain authority.
The tradeoff is deliberate: a microsite buys design and messaging freedom at the cost of separation from the main domain's search authority. Links earned by the microsite build a property you may retire in six months.
In plain terms
It is a tiny website with its own address, built for one thing, usually with an end date.
A conference gets one. A product launch gets one. A campaign with its own look that would clash with your main site gets one.
Why it matters
The case for a microsite is when the thing genuinely does not belong on your main site: a co-branded partnership, an event with its own identity, a product aimed at an audience your main site does not speak to. In those cases the separation is the point.
The case against is more common than people expect. Every microsite is a property to maintain, secure, renew, and eventually retire. Search authority built there does not help your main domain. Before committing, ask whether a well-built landing page on your existing site would do the same job, because most of the time it will, and it will contribute to the domain you are keeping.
