1. Page load time

Embedding works by putting a snippet of code on your website page. The snippet points to some javascript and the forum is embedded into the page using an iframe. The fact that the browser has to load the javascript will slow down loading of the forum, especially if it’s loading other javascript first – for example code that displays ads from ad networks.

2. SEO

While Google tries to index iframed content, it doesn’t always get it right. When the forum is on a sub-domain and linked to your website navigation, Google will have no problems finding a crawling the content. What’s more, it’s easier for people to create external links to specific pages on your forum. These links will help your SEO.

If you’ve weighed the pros and cons and decide to go the embed route, here is a short checklist to follow:

Embedding Checklist

• Choose the embed friendly theme. This theme has minimal padding around it and will look good at any width.
• Ensure you have enabled embed in your dashboard.
• Set up the forum on a sub-domain. (Even though nobody will see the URL, this helps search engines attribute the SEO juice to your main domain.)
• Register this sub-domain in your Google Webmaster Tools account. (If you are not embedding, you should do this too.)
• Make sure that the page in which you embed is free of javascript errors.