Website Design
Planning a website redesign without losing search visibility
A redesign is a chance to improve — and a risk if URLs, content, and metadata are handled carelessly. The essentials of a search-safe migration.
A new website should improve how a business is found, not reset it. Most visibility lost during redesigns comes from a few avoidable mistakes made during migration.
Map every URL
Before anything launches, list the existing pages that matter — especially those that receive search traffic or links. Every old URL should have a clear destination on the new site, connected by a permanent redirect.
Keep what works
Pages that already perform well in search usually do so for a reason. Rewriting them is fine; removing their substance, headings, or metadata without a plan is not.
Build the foundation in
A redesign is the ideal time to fix structural issues: logical headings, clean URLs, structured data, fast load times, and accessible markup. These are far cheaper to build in than to retrofit later.
Verify after launch
After launch, check redirects, submit an updated sitemap, and watch for crawl errors. Early monitoring catches small problems before they become lasting ones.