Improve the current site
Good fit: The platform is stable and the main problem is content, navigation, mobile usability or conversion clarity. Watch for: Avoid piling new sections onto an architecture that no longer supports the customer journey.
Website migration guide
Improve, redesign or rebuild—with a clear plan.
A visual refresh is only one part of a redesign. Existing URLs, useful content, forms, analytics and customer journeys are business assets. Decide what to keep, change, redirect or retire before the work begins.
Compare the three approaches
Redesign on the same platform
Good fit: The underlying system works, but page patterns, visual hierarchy and interactions need a coherent update. Watch for: Existing templates, apps and technical limitations may constrain the result more than expected.
Rebuild or migrate
Good fit: The platform blocks essential functions, ownership, maintainability, performance or the required store and content structure. Watch for: URLs, redirects, data, integrations, forms, analytics and launch ownership need a documented migration plan.
Inventory the current website
Export what you can and record ownership before accounts, URLs or platform access change.
- Current URLs, titles, canonicals and indexability
- Pages with meaningful traffic, links, leads or sales
- Forms, bookings, payments and third-party integrations
- Analytics properties, events and Search Console access
- Content, images, product data and downloadable files
- Domain, DNS, hosting, platform and account ownership
Protect the customer and crawl paths
Map every important URL
Give each old page a keep, improve, merge, redirect or remove decision. Avoid redirecting everything to the homepage.
Keep metadata aligned
New canonicals, titles, headings, internal links and sitemap entries must reflect the final route structure.
Retest business actions
Forms, calls, bookings, checkout links, email delivery and analytics events need explicit post-launch tests.
Monitor after launch
Review crawl errors, redirect chains, index coverage, conversions and priority pages while search engines process the change.
Redesign questions
Will a website redesign automatically improve Google rankings?
No. A redesign can improve usability and technical foundations, but results depend on content quality, competition, authority, links, migration quality and many external signals.
Should every old URL be kept?
Not necessarily. Useful, linked or intent-matching URLs should usually be preserved or redirected to the closest relevant replacement. Obsolete pages can be consolidated when the decision is documented.
Can an existing ecommerce store be migrated?
Often, yes, but products, orders, customer data, URLs, redirects, apps, payment settings and platform export limits must be reviewed before scope and risk can be confirmed.
What should be checked immediately after launch?
Priority URLs, redirects, canonicals, robots directives, sitemap output, forms, analytics events, mobile navigation, checkout paths and server errors should all be reviewed.
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