A practical SEO checklist for a website redesign

Record what the current website actually does

Start with a list of public URLs, including service pages, articles, location pages, downloadable documents and campaign landing pages. Add the purpose of each page, its current title and the action it asks visitors to take. Use Search Console and analytics, when available, to identify pages that attract relevant searches and enquiries. A page with modest traffic can still matter if it answers a valuable buying question.

Keep a separate record of forms, phone links, booking tools and connected systems. This becomes the acceptance list for the new website. A visual redesign is incomplete if a useful document disappears or an enquiry reaches the wrong person.

Decide which URLs stay, move or retire

Keep an existing URL when it still describes the page well. When a URL must change, map it to the closest useful replacement and implement a permanent redirect. A consolidated service page can receive several old pages when it genuinely covers their subject. An unrelated homepage is usually an unhelpful destination for someone expecting a specific answer.

Record retired content separately. If there is no relevant replacement, return an appropriate missing-page response instead of disguising the removal. Update internal links to the final destinations so navigation does not depend on redirects. Check old campaign links and important external links as part of the same map.

Preserve useful answers and improve the structure

Review content before importing it. Keep accurate explanations, useful examples and proof you can substantiate; remove unsupported promises and obsolete details. Give each new page a distinct purpose. A service overview, a city service page and a practical guide should help visitors at different stages of a decision.

Write clear headings and concise introductions that answer the page’s main question. Link related services and guides where they help the reader take the next step. If several pages repeat the same answer, consider combining them rather than creating unnecessary competition within your own site.

Test discovery and enquiries before launch

Check that important text and links are available in the delivered page, titles and descriptions describe the content, and canonical URLs point to the intended public addresses. Review robots controls, sitemap entries, status codes and redirects. Staging pages need appropriate access or indexing controls; production pages must not inherit a staging noindex setting.

Complete an enquiry on a phone and a desktop. Confirm that validation works, the submission is stored, the right team can retrieve it and the success message is accurate. Check keyboard navigation, image descriptions and page performance. These checks support the customer journey as well as search discovery.

Monitor the launch against a documented baseline

Submit the production sitemap through Search Console and inspect important pages. Monitor indexing, crawl errors, search queries and landing-page performance over time. Google advises that significant site changes can produce temporary search fluctuations while pages are recrawled and processed, so evaluate trends with the migration date in view.

Compare qualified enquiries as well as visits. A cleaner website may change which visitors contact you and which questions they ask. Review missing URLs and failed form submissions promptly, then use actual search and lead data to prioritize the next content improvements.

Your planning checklist

• Create a complete old-to-new URL map with a reason for each change.
• Test public titles, canonicals, indexability, sitemap entries and status codes.
• Submit a real test enquiry and confirm that it reaches its intended destination.
• Record the launch date and monitor search visibility alongside qualified enquiries.

Common questions