DEEP DIVE
Website migration
One of the most common mistakes in SEO happens during a website migration. If the process is not handled correctly, search engines may re-evaluate your website incorrectly and it takes time to regain positions.
Learn how to migrate safely and maintain your visibility.
What to consider when migrating a website?
A successful migration starts long before the first move. It's about setting the framework, defining goals and ensuring that all parts are prepared so that we avoid losing position in the search engines and instead maximize the outcome.
Start by defining the purpose of the migration. Is it a new platform, new design, domain change or technical upgrade?
Set clear goals: What do you want to achieve in terms of SEO, performance or user experience? How do we measure the success of the migration?
Map current website: What domains do we have and what should move? Subdomains, microsites?
What content should be migrated: content, structure, traffic and important pages.
Identify risks: What could affect visibility, conversions or technical functionality of the new site and how do we monitor that we are having a better impact in the new site?
Develop a project plan with responsibilities, timeline and milestones and who is responsible for the different steps and which domains will go live and in which order (especially if there are many countries).
Ensure you have access to and ownership of all necessary data: Hosting, CMS, Analytics, Search Console.
Prepare for the migration
When the move itself takes place, it's important to keep track of the details so that you can easily follow up on any errors and quickly roll back if something doesn't go as planned. This is where accuracy and experience make the biggest difference. The agency should be on its toes and you should be able to jointly trust that this will be a smooth transition that does not require unnecessary work afterwards.
Keep in mind that:
Test the new site in advance: make sure everything is in a staging environment with noindex, so it doesn't get indexed by mistake. Check translations, features, design, load times, forms, checkout and tracking. Everything must work optimally before launch.
Make sure all content is included correctly: texts, images, metadata and key elements should be in place and displayed as intended.
Prepare a clear URL mapping and what the redirects should look like: So that all the authority, link power and SEO value from the old site is migrated over to the new one without losses.
Communicate clearly internally when the move takes place: Choose a time when customers, internal teams and external agencies are ready to act quickly on any bug fixes or adjustments.
Ensure that metrics and analytics and search console work from day one: Data collection should be in place from launch to measure impact and detect any anomalies.
Prepare the measurement in the staging environment and ensure that the new cookie banner is also included and the tracking is not outside and "accidentally" collects incorrect data.
Communicate clearly internally when the move takes place: Choose a time when customers, internal teams and external agencies are ready to act quickly on any bug fixes or adjustments.
Why is it important?
To avoid loss of traffic and visibility when search engines interpret the new structure.
To ensure that no content, data or SEO value is lost during the transition.
To minimize disruptions and technical errors that can affect the user experience.
To be able to measure the result correctly from day one - without interruptions in analysis or conversion data.
To have control over the process and be able to act quickly if something needs to be adjusted.
To make the launch feel safe and professional, both internally and for your customers.
Claiming and verifying that everything went right?
Search Integration has many years of experience in migrating websites without creating traffic or conversion drops.
We help you through the entire process; Before, during and after the migration and act as a requirements partner that keeps the whole project together.
We provide the basis for re-pointing, ensure that all content and SEO value is included, and verify that everything works properly after launch. This way we avoid anything falling through the cracks and you can feel safe throughout the migration.
With our help, the migration is smooth, controlled and we minimize risk.