Redesigning a website takes some time and effort. There are many elements to consider, too. For example, you have to make sure that your new website is user and mobile-friendly. And then, there’s the question of SEO. Your website is already indexed in Google and has some specific domain authority. What can you do not to lose your website’s SEO potential?
Put shortly, from the SEO perspective, there are a few elements that you need to take into account:
- Navigation
- Performance and load speed
- Redirections
- Content
All of that has to be redesigned according to current Google requirements, UX trends and the current condition of your website. If you neglect these elements, you will shortly see a significant drop in traffic and conversions, and that will have a direct, detrimental effect on your business.
With the right approach and following the “redesign principles”, you can not just not harm your website’s position in the SERP but even improve it. Below, you will find a checklist of elements that you need to consider.
SEO website redesign checklist – what to pay attention to
Analysis and a redesign plan
It all starts with an analysis of your current situation. Plan the redesign process and divide it into specific stages and elements. This way, you can make sure that you’re on the right path, and nothing will slip your attention.
Website architecture
Your brand-new website needs straightforward and intuitive navigation and structure. This way, both users and Google bots will be able to find everything they need. Currently, the most popular approach to website navigation is known as the pyramid – the main page leads to other key subpages (or categories) or sales-focused pages that then lead further down the website. Don’t forget to add the blog section, which is also important from the SEO perspective.
Redirects map
Redirecting all the old pages to the new ones is by far the most important step along the way. That’s especially crucial when your URL addresses change as well (e.g., because you’ve changed the domain name or extension). The lack of proper redirects will result in tens of 404 errors, a drop in position on Google and poor UX experiences for your customers.
And what if you have to delete some parts of your website? In that case, you should redirect your users to the closest possible substitute (e.g., a new category subpage).
Metadata
Table of Contents
From the SEO perspective, a website is not only about its content but about metadata, too. Metadata comprises title tags, ALT attributes and meta descriptions. These short content pieces help Google bots better understand what a given text or subpage is about. Metadata is also displayed in the SERP as a title and a description of a given search result. If you use a CMS system (e.g., WordPress), you can easily modify the metadata of every subpage on your website. Don’t forget about that.
Site map and robots.txt
A site map is a small file (typically in the XML format) that contains all the vital information about your website’s content and structure, primarily about pages, subpages, files, videos etc. More often than not, there is also a description of the relationships between these elements. Site map comes in handy, especially when you have an extensive website with many assets and subpages.
You need a sitemap, especially when your site is really large, it contains a large archive of isolated or not well-linked content pages, or when your site has a lot of rich media content. You can upload your website’s sitemap through Google Search Console (one of the must-haves of every website manager).
And what about the robots.txt file? It is a small text file that’s used by major search engines to index pages within a given domain. In fact, that’s the very first resource Google bots are looking for after arriving at a given website. You can use this file to include all the directions that you want Google bots to follow.
Summary
In this short text, we barely scratched the surface of the broad topic of website redesign and related SEO practices. If you are about to redesign your website, you need to know much more. That’s why we invite you to read the full version of this article: Website Redesign SEO Checklist.
Inside, you will learn about other elements vital during the redesign process. We will also show you what to do after launching a redesigned website.
