Website migration strategy
Migrating your site is exciting but make sure you protect your existing site traffic along the way.
- Website migration process
- Why we need website migration plan
- Current assets to migrate to new site
- Pre-migration audit area
- Post-migration review
- Next steps
What is the website migration?
Website migration means making big changes to a website’s technology, structure, design, or where it’s found online to make it more visible. Doing a migration is a big deal. It’s not easy, and you should have a really good reason to do it (we think you do since you’re still reading).
Some common reasons to move a website are:
1. Adjusting structure, navigation, or design
- Necessary when your current design needs an update.
- Important if your site structure and navigation deter search engine crawlers.
2. Adopting a new framework or CMS
Done to enhance performance, security, or functionality.
3. Introducing a mobile version
- Essential for visitors using tablets or cellphones.
4. Transitioning from HTTP to HTTPS
- Enhances site security by encrypting visitor information, preventing alarming notices.
5. Shifting to a new server
- Can boost overall site speed, particularly for growing websites, appealing to both visitors and search engines
6. Changing your domain name
- Might be part of a rebranding effort, involving a comprehensive site migration.
Let’s brake down the process step by step
- Website migration planning
Planning is essential to a successful website migration. Take the time you need to allocate enough resources to the website migration project, compose a solid migration checklist, educate people within the team, and make them aware of the risks involved.
- Website migration and why do we need it?
Website migration is the process of making significant changes to a website’s technology, structure, content, design, or location in order to have better online visibility. It helps to transfer the existing SEO value to the new sites or pages.
- Current assets to migrate to new the site
From the website analysis, it has been identified that the following assets have SEO values, and we recommend transferring to the new site.
- Metadata and header tags
- Indexed content
- Internal links
- Backlinks
- Pre migration audit area
Before migrating a website, it’s important to conduct a comprehensive audit to ensure that the migration process goes as smoothly as possible. Below are the area we need to review:
- URL structure
- Meta information (titles and descriptions)
- Body content and headings
- Domain redirect set up with correct destination URL and canonical tags
- Internal link structure
- Hreflang
- XML Sitemaps
- Structured Data (e.g. Schema.org)
- Events and goal
- GA/GTM tagging
- Permanent redirects from old URLs to new URLs
Make sure we do the 301 redirects from old pages to new pages, so Google knows the old URLs have been transferred permanently and get the existing SEO value to the new pages.
Next steps: Post migration review
After migrating a website, it’s important to conduct a post-migration review to ensure that everything is working correctly and that no issues or errors need to be addressed. Here are some steps you can take for a post-migration review:
- Test the top-performing pages to ensure they work properly and contain the right content
- Check the new website’s robots.txt to provide the right access to the right crawlers
- Check all redirects are in place and working properly
- Check the new XML sitemap includes the new URLs
- Check the pages have the canonical tags with the new URLs
- Ensure all required analytics and tagging are working correctly and the right tracking IDs are present
- Once everything looks fine, request Google for a fresh index by submitting the new and updated XML sitemap from the Google search console
Pre migration audit area
Before migrating a website, it’s important to conduct a comprehensive audit to ensure that the migration process goes as smoothly as possible. Below are the areas we need to review:
- URL structure
- Meta information (titles and descriptions)
- Body content and headings
- Domain redirect set up with correct destination URL and canonical tags
- Internal link structure
- Hreflang
- XML Sitemaps
- Structured Data (e.g. Schema.org)
- Events and goal
- GA/GTM tagging
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FAQs
You can find general FAQs; we provide more specific information based on your unique requirements.
Why migrate my website?
Website migration is crucial for staying current with technology, enhancing performance, improving security, rebranding, or adding new features. It ensures your site remains relevant and user-friendly.
How to minimize downtime during migration?
To minimize downtime, plan strategically, migrate during off-peak hours, use temporary maintenance pages, and employ techniques like DNS redirection. Our experts tailor a plan for a smooth transition with minimal disruption.
What's involved in the migration process?
The process includes site analysis, data backup, migration method selection, testing in a staging environment, DNS record updates, and post-migration monitoring. Our systematic approach ensures a seamless transition with minimal issues.