A website redesign is always an exciting project for any business. Working with a well thought out redesigning plan can bring in new leads and increased traffic to the website. It can also improve visitor interactions as well as your brand reputation.
The risks associated with website redesigning include loss of website information, loss of current clients, and loss of current search engine results ranking. These risks can cause long term damage to any business.
When redesigning a website, it is crucial to have a strategy of how to maintain the current SEO ranking during the redesigning process.
Here is how to retain your website SEO through a redesigning process.
Monitoring everything
Monitoring every aspect of the website at all times is the best way to know when something goes wrong. Invest in the use of SEO monitoring tools throughout the redesigning process. Keep an eye on all website SEO metrics and look out for any signs of disturbance.
Some metrics to keep an eye on include:
● Domain authority
● Keyword rankings
● Total no. of backlinks
● Search engines organic traffic
● Speed
● Safety
● Citation flow/trust flow
● Spam score
Working with a Web Design Company will ensure real-time monitoring of these metrics and ensure they are regulated through the redesigning process.
Use a temporary URL
To avoid disruptions when transitioning from the old website to the new one, it is a good idea to set up a temporary URL for the new site. Copy the old website to the new URL and then make the changes needed. Remember to no-index the new URL to prevent it from appearing in search engines. Once the changes are complete, you can make the website live.
Using 301 redirections
301 redirects communicate with the search engines and inform them of the changes of particular web pages. This ensures that your clients can still find any page on your site. When setting up 301 redirects, make sure that each 301-page redirect leads to the same content on the new website.
Use ideal 404 pages
The 404 not found message is a requirement during any website redesigning process. A useful 404 page helps the visitor and the engines to redirect to a page with relevant information or another part of the website. You can make your 404 pages more user-friendly by including a search bar on the page.
Tracking backlinks
Losing all backlinks during a website redesign is a fear all business owners have. You can track your backlinks by placing 301 redirects to all pages with backlinks.
Once the redesigned website goes live, the first thing to do is to compare the bounce rates after the redesign with bounce rates before the redesign. If the bounce rates are higher in the new site, you may need to do a few changes.
When making changes to your website, avoid working on it while it is still live. The redesigning process is long, and mistakes are bound to happen during the process. This causes errors on loading pages. It is easier to work on the issues without the pressure of maintaining a live website.
Making changes and moving your website is always a difficult moment for any business. The best way to ensure that you maintain the website SEO after a redesign is working closely with a top digital agency that you have properly vetted.