Website migration and SEO

Before you start your migration, you need to understand what the goals are and, above all, you have to know whether it’s actually necessary. The following points all number among essential reasons for migrating: 

• technological debt;
• an outdated layout;
• an inefficient system;
• a change of domain.

The beginning of the project is often the only moment when we can change the initial assumptions, which can trigger major drops in visibility and traffic. To that end, it’s worth listing the greatest risks associated with migration and trying to mitigate them.

It’s vital that there are SEO experts on the team from the outset, and not only developers. Why? Because what often happens is that the person responsible for optimising a website for search engines only joins the project after the migration and, by then, a decline in traffic is already perceptible. 

Migration is a complex process where, at any stage, something may not go as intended. This is why making a full backup of your website, in other words, all the data, files and settings, including copies of databases, media and configuration files, before migrating, is an invaluable measure for protecting yourself against unnecessary stress, crushing sadness or an abject sense of failure.

Carrying out an audit before migrating is carved into the ABC of an effective migration process. To do this, you should perform a full crawl of the site, saving the key data. The most vital point at this stage is making a full back-up of the website in terms of SEO. This allows some of the simpler errors to be fixed before migrating, rather than duplicating them on the new site.

• Information on visibility as regards organic search results should include:
• the number of indexed pages;
• a list of the best-ranking pages;
• organic traffic data;
• inbound link profiles;
• keywords the site is positioned for (be sure to keep track of these positions!);
• verified visibility in Google’s Top 3, Top 10 and Top 50.

The next step is to perform a detailed technical analysis. While you’re conducting it, remember to:

• save all the page titles, meta descriptions and H1 headings, along with the URL addresses. Collect them in one file, making them easy to import to the new website;
• prepare separate files containing product descriptions and categories or other crucial subpages. This can be done using the custom extraction option in Screaming Frog, for instance;
• collect and correct the redirect loops;
• group and remove internal linking to 404 pages;
• collect and remove internal http linking, so that https appears everywhere;
• check and save the sitemax.xml file;
• verify the number of subpages and file indexing method, such as filtering, paginating and sorting;
• save the robots.txt file;
• check which pages are excluded from indexing by robots.txt or the noindex tag;
• save the external codes that the website uses, like Hotjar, GA and GTM, for example, in order to verify their presence after migrating. 

What’s next? It’s time for the test version of the new website we’ll be working on. It will be used for experimentation and for testing changes and updates before they’re introduced into the production version of your website, in other words, the primary version, the one that’s available to everyone. Bear in mind that the test version must be blocked by indexation and that third party access to it is prohibited!

It’s worth preparing for QA tests in advance by collecting information about the old and new version, as well. Running analyses both in the test environment and after deployment is also useful. The errors that cause traffic to decline often occur at the final stage of deployment, when the site lands in the production version, which we’ll refer to as ‘production’ from now on. 

Thankfully, collaboration with the QA team means that the laborious SEO testing process can be automated to certain extent. In this respect, the test configuration depends on what will change with the migration. The most popular areas for automatic checking are:

• the HRML sphere (canonical, next/prev, meta tags, tracking codes);
• page response codes;
• the values of files like robots.txt or .htaccess;
• tracking server logs.

One major, and frequent, hazard during migration is the change to the URL structure on the new website. That makes this a critical element if you’re planning to change the information architecture or current layout of your URLs. Unfortunately, despite project decision-makers’ best intentions of avoiding migrating addresses, it happens extraordinarily often. 

While you’re creating your redirect map, remember to include the details of the old URLs on your current website and the corresponding new URLS on the migrated site. 

Use 301 redirects during migration to ensure that users and bots are automatically redirected to the right URL address. One mistake that crops up time and again at this stage is the use of temporary 302 redirects. Under no circumstances should you do it this way. Why? Because the robots won’t index your old URLs.

An exemplarily produced redirect map should look like this:

As well as the redirects, you also need to take care of user experience, navigation and semantic coverage, not to mention doing a competitive analysis while creating your new information architecture. In addition, verify how people search for your services and map queries to specific URLS so that you have one keyword for each of them.

Here’s an example of information architecture built in this way:

If you aren’t meticulous about mapping your URL addresses correctly and transferring your content properly, the results of your migration could set your heart racing... and not through excitement, either. As a warning, here’s a graph presenting the drastic drop in keywords that followed a failed transition to a new website: 

First and foremost, make sure that every preparatory step has been implemented as it should be. It’s essential to carry out a final check on each aspect of your website. You also need to be certain that you have a backup of your current site so that you can restore it with no trouble. 

It would be best to plan your launch of the site in off-peak traffic hours to minimise any disruption to users. Never plan to migrate during busy periods like public holidays and seasonal sales or on a Friday, when half your staff will be dreaming of cold beers and hot BBQs. 

Everything should be fine as long as you remember these six vital steps: 

• upload your redirection map;
• add your new site map to Google Search Console (GSC);
• on no account rush to remove your old sitemap. The old version will help search engines to understand the changes to your website and find your new URL addresses;
• remove your old sitemap once your new site is fully indexed; 
  verify that nothing is blocking the new page. Use noindex and robots.txt in particular to do this;
• test key addresses at the GSC level, with the URL Inspection Tool.

Don’t forget that you can’t rest on your laurels just because the migration is done. The website might have been transferred, but the process isn’t over and there’s still plenty of work ahead of you in the form of verifying elements like:

• all the 301 redirects;
• potential 404 and 500 errors, which need sorting out as soon as possible. Remember that you can also monitor 404 errors directly in GA4;
• content; in other words, preserving your content, page titles and headings (H1, H2, H3 and so on) as far as possible;
• the correct implementation of GA, GTM and other codes that are crucial to your website;
• the server logs.

If everything’s gone well, then your visibility should stay the same. To obtain a reliable assessment of the work that’s been done, it’s best to repeat the audit two to three weeks after the migration.

A few weeks after the Great Migration Day, run a report to enable you to understand the impact the process has had on your website. To compile it, compare pre- and post-migration data like: 

• monitoring of indexing and correct redirection. Check that Google is indexing your new site properly;
• whether the site is working properly on mobile devices;
• organic traffic;
• keyword positions;
• bounce rate;
• conversion rate;
• page load time.

When it comes to the last on the list, namely, the speed that your site loads at, the Core Web Vitals results are particularly important. They include: 

• largest contentful paint (LCP), which is the time it takes the largest element visible in the viewport to load;
• first input delay (FID). This is the delay between the user’s first interaction and the browser’s response;
• culminative layout shift, in other words, the stability of the site. 

If the migration was conducted properly, your visibility graphs shouldn’t change, as the example below demonstrates: 

Not migrating content
Migrating old content can be exasperating, but if you don’t transfer it, you can count on a substantial drop in visibility. 

Omitting elements of your old website 
Changes to navigation elements, footers or related products/articles sections also involve significant modifications to the site architecture.
 
Leaving directives to robots from test versions 
Meta robots noindex or blocking indexing in robots.txt and releasing a new site to production is a mistake that crops up all too often.

Infinite scroll implementation 
This is an innovation, but it’s also a major change for search engine robots. When you introduce the infinite scroll function, it’s worth considering how the robots will reach distant products or articles. 

• Google Search Console (actually, this is a must-have!);
• Google Analytics;
• Bing Webmaster Tools;
• Screaming Frog;
• Sitebulb;
• Ahrefs/Semrush (for international projects);
• Senuto/Semstorm (for projects on the Polish market).

What is SEO website migration?

SEO website migration is the process of transferring a website or its essential elements, such as URL structure, domain or CMS system. Migration can also include changing a site’s look or its technology. It is critical for the migration process to be properly planned and to take SEO into account, because errors in that area can lead to drops in search engine visibility. The right pre- and post-migration preparation, analysis and testing will make it possible to minimise the risk of negative outcomes.

How long does SEO migration take?

The duration of an SEO migration depends on the complexity of the project, the changes to be made and how well the team is prepared. A simple migration can take a few days, but more complicated projects, such as changing the structure of a website or transferring to another CMS, can require several weeks or even months. Allowing time for pre- and post-process testing and result monitoring is vital, since it will help you to react rapidly to any problems that might occur.

Does domain migration increase SEO?

Domain migration alone is no guarantee of improvements to SEO; in fact, it can even lead to short-term visibility and traffic. Correct 301 redirects from the old domain to the new one are pivotal to maintaining previously attained search engine rankings. However, if the migration is part of a larger strategy, like improving the website’s structure or technical optimisation, for instance, it can contribute to a major increase in visibility and much better SEO results in the long run.

Does website migration have an impact on SEO?

In general, migrating a website has a significant impact on SEO, both positively and negatively. Improperly implement changes, such as incorrect redirects or failing to migrate content, can lead to drops in visibility and organic traffic. On the other hand, a well-planned migration which includes technical optimisation, improved page load speed and a better URL structure, can bring enormous benefits in terms of SEO. It is important to monitor results after the migration in order to fix errors quickly, as and when needed.

How many hours should I estimate for SEO in connection with website migration?

The time required for SEO during a website migration depends on the complexity of the migration, but it’s worth planning several dozen hours at least for each stage, from the pre-migration audit, through redirect planning, to post-migration testing and monitoring. SEO specialists have to analyse the current structure, do the URL mapping, create a data backup and monitor results after the changes have been implemented. The entire process, including preparations, can therefore take from several dozen hours to several hundred.

How do we update the URLs after migrating our website?

After a website migration, it is crucial to update URLs with 301 redirects so that search engine bots and users are automatically redirected to the new addresses. To maintain search engine rankings, the redirects should be implemented at both the page level and for entire sections. In addition, the new sitemap (sitemap.xml) should be updated and uploaded to GSC so that Google can index the new URLs faster.

What’s the best time to migrate a website?

The best time to migrate a site is during off-peak periods, when you can minimise any disruption to the users’ experience. It’s a good idea to avoid migrating right before the weekend, when your team may not be fully available to handle any issues that suddenly crop up. Testing the new version of your site thoroughly before going live is crucial to avoiding any unexpected errors. As far as SEO is concerned, the best moment to migrate is when the site is seeing steady organic traffic, which makes it easier to monitor results before and after the migration.

What will happen if I don’t take SEO into account when I’m migrating my website?

Failing to consider SEO during website migration can lead not only to serious drops in search engine visibility and the loss of organic traffic, but also to errors on the site, such as redirects to incorrect pages or key subpages going unindexed. It’s more or less a certainty that, in a situation like that, the site will lose important keywords positions and that, in turn, will result in a decrease in visibility in Google. In the worst-case scenario, your site may even be partly or completely removed from the search engine index. And what then? In those circumstances, intensive corrective action would have to be taken and even that doesn’t come with a 100% guarantee of getting back to normal.

Translated from the Polish by Caryl Swift