{"id":173081,"date":"2024-03-18T09:38:27","date_gmt":"2024-03-18T14:38:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/?p=173081"},"modified":"2024-05-22T09:50:52","modified_gmt":"2024-05-22T14:50:52","slug":"website-redesign-seo","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/website-redesign-seo\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Avoid Ruining SEO During a Website Redesign"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<div class=\"intro-txt\">It\u2019s too easy to break your SEO during a website redesign. Here\u2019s a foretaste of what can go&nbsp;wrong:<\/div>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Loss of rankings and traffic.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Loses of link equity.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Broken pages.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Sluggish page loading.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Bad mobile experience.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Broken internal links.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Duplicate content.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>For example, this site deleted about 15% of organic pages (yellow line) during the redesign, which resulted in an almost 50% organic traffic loss (orange line). Interestingly, even the growth of referring domains (blue line) afterward didn\u2019t help it recover the traffic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1260\" height=\"836\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/website-redesign-with-bad-consequences-for-seo-e.png\" alt=\"Website redesign with bad consequences for SEO - example. \" class=\"wp-image-173082\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/website-redesign-with-bad-consequences-for-seo-e.png 1260w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/website-redesign-with-bad-consequences-for-seo-e-641x425.png 641w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/website-redesign-with-bad-consequences-for-seo-e-768x510.png 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1260px) 100vw, 1260px\"><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Fortunately, it\u2019s not that hard to avoid these and other common issues - just six simple rules to follow.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"post-nav-link clearfix\" id=\"section1\"><a class=\"subhead-anchor\" data-tip=\"tooltip__copielink\" rel=\"#section1\"><svg width=\"19\" height=\"19\" viewBox=\"0 0 14 14\" style><g fill=\"none\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\"><path d=\"M0 0h14v14H0z\" \/><path d=\"M7.45 9.887l-1.62 1.621c-.92.92-2.418.92-3.338 0a2.364 2.364 0 0 1 0-3.339l1.62-1.62-1.273-1.272-1.62 1.62a4.161 4.161 0 1 0 5.885 5.884l1.62-1.62L7.45 9.886zM5.527 5.135L7.17 3.492c.92-.92 2.418-.92 3.339 0 .92.92.92 2.418 0 3.339L8.866 8.473l1.272 1.273 1.644-1.643A4.161 4.161 0 1 0 5.897 2.22L4.254 3.863l1.272 1.272zm-.66 3.998a.749.749 0 0 1 0-1.06l2.208-2.206a.749.749 0 1 1 1.06 1.06L5.928 9.133a.75.75 0 0 1-1.061 0z\" style \/><\/g><\/svg><\/a><div class=\"link-text\" data-anchor=\"1. Keep a backup of the old site\" data-section=\"keep-a-backup\">\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><a id=\"post-173081-_p2betn7owdc5\"><\/a>1. Keep a backup of the old&nbsp;site<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>Easily overlooked but could save the day. A backup ensures you can restore the original site if anything goes&nbsp;wrong.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Ask the site\u2019s developer to be prepared for this fallback strategy. All they will need to do then is redirect the domain to the folder with the old site, and the changes will take effect almost instantly. Make sure they don\u2019t overwrite any current databases, too.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>It won\u2019t hurt to make a backup yourself, too. See if your hosting provider has a backup tool or use a plugin like Updraft if you\u2019re using WordPress or a similar CMS.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"post-nav-link clearfix\" id=\"section1\"><a class=\"subhead-anchor\" data-tip=\"tooltip__copielink\" rel=\"#section1\"><svg width=\"19\" height=\"19\" viewBox=\"0 0 14 14\" style><g fill=\"none\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\"><path d=\"M0 0h14v14H0z\" \/><path d=\"M7.45 9.887l-1.62 1.621c-.92.92-2.418.92-3.338 0a2.364 2.364 0 0 1 0-3.339l1.62-1.62-1.273-1.272-1.62 1.62a4.161 4.161 0 1 0 5.885 5.884l1.62-1.62L7.45 9.886zM5.527 5.135L7.17 3.492c.92-.92 2.418-.92 3.339 0 .92.92.92 2.418 0 3.339L8.866 8.473l1.272 1.273 1.644-1.643A4.161 4.161 0 1 0 5.897 2.22L4.254 3.863l1.272 1.272zm-.66 3.998a.749.749 0 0 1 0-1.06l2.208-2.206a.749.749 0 1 1 1.06 1.06L5.928 9.133a.75.75 0 0 1-1.061 0z\" style \/><\/g><\/svg><\/a><div class=\"link-text\" data-anchor=\"2. Test staging site for mobile friendliness and Core Web Vitals\" data-section=\"test-staging-site\">\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><a id=\"post-173081-_crceowcrjegr\"><\/a>2. Test staging site for mobile friendliness and Core Web Vitals<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>Testing your site for <a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/core-web-vitals\/\">Core Web Vitals<\/a> (CWV) and mobile friendliness before it goes live is the best way to ensure that your new site will comply with <a href=\"https:\/\/developers.google.com\/search\/docs\/appearance\/page-experience\">Google\u2019s page experience guidelines<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The thing is, a website redesign can seriously affect site speed, stability, responsiveness, and mobile experience. Some design flaws will be quite easy to spot, such as excessive use of animations or layout not scaling properly on mobile devices, but not others, like unoptimized code.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Ask your site developer to run mobile friendliness and CWV tests on template pages as soon as they are ready (no need to test every single page) and ask for the report. For example, they should be able to run Google Lighthouse on a <a href=\"https:\/\/github.com\/GoogleChrome\/lighthouse\/blob\/main\/docs\/authenticated-pages.md\">password-protected website<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"recommendation\"><div class=\"recommendation-title\">Tip<\/div><div class=\"recommendation-content\">\n\n\n\n<p>You can run these tests yourself on password-protected sites with Ahrefs if you\u2019re on the Advanced plan. When setting up a new crawl, open the <strong>Crawl settings<\/strong> tab.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1594\" height=\"498\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/crawl-settings-tab-in-new-project-workflow-.png\" alt=\"Crawl settings tab in new project workflow.\" class=\"wp-image-173083\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/crawl-settings-tab-in-new-project-workflow-.png 1594w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/crawl-settings-tab-in-new-project-workflow--680x212.png 680w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/crawl-settings-tab-in-new-project-workflow--768x240.png 768w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/crawl-settings-tab-in-new-project-workflow--1536x480.png 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1594px) 100vw, 1594px\"><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>To test both desktop and mobile versions, you will need to run two separate tests with the right user&nbsp;agent:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"988\" height=\"356\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/choosing-user-agent-in-ahrefs-site-audit-.png\" alt=\"Choosing user agent in Ahrefs' Site Audit. \" class=\"wp-image-173084\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/choosing-user-agent-in-ahrefs-site-audit-.png 988w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/choosing-user-agent-in-ahrefs-site-audit--680x245.png 680w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/choosing-user-agent-in-ahrefs-site-audit--768x277.png 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 988px) 100vw, 988px\"><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>The authentication option is right&nbsp;below:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1518\" height=\"446\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/authentication-settings-.png\" alt=\"Authentication settings.\" class=\"wp-image-173085\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/authentication-settings-.png 1518w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/authentication-settings--680x200.png 680w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/authentication-settings--768x226.png 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1518px) 100vw, 1518px\"><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Finally, get a <a href=\"https:\/\/developers.google.com\/speed\/docs\/insights\/v5\/get-started\">free CWV API key<\/a> and paste it here (you need to do this only once per project):<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1480\" height=\"400\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/inserting-cwv-api-key-in-ahrefs-.png\" alt=\"Inserting CWV API key in Ahrefs. \" class=\"wp-image-173086\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/inserting-cwv-api-key-in-ahrefs-.png 1480w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/inserting-cwv-api-key-in-ahrefs--680x184.png 680w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/inserting-cwv-api-key-in-ahrefs--768x208.png 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1480px) 100vw, 1480px\"><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Once the crawl is complete, look for the highlighted issues in the <strong>All issues<\/strong> report.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1028\" height=\"1054\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/all-issues-report-in-ahrefs-site-audit-.png\" alt=\"All issues report in Ahrefs' Site Audit. \" class=\"wp-image-173087\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/all-issues-report-in-ahrefs-site-audit-.png 1028w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/all-issues-report-in-ahrefs-site-audit--415x425.png 415w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/all-issues-report-in-ahrefs-site-audit--768x787.png 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1028px) 100vw, 1028px\"><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"post-nav-link clearfix\" id=\"section1\"><a class=\"subhead-anchor\" data-tip=\"tooltip__copielink\" rel=\"#section1\"><svg width=\"19\" height=\"19\" viewBox=\"0 0 14 14\" style><g fill=\"none\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\"><path d=\"M0 0h14v14H0z\" \/><path d=\"M7.45 9.887l-1.62 1.621c-.92.92-2.418.92-3.338 0a2.364 2.364 0 0 1 0-3.339l1.62-1.62-1.273-1.272-1.62 1.62a4.161 4.161 0 1 0 5.885 5.884l1.62-1.62L7.45 9.886zM5.527 5.135L7.17 3.492c.92-.92 2.418-.92 3.339 0 .92.92.92 2.418 0 3.339L8.866 8.473l1.272 1.273 1.644-1.643A4.161 4.161 0 1 0 5.897 2.22L4.254 3.863l1.272 1.272zm-.66 3.998a.749.749 0 0 1 0-1.06l2.208-2.206a.749.749 0 1 1 1.06 1.06L5.928 9.133a.75.75 0 0 1-1.061 0z\" style \/><\/g><\/svg><\/a><div class=\"link-text\" data-anchor=\"3. Run a site audit pre and post-launch\" data-section=\"site-audit\"><a id=\"post-173081-_ph6umgawmamz\"><\/a>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">3. Run a site audit pre and post-launch<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>An <a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/seo-audit\/\">SEO audit<\/a> uncovers SEO issues on your site. And if you do it pre-and post-launch, you will easily spot any potential new problems caused by the redesign, especially those that really matter, such&nbsp;as:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Unwanted <a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/seo\/glossary\/noindex-tag\">noindex<\/a> pages.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Sites accessible both as http and&nbsp;https.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Broken pages.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>So before the new site goes, click on <strong>New crawl<\/strong> in <strong>Site Audit<\/strong> and then again right after it goes&nbsp;live.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1578\" height=\"208\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/starting-a-new-crawl-in-site-audit-.png\" alt=\"Starting a new crawl in Site Audit.\" class=\"wp-image-173088\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/starting-a-new-crawl-in-site-audit-.png 1578w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/starting-a-new-crawl-in-site-audit--680x90.png 680w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/starting-a-new-crawl-in-site-audit--768x101.png 768w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/starting-a-new-crawl-in-site-audit--1536x202.png 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1578px) 100vw, 1578px\"><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Then after the crawl, go to the <strong>All issues<\/strong> report and look at the Change column - new errors found between crawls will be colored red (fixed errors will be&nbsp;green)&nbsp;.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1276\" height=\"364\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/change-column-in-all-issues-report-.png\" alt=\"Change column in All issues report. \" class=\"wp-image-173089\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/change-column-in-all-issues-report-.png 1276w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/change-column-in-all-issues-report--680x194.png 680w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/change-column-in-all-issues-report--768x219.png 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1276px) 100vw, 1276px\"><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>You might want to give some issues higher priority than others. See our take on the <a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/seo-issues\/\">most impactful technical SEO issues<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"recommendation\"><div class=\"recommendation-title\">Tip<\/div><div class=\"recommendation-content\">\n\n\n\n<p>You can access the history of site audits by clicking on the project\u2019s name in <strong>Site Audit<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"942\" height=\"426\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/how-to-access-crawl-history-in-site-audit-1-.png\" alt=\"How to access crawl history in Site Audit (1).\" class=\"wp-image-173090\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/how-to-access-crawl-history-in-site-audit-1-.png 942w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/how-to-access-crawl-history-in-site-audit-1--680x308.png 680w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/how-to-access-crawl-history-in-site-audit-1--768x347.png 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 942px) 100vw, 942px\"><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2048\" height=\"1294\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/how-to-access-crawl-history-in-site-audit-2-.jpg\" alt=\"How to access crawl history in Site Audit (2).\" class=\"wp-image-173091\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/how-to-access-crawl-history-in-site-audit-2-.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/how-to-access-crawl-history-in-site-audit-2--673x425.jpg 673w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/how-to-access-crawl-history-in-site-audit-2--768x485.jpg 768w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/how-to-access-crawl-history-in-site-audit-2--1536x971.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2048px) 100vw, 2048px\"><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"post-nav-link clearfix\" id=\"section1\"><a class=\"subhead-anchor\" data-tip=\"tooltip__copielink\" rel=\"#section1\"><svg width=\"19\" height=\"19\" viewBox=\"0 0 14 14\" style><g fill=\"none\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\"><path d=\"M0 0h14v14H0z\" \/><path d=\"M7.45 9.887l-1.62 1.621c-.92.92-2.418.92-3.338 0a2.364 2.364 0 0 1 0-3.339l1.62-1.62-1.273-1.272-1.62 1.62a4.161 4.161 0 1 0 5.885 5.884l1.62-1.62L7.45 9.886zM5.527 5.135L7.17 3.492c.92-.92 2.418-.92 3.339 0 .92.92.92 2.418 0 3.339L8.866 8.473l1.272 1.273 1.644-1.643A4.161 4.161 0 1 0 5.897 2.22L4.254 3.863l1.272 1.272zm-.66 3.998a.749.749 0 0 1 0-1.06l2.208-2.206a.749.749 0 1 1 1.06 1.06L5.928 9.133a.75.75 0 0 1-1.061 0z\" style \/><\/g><\/svg><\/a><div class=\"link-text\" data-anchor=\"4. Keep the old URL structure\" data-section=\"keep-old-url-structure\"><a id=\"post-173081-_t4hx8yxn7nhc\"><\/a>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">4. Keep the old URL structure<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>By URL structure, I mean the way web addresses are organized and formatted. For example, these would be considered URL structure changes:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><em>ahrefs.com\/blog<\/em> to <em>ahrefs.com\/blog\/<\/em><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><em>ahrefs.com\/blog<\/em> to <em>ahrefs.com\/resources\/blog<\/em><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><em>ahrefs.com\/blog<\/em> to <em>blog.ahrefs.com<\/em><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><em>ahrefs.com\/site-audit<\/em> to <em>ahrefs.com\/site-audit-tool<\/em><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Altering that structure in an uncontrolled process can lead&nbsp;to:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Broken redirects<\/strong>: redirects leading to non-existing or inaccessible pages.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Broken backlinks<\/strong>: external links pointing to deleted or moved pages on your&nbsp;site.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Broken internal links<\/strong>: internal site links that don\u2019t work, hindering site navigation and content discoverability.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Orphan pages<\/strong>: pages not linked from your site, making them hard for users and search engines to&nbsp;find.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Naturally, you should keep the old URL structure unless you\u2019re <em>absolutely sure<\/em> you know what you\u2019re doing. In this case, you will need to put some <a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/redirects-for-seo\/\">redirects<\/a> in place. On top of that, make sure to submit a <a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/how-to-create-a-sitemap\/#section5\">sitemap via Google Search Console<\/a> to help Google reflect changes on your site faster.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"recommendation\"><div class=\"recommendation-title\">Tip<\/div><div class=\"recommendation-content\">\n\n\n\n<p>Google also advises submitting a new sitemap if you\u2019re adding many pages in one go. You may want to do that if that\u2019s the case in your redesign project.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"post-nav-link clearfix\" id=\"section1\"><a class=\"subhead-anchor\" data-tip=\"tooltip__copielink\" rel=\"#section1\"><svg width=\"19\" height=\"19\" viewBox=\"0 0 14 14\" style><g fill=\"none\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\"><path d=\"M0 0h14v14H0z\" \/><path d=\"M7.45 9.887l-1.62 1.621c-.92.92-2.418.92-3.338 0a2.364 2.364 0 0 1 0-3.339l1.62-1.62-1.273-1.272-1.62 1.62a4.161 4.161 0 1 0 5.885 5.884l1.62-1.62L7.45 9.886zM5.527 5.135L7.17 3.492c.92-.92 2.418-.92 3.339 0 .92.92.92 2.418 0 3.339L8.866 8.473l1.272 1.273 1.644-1.643A4.161 4.161 0 1 0 5.897 2.22L4.254 3.863l1.272 1.272zm-.66 3.998a.749.749 0 0 1 0-1.06l2.208-2.206a.749.749 0 1 1 1.06 1.06L5.928 9.133a.75.75 0 0 1-1.061 0z\" style \/><\/g><\/svg><\/a><div class=\"link-text\" data-anchor=\"5. Keep important organic pages\" data-section=\"keep-important-pages\">\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><a id=\"post-173081-_1go0v1xo5lkl\"><\/a>5. Keep important organic pages<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>Redesigns often include some kind of content pruning or simply arbitrary deleting of older content. But whatever you do, it\u2019s crucial that you keep the pages that are already ranking high.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Traffic is one reason, but since these pages are already ranking, chances are they\u2019ve got some backlinks you risk losing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>To make sure you\u2019re not cutting out the good stuff, use two reports in <a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/site-explorer\">Ahrefs\u2019 Site Explorer<\/a>: <strong>Top pages<\/strong> and <strong>Best by links<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Top pages<\/strong> report is a list of all the pages on your site ranking in the top 100, appended with <a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/seo-data\/\">SEO data<\/a> and sorted by traffic by default. So, just one click on your left-hand side, and you\u2019ll see a list of your best \u201ctraffic generators\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2048\" height=\"1084\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/top-pages-report-in-ahrefs-site-explorer-.jpg\" alt=\"Top pages report in Ahrefs' Site Explorer.\" class=\"wp-image-173092\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/top-pages-report-in-ahrefs-site-explorer-.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/top-pages-report-in-ahrefs-site-explorer--680x360.jpg 680w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/top-pages-report-in-ahrefs-site-explorer--768x407.jpg 768w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/top-pages-report-in-ahrefs-site-explorer--1536x813.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2048px) 100vw, 2048px\"><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>The <strong>Best by links<\/strong> report follows the same logic, but the focus is on links (both external and internal) and it shows all crawled pages on your site (not only the ones ranking in top&nbsp;100).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1990\" height=\"1450\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/best-by-links-report-in-ahrefs-site-explorer-.jpg\" alt=\"Best by links report in Ahrefs' Site Explorer.\" class=\"wp-image-173093\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/best-by-links-report-in-ahrefs-site-explorer-.jpg 1990w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/best-by-links-report-in-ahrefs-site-explorer--583x425.jpg 583w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/best-by-links-report-in-ahrefs-site-explorer--768x560.jpg 768w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/best-by-links-report-in-ahrefs-site-explorer--1536x1119.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1990px) 100vw, 1990px\"><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>You can also plug in any page in <strong>Ahrefs\u2019 Site Explorer<\/strong> and see whether it can be cut without any damage to the site\u2019s organic performance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1872\" height=\"744\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/looking-up-single-page-organic-performance-in-site.png\" alt=\"Looking up single page organic performance in Site Explorer. \" class=\"wp-image-173094\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/looking-up-single-page-organic-performance-in-site.png 1872w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/looking-up-single-page-organic-performance-in-site-680x270.png 680w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/looking-up-single-page-organic-performance-in-site-768x305.png 768w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/looking-up-single-page-organic-performance-in-site-1536x610.png 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1872px) 100vw, 1872px\"><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"recommendation\"><div class=\"recommendation-title\">Recommendation<\/div><div class=\"recommendation-content\">\n\n\n\n<p>If part of the redesign is an inventory cleanup, you can still get traffic to products you don\u2019t offer anymore if you create an \u201carchive\u201d page and link to a place where visitors can find more similar products. E-commerce sites and hardware brands do that regularly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1780\" height=\"1100\" src=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/example-of-an-archive-page-.png\" alt=\"Example of an archive page. \" class=\"wp-image-173095\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/example-of-an-archive-page-.png 1780w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/example-of-an-archive-page--680x420.png 680w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/example-of-an-archive-page--768x475.png 768w, https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/example-of-an-archive-page--1536x949.png 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1780px) 100vw, 1780px\"><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>This way, you can still rank for related terms, and the user experience is better than simply redirecting old products to new products.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"further-reading\"><div class=\"reading-title\">Further reading<\/div><div class=\"reading-content\">\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/content-audit\/\">Follow Our Content Audit Process (Template Included)<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"post-nav-link clearfix\" id=\"section1\"><a class=\"subhead-anchor\" data-tip=\"tooltip__copielink\" rel=\"#section1\"><svg width=\"19\" height=\"19\" viewBox=\"0 0 14 14\" style><g fill=\"none\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\"><path d=\"M0 0h14v14H0z\" \/><path d=\"M7.45 9.887l-1.62 1.621c-.92.92-2.418.92-3.338 0a2.364 2.364 0 0 1 0-3.339l1.62-1.62-1.273-1.272-1.62 1.62a4.161 4.161 0 1 0 5.885 5.884l1.62-1.62L7.45 9.886zM5.527 5.135L7.17 3.492c.92-.92 2.418-.92 3.339 0 .92.92.92 2.418 0 3.339L8.866 8.473l1.272 1.273 1.644-1.643A4.161 4.161 0 1 0 5.897 2.22L4.254 3.863l1.272 1.272zm-.66 3.998a.749.749 0 0 1 0-1.06l2.208-2.206a.749.749 0 1 1 1.06 1.06L5.928 9.133a.75.75 0 0 1-1.061 0z\" style \/><\/g><\/svg><\/a><div class=\"link-text\" data-anchor=\"6. Minimize modifications to pages with high rankings\" data-section=\"minimize-changes\">\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><a id=\"post-173081-_6vgq9sbydstg\"><\/a>6. Minimize modifications to pages with high rankings<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>Lastly, if you find yourself in a situation where the new design imposes significant changes to your top-ranking pages, take extra caution when altering these elements:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Keywords in text, title and H1s<\/strong>: changing keywords can alter the page\u2019s relevance for corresponding queries. For instance, if a product page ranks for \u201ckick scooter for kids\u201d, you might lose that if you start scratching the phrase out from the crucial parts of the content.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Depth of content<\/strong>: expanding or reducing content should be done with the intent to serve user needs better, provide more value, or clarify existing information (i.e., <a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/search-intent\/\">search intent<\/a>). Keep in mind that Google rewards <a href=\"https:\/\/developers.google.com\/search\/docs\/fundamentals\/creating-helpful-content\">helpful, people-first content<\/a>, and not necessarily creative, persuasive copywriting.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Internal links<\/strong>: changing\/cutting a few <a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/internal-links-for-seo\/\">internal links<\/a> shouldn\u2019t do any harm, but you need to be tactical about it - ask yourself if any particular change could hurt the ranking. Keep in mind that internal links aid the flow of <a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/seo\/glossary\/link-equity\">link equity<\/a> and help Google understand the context of&nbsp;pages.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Distance of that page from the homepage<\/strong>: keep high-value pages close to the homepage to signal their importance to search engines.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Schema markup<\/strong>: any changes should aim to accurately describe the content and take advantage of eligible <a href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/schema-markup\/\">schema<\/a> properties.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Page speed<\/strong>: don\u2019t overuse heavy graphics, animations, and video. Again, make sure to pre-test the staging site for CWV and run a site audit right after the launch.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><a id=\"post-173081-_epdoiyuh1dn7\"><\/a>Final thoughts<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>While an overall site redesign might sound like a good moment to introduce some SEO, you need to think about the traffic and backlink equity the site has already earned. If you change too much in one go, you won\u2019t know what worked and why, and maybe more importantly, what didn\u2019t work and how to fix&nbsp;it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Truth is, SEO is always about experimentation. You can have a well-educated guess, but you can never really know what will happen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Want to share your SEO story here? Let me know on <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/m_makosiewicz\">X<\/a> or <a href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/mateusz-makosiewicz-38154b67\/\">LinkedIn<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>For example, this site deleted about 15% of organic pages (yellow line) during the redesign, which resulted in an almost 50% organic traffic loss (orange line). Interestingly, even the growth of referring domains (blue line) afterward didn\u2019t help it recover<span class=\"ellipsis\">\u2026<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"read-more\">Read more \u203a<\/div>\n<p><!-- end of .read-more --><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":159,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"wp_typography_post_enhancements_disabled":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[335],"tags":[],"coauthors":[412],"class_list":["post-173081","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-general-seo","odd"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.3 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>How to Avoid Ruining SEO During a Website Redesign<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"6 simple steps for protecting your search traffic during a website redesign.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/website-redesign-seo\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"How to Avoid Ruining SEO During a Website Redesign\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"6 steps for protecting SEO during a redesign.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/website-redesign-seo\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"SEO Blog by Ahrefs\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/Ahrefs\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2024-03-18T14:38:27+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2024-05-22T14:50:52+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/ahrefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/website-redesign-with-bad-consequences-for-seo-e.png\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Mateusz Makosiewicz\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@m_makosiewicz\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@ahrefs\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/ahrefs.com\\\/blog\\\/website-redesign-seo\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/ahrefs.com\\\/blog\\\/website-redesign-seo\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Mateusz Makosiewicz\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/ahrefs.com\\\/blog\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/c7e64c851ecc4eabb77eaefae90a440c\"},\"headline\":\"How to Avoid Ruining SEO During a Website Redesign\",\"datePublished\":\"2024-03-18T14:38:27+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2024-05-22T14:50:52+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/ahrefs.com\\\/blog\\\/website-redesign-seo\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":1528,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/ahrefs.com\\\/blog\\\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/ahrefs.com\\\/blog\\\/website-redesign-seo\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/ahrefs.com\\\/blog\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2024\\\/03\\\/how-to-avoid-ruining-seo-during-by-mateusz-makosiewicz-general-seo.jpg\",\"articleSection\":[\"General SEO\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/ahrefs.com\\\/blog\\\/website-redesign-seo\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/ahrefs.com\\\/blog\\\/website-redesign-seo\\\/\",\"name\":\"How to Avoid Ruining SEO During a Website Redesign\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/ahrefs.com\\\/blog\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/ahrefs.com\\\/blog\\\/website-redesign-seo\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/ahrefs.com\\\/blog\\\/website-redesign-seo\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/ahrefs.com\\\/blog\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2024\\\/03\\\/website-redesign-with-bad-consequences-for-seo-e.png\",\"datePublished\":\"2024-03-18T14:38:27+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2024-05-22T14:50:52+00:00\",\"description\":\"6 simple steps for protecting your search traffic during a website redesign.\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/ahrefs.com\\\/blog\\\/website-redesign-seo\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/ahrefs.com\\\/blog\\\/website-redesign-seo\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/ahrefs.com\\\/blog\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2024\\\/03\\\/website-redesign-with-bad-consequences-for-seo-e.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/ahrefs.com\\\/blog\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2024\\\/03\\\/website-redesign-with-bad-consequences-for-seo-e.png\",\"width\":1260,\"height\":836,\"caption\":\"Website redesign with bad consequences for SEO - 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