Record what works before changing it
A redesign changes how a website looks and behaves. It can also change URLs, content, internal links and the way inquiries are received. Before launch, make a baseline that lets you compare the new site with the old one.
Save the current URL inventory, important page content, titles, descriptions, canonical targets, sitemap and relevant performance exports. Identify pages that receive useful search traffic, links or inquiries. Keep contact routes and measurement definitions in the same review.
Give every existing URL a decision
Classify each URL as preserved, replaced by a genuinely equivalent page, intentionally retired or requiring investigation. A change in visual design does not by itself require changing the URL. Where URLs change, map the old destination to the most relevant replacement.
Do not send every retired page to the homepage. Check the destination’s actual content and customer task. Use Google’s site-move guidance for the current technical recommendations when the project changes URLs.
If a page is intentionally removed and has no relevant replacement, return a proper 404 or 410 response. Keep necessary redirects for the long term; Google generally recommends at least a year and suggests retaining useful redirects for users.
Check more than the homepage
- Important pages load with the expected content and status.
- Titles, headings and canonical targets match each page’s purpose.
- Internal links go directly to intended destinations.
- Robots controls and the sitemap match the pages intended for search.
- Navigation, phone links and forms work on mobile and desktop.
- Required downloads, images and third-party integrations still load.
Use actual page samples from each template or page type. A passing homepage does not establish that a service page, location page or form works.
Explicitly check that a staging environment’s noindex setting or broad robots.txt Disallow rule has not carried into production. Confirm each intended public page can be crawled and has the expected indexing instructions.
Prove that inquiries still arrive
Coordinate a test of the important contact paths. Verify the actual receiving destination and expected events, and distinguish a successful interface message from received data. Keep test records out of real lead totals.
The lead verification kit provides a more detailed test record. It can accompany the redesign worksheet without duplicating the full tracking process.
Compare after launch
Retain the baseline and a dated change log. Recheck the important URLs and contact paths after deployment. Monitor search and business measures over a suitable window, taking seasonality, campaign changes and reporting delays into account.
A redesign checklist reduces avoidable mistakes; it cannot guarantee stable rankings or traffic. Keep a clear rollback path and a person responsible for investigating unexpected behavior.
Take the worksheet with you
Use the blank worksheet for your own review. Any completed examples are clearly labeled as fictional.