SEO Migrations Explained: What Happens When Your Site Is Rebuilt or Merged – ASP Knowledge Base

Please read first: finishing your content is not the same as going live.

The day you sign off your content is the day our work begins, not the day the site launches. From that sign-off, we need at least one full week to crawl the site, map every URL, and build and test the redirects, longer for large sites. We cannot go live the same day you finish. The most common cause of delay is content arriving late or incomplete, so the sooner your content is signed off, the sooner we can launch.

The Basics

An SEO migration protects a website's Google rankings and traffic when a site is rebuilt, moved to a new address, or merged with another. Google ranks individual pages, not just domains. If an old page is not pointed to a matching new page, its rankings and visitors can be lost for good. The migration prevents that.

Domain migration is when a site moves to a new address, for example oldshow.com to newshow.com, with the content broadly unchanged. Every old address is redirected to its match.

Merger is when two sites are combined into one. Content from both is mapped into a single new structure.

In every case the job is the same: make sure every valuable old page sends visitors and Google to the right new page.

The Four Phases

Phase 1, before the rebuild

We get Google Search Console access for every site being moved. This shows which pages currently earn Google traffic. Please grant access as early as possible. If a site has no Search Console, it must be set up now, as the data takes time to build.
We send you a report of the pages, profiles and listings that are performing and should be carried over.

Phase 2, you build the site

You add all content to the new site, including the performing pages in our report. We cannot start mapping until this is done. No export of your old content? CS can help, and a paid scraping service is available.

Phase 3, our checks and redirects

You confirm the site is complete and put it on a crawlable test address.
We crawl it against your performing pages. If anything is missing, we tell you and ask you to add it first.
We map every old address to its new match.
We build the redirect file.
The redirects go on the site and are tested.

Phase 4, go live and monitor

Only with redirects in place and tested do we launch.
On launch day, an SEO specialist runs checks and fixes.
We monitor for a month afterwards and adjust as needed.

Timescales

Adding your content is not the same as going live. The moment your content is signed off is the moment our work starts, not the moment the site launches.

The one week clock starts at content sign-off, not before. Your content work and our redirect work cannot run at the same time. Once, and only once, you confirm your content is final, the clock starts and we need a minimum of one full week (longer for large sites) before the site can go live.

The order is fixed, and each step depends on the one before it:

Search Console access, straight away. The data builds over time, so the earlier we have it, the stronger the migration. A late start means weaker data and more risk.
Performing-pages report, before you build. You get this before you start adding content, so you know exactly what to carry over.
Your content, the main variable. This is led by you and sets the whole timeline. Nothing moves forward until you confirm it is complete.
Our checks and redirects, one week from sign-off. The week does not begin until you confirm content is complete. From that point we need a minimum of one full week to crawl the site, map every URL, and build and test the redirects. Large sites need longer.
Launch, booked jointly. We agree a date together once redirects are tested. We do not launch on demand, and we avoid end-of-week launches.
Monitoring, one month. We watch the site for a month after launch and make adjustments as needed.

The most common cause of delay is content arriving late or incomplete. The sooner your content is final and signed off, the sooner we can launch.