A new website should bring in more enquiries than the old one, not fewer. The most common reason a rebuild loses search traffic is simple: pages that used to rank now return "page not found". Here's how to avoid that.
Before you start: list every page
Make a list of every address on the old site. The site's sitemap (often at /sitemap.xml) is a good start, but also include blog categories, old campaign pages, PDFs and shop pages. Google Search Console shows which pages get impressions and clicks, so you know which matter most.
Write down each page's title, description and main heading too. They're part of why the page ranks.
Keep addresses where you can
The safest redirect is the one you don't need. If /services/ works well today, keep it at /services/ on the new site.
Redirect everything that moves
For each page that changes address or is dropped, set up a 301 redirect, which tells browsers and search engines the page has moved permanently and where to. Point each one to the closest matching new page, not just the home page. Whole sections, such as an old shop, can be redirected with a single rule.
Never leave an old address returning an error if it had visitors or links.
Check before you switch
- Build the new site on a private preview address that search engines can't index.
- Check every page has a unique title and description, one main heading and a canonical link.
- Test the redirects against your list of old addresses.
- Note how your site is verified in Search Console. If it's a file on the old site, keep that file, or verification will break.
After launch
- Submit the new sitemap in Search Console.
- Use "Request indexing" for your most important pages.
- Watch the Pages report for "Not found" errors and add any missing redirects.
Search results can show old titles and descriptions for days or weeks while Google revisits each page. That's normal.
We rebuild websites as fast static sites and handle this checklist as part of the job. See our website service.