The website relaunch checklist
27 points so your new website loses neither visitors nor Google rankings
As of October 2026
A relaunch rarely fails because of the design. It fails because of things nobody sees: addresses that lead nowhere, content lost in the move, and forms that no longer deliver enquiries after launch.
This list takes you in six steps from the initial review to the first weeks after launch. For each point it says how you can tell it is done, and what it costs you if it is missing.
You can go through it with your agency or on your own. You do not need technical knowledge, only access to your website and to Google Search Console.
1. Review before the rebuild
What you do not record, you cannot compare or rescue afterwards.
A list of every existing address
How to check: You have a spreadsheet with every page of the old website, including subpages, images and linked PDFs. The old site's sitemap is a good start.
Why it matters: This list is the basis for all redirects. Every address missing from it will lead nowhere after launch.
The pages that bring visitors today
How to check: In Search Console under “Performance” you have exported the pages with the most clicks over the last twelve months.
Why it matters: These pages carry your visibility. They must not disappear in the relaunch or change their address without good reason.
Search terms with their current position
How to check: Also from Search Console: the most important queries with clicks, impressions and average position, saved as a file.
Why it matters: Without this baseline you cannot tell after launch whether things are going better or worse. You would only have a feeling.
Pages other sites link to
How to check: Under “Links” in Search Console you can see which of your pages are linked from other websites. This list is saved.
Why it matters: Links from other sites are hard to get. If they lead to an error page after the move, their value is lost.
Today's enquiries counted
How to check: You know how many enquiries come in through the website each month, by form, phone and email.
Why it matters: In the end what counts is not the nicer site but whether more enquiries come in. For that you need the figure from before.
2. Planning content and structure
This is where you decide what comes along, what is merged and what can go.
A decision for every old page
How to check: Next to every address in your spreadsheet it says: stays, is merged with, or is dropped.
Why it matters: Without this decision, content disappears along the way. Often it is exactly the old guide pages that were quietly bringing in visitors.
Change addresses only for a reason
How to check: Where an old address is good, it stays the same. New addresses are short, readable and free of dates or abbreviations.
Why it matters: Every changed address needs a redirect and time until Google re-evaluates it. Fewer changes mean less risk.
Good texts are revised, not replaced
How to check: Pages that bring visitors today keep their core: topic, key terms and answers. They are improved, not reinvented.
Why it matters: Google ranks a page for its content. Replace the content and that page starts from scratch.
Legal texts included
How to check: Legal notice, privacy policy and, where needed, the cookie notice match the new site, including new services and forms.
Why it matters: A new form or service without a matching privacy policy is a legal risk from day one.
3. Redirects
The most important part of a relaunch, and the one you do not see in the end.
Every old address has a destination
How to check: Your spreadsheet maps every old address to exactly one new one. The home page is the destination only if there really is no matching page.
Why it matters: Anyone clicking an old address expects the same content. Google often treats a redirect to the home page like an error page.
Permanent redirects
How to check: The redirects are set up as permanent (status code 301 or 308). Your agency can show you this in a click in the browser's developer tools.
Why it matters: Only a permanent redirect tells Google that the new address replaces the old one and should take over its ranking.
No chains
How to check: Every old address leads to its destination in one step, not via two or three stops.
Why it matters: Chains make the site slower, and search engines do not follow them indefinitely.
Redirects stay in place for a long time
How to check: It is agreed that the redirects remain for at least a year, ideally for good. That is what Google recommends in its guide to moving a website.
Why it matters: Old links, bookmarks and directory entries are around for years. If the redirects disappear, they all lead nowhere.
Internal links point straight to the new addresses
How to check: Menu, footer and links in the text point to the new addresses, not to old ones that are then redirected.
Why it matters: Redirects are meant for visitors from outside. Your own links taking detours make the site slower and messier.
4. Testing before launch
Everything you spot here costs nothing. Everything you only spot once live costs enquiries.
The test version is blocked for Google
How to check: The preview of the new site is password-protected or blocked for search engines, and it does not appear in a Google search for your name.
Why it matters: If Google finds the test version, it competes with your real site for the same search terms.
Every form submitted once
How to check: You have filled in every form on the new site yourself, and the enquiry arrived at the right address.
Why it matters: A form that delivers nothing is only noticed when a customer asks why they never heard back. Or not at all.
Clicked through on your own phone
How to check: You have opened the most important pages on your phone: text is readable without zooming, buttons are easy to tap, nothing sticks out to the side.
Why it matters: Most visitors come from a phone. Google also judges the mobile version of your site.
Loading speed measured
How to check: A test with PageSpeed Insights shows the mobile results for the home page and one important subpage. They are no worse than for the old site.
Why it matters: A new site that loads more slowly than the old one loses visitors before they have seen anything.
Redirects checked in the test environment
How to check: A sample of at least ten old addresses, including the pages with the most clicks, lands on the right destination.
Why it matters: Mistakes in the redirect list take minutes to find before launch. After launch you find them in falling visitor numbers.
5. Launch day
A few steps on the day of the switch that are often forgotten.
The search engine block is removed
How to check: The live site no longer carries “noindex”, and robots.txt does not block anything that should be found. The URL inspection in Search Console reports the home page as indexable.
Why it matters: Carrying the block from the test phase over to the live site is the most common and most expensive relaunch mistake. The site then disappears from Google.
New sitemap submitted
How to check: The new site's sitemap is submitted in Search Console and shows the status “Success”.
Why it matters: That way Google learns about all new addresses straight away instead of finding them bit by bit.
Redirects checked live
How to check: The same sample as in the test phase now works on the real domain, with and without “www”.
Why it matters: Redirects in the test environment say nothing about the live environment. This is where it counts.
Entries outside the website updated
How to check: Google Business Profile, social media profiles, email signature and directory entries point to the right new pages.
Why it matters: These links bring visitors and trust. They should arrive directly, not via a redirect or on an error page.
6. The first weeks after launch
Fluctuations in the first weeks are normal. What matters is spotting mistakes early.
Check error pages weekly
How to check: Once a week, in Search Console under “Pages”, you look for addresses marked “Not found (404)” and add the missing redirects.
Why it matters: Every address that was not on your list shows up here. The sooner it is redirected, the less is lost.
Before and after compared
How to check: After four to eight weeks you compare clicks, impressions and positions with the baseline saved in step 1.
Why it matters: Only the comparison shows whether the relaunch helped or whether individual pages need work.
Enquiries still counted
How to check: You count enquiries per month as before and compare them with the figure from before the relaunch.
Why it matters: More visitors without more enquiries is not a success. Fewer enquiries is a warning sign, even if the site looks better.
Do not delete the old site straight away
How to check: The old website is backed up, and hosting or domain are only cancelled once the redirects are proven to work.
Why it matters: If you notice forgotten content weeks later, you can restore it from the backup. Without a backup it is gone.
Google's guide to moving a website
Would you rather not handle the relaunch on your own?
We take care of the review, the redirects and the measuring, so your new website carries on at least where the old one left off. Write to us via webinnovision.de/en/contact, or have your current site checked first in our free website check.