Website redesign: a checklist for your business Refresh your website with a clear plan.
A website redesign changes more than the layout. Before replacing your current site, establish who controls the domain, how email is connected, which URLs matter and how enquiries reach your team. Use this checklist to prepare the handover discussion.
Prepared by Ozi Systems ·
1. Check domain, hosting and email access
Your domain registration, website hosting and email may be with one provider or three different ones. Record the provider and responsible account owner for each, along with renewal dates. Establish who can authorize changes without sharing passwords in an enquiry form.
Ask the person handling the move to document the existing DNS configuration, particularly email-related records. Replacing the website should not accidentally remove the settings your mail service depends on.
2. Map existing pages and redirects
List the current page URLs and what each one does. Use available analytics, Search Console information and actual customer enquiries to identify pages people already find useful. Include service pages, downloadable files and links used in directory listings or printed material.
Keep established URLs where they still fit. When a URL must change, map it to the closest relevant new page and arrange a permanent redirect. Sending every old address to the homepage leaves visitors without the information they expected.
3. Review content and usage rights
Collect your logo files, approved photographs, service descriptions and business details. Confirm you have permission to reuse them. Access to the old website does not by itself tell you what rights you have to its photographs, fonts or other supplied material.
Use the review to remove outdated offers and correct opening hours, team details and contact instructions. Name the person who will approve the replacement content, including each language version.
4. Test forms, links and enquiry delivery
Make a list of forms, email links, phone numbers and external booking destinations. Check where each enquiry goes and who is expected to respond. A form that looks correct is not enough: agree how receipt will be tested with the receiving team.
Before launch, review the website on a phone, test navigation and language switches, and check the most important old URLs against the redirect plan. Confirm the intended pages can be indexed and that private or demonstration pages remain excluded.
5. Agree the launch and handover responsibilities
Decide who approves launch, who changes DNS or hosting settings, and who is available to check the result. Agree how the existing provider’s service ends and how a recoverable copy of the old website will be retained during the transition.
Ozi reviews the existing website and domain before agreeing a transition. The managed website service is CHF 497 per month; migration requirements and any additional functionality need to be discussed in the scope.
Use the checklist
Mark the items you have discussed with your current provider and your new team. Your selections stay on this page only.
Questions before you start
Do I need to change my domain for a redesign?
Not necessarily. Review the current domain and account access first. Keeping the same domain can avoid an unnecessary change, while the website itself is rebuilt.
Will a redesign preserve all my rankings?
No one can guarantee that. Reviewing useful content, keeping suitable URLs and mapping necessary redirects helps manage the transition, but rankings can still change.
Should I cancel the old hosting before the new site is ready?
Agree the transition first. Check what the existing package supplies, including email, domain services and backups, before ending it.
Discuss your website project
Share your business, current website and priorities. We will confirm availability and discuss the scope before a start date is agreed.
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