How to Overcome
SEO Challenges in
Website Migrations
Nikki Halliwell
Journey Further
https://speakerdeck.com/nikkihalliwell
/in/nikkiroseh/
@NikkiRHalliwell
Slide 2
Slide 2 text
How to Overcome
SEO Challenges in
Website Migrations
BRIGHTON SEO
Nikki Halliwell
Slide 3
Slide 3 text
/in/nikkiroseh/ | @nikkirhalliwell #BrightonSEO
Slide 4
Slide 4 text
/in/nikkiroseh/ | @nikkirhalliwell #BrightonSEO
Slide 5
Slide 5 text
Our goal:
Ensure this doesnʼt
happen to you.
/in/nikkiroseh/ | @nikkirhalliwell #BrightonSEO
Slide 6
Slide 6 text
1
WHAT IS
A SITE
MIGRATION?
/in/nikkiroseh/ | @nikkirhalliwell #BrightonSEO
Slide 7
Slide 7 text
8
Site Location
8
1 Domain change
2 Moving/merging areas
3 HTTP to HTTPS
4 International expansion
/in/nikkiroseh/ | @nikkirhalliwell #BrightonSEO
Slide 8
Slide 8 text
Platform
1 Moving to new CMS
2 Upgrading CMS version
3 Add new features
4 Site redesign
/in/nikkiroseh/ | @nikkirhalliwell #BrightonSEO
Slide 9
Slide 9 text
10
10
Content
1 Adding new pages
2 Removing content
3 Consolidating content
4 New languages/locales
/in/nikkiroseh/ | @nikkirhalliwell #BrightonSEO
12
UNDERSTAND
WHY THE
MIGRATION IS
HAPPENING
12
/in/nikkiroseh/ | @nikkirhalliwell #BrightonSEO
Slide 12
Slide 12 text
Faster load
times
Better UX and
functionality
Reorganisation
of content
Scalability and
expansions
/in/nikkiroseh/ | @nikkirhalliwell #BrightonSEO
Slide 13
Slide 13 text
2
GET THE
INFORMATION
YOU NEED AS
SOON AS
POSSIBLE
/in/nikkiroseh/ | @nikkirhalliwell #BrightonSEO
Slide 14
Slide 14 text
Use a migration
briefing document to
ensure we capture all
relevant information
at the earliest stage
Get a copy of my migration
briefing questions at the end
/in/nikkiroseh/ | @nikkirhalliwell #BrightonSEO
Slide 15
Slide 15 text
What is the
main reason
for the migration?
➔ Is the whole site
being migrated or
just sections of it?
/in/nikkiroseh/ | @nikkirhalliwell #BrightonSEO
Slide 16
Slide 16 text
➔ When is the client
planning to go-live?
What is the
timeline?
Get a copy of my migration
timeline template at the end
/in/nikkiroseh/ | @nikkirhalliwell #BrightonSEO
Slide 17
Slide 17 text
➔ When can you get
access to the
staging site?
How far along are
they in the build
process?
/in/nikkiroseh/ | @nikkirhalliwell #BrightonSEO
Slide 18
Slide 18 text
➔ Are they using internal
or external resources?
➔ How often do they
have stand-ups?
What developer
support or resources
do they have?
/in/nikkiroseh/ | @nikkirhalliwell #BrightonSEO
Slide 19
Slide 19 text
Are they changing
structure, design,
content, or
everything?
➔ What support will
they need for
redirect mapping?
/in/nikkiroseh/ | @nikkirhalliwell #BrightonSEO
Slide 20
Slide 20 text
21
➔ Is this different from
the existing CMS?
What CMS will be
used?
/in/nikkiroseh/ | @nikkirhalliwell #BrightonSEO
Slide 21
Slide 21 text
What are the
specific goals or
KPIs?
➔ Agree what metrics
will be used to
measure performance.
/in/nikkiroseh/ | @nikkirhalliwell #BrightonSEO
Slide 22
Slide 22 text
3
HOW TO
OVERCOME
COMMUNICATION
CHALLENGES IN
A MIGRATION
/in/nikkiroseh/ | @nikkirhalliwell #BrightonSEO
Slide 23
Slide 23 text
Make everyone
aware of
accountabilities
Clear
timeline
broken
down by
milestones
Set up
regular
comms.
E.g. Slack or
stand ups
The Keys to Successful Communication in a Migration
Speak the
language of
developers
/in/nikkiroseh/ | @nikkirhalliwell #BrightonSEO
Slide 24
Slide 24 text
Get a copy of my full migration
tasks template at the end
➔ Set up a list of tasks
so that everyone
understands the
work involved
Migration Checklist
/in/nikkiroseh/ | @nikkirhalliwell #BrightonSEO
Slide 25
Slide 25 text
/in/nikkiroseh/ | @nikkirhalliwell #BrightonSEO
Slide 26
Slide 26 text
TOP
CHALLENGES
AND ISSUES IN
MIGRATIONS
Donʼt Make These Same
Mistakes
/in/nikkiroseh/ | @nikkirhalliwell #BrightonSEO
Slide 27
Slide 27 text
Loss of search
rankings and
organic traffic
Migration without
SEO involvement
/in/nikkiroseh/ | @nikkirhalliwell #BrightonSEO
Slide 28
Slide 28 text
Incorrect
implementation
of 301 redirects,
especially during
domain changes.
/in/nikkiroseh/ | @nikkirhalliwell #BrightonSEO
Slide 29
Slide 29 text
Unplanned or
extended downtime
during the launch
Becomes an even bigger
problem if launching on a
Friday or weekend
/in/nikkiroseh/ | @nikkirhalliwell #BrightonSEO
Slide 30
Slide 30 text
Issues with DNS
Propagation
causing the site
to go down
/in/nikkiroseh/ | @nikkirhalliwell #BrightonSEO
Slide 31
Slide 31 text
Breakages of
functionalities on
the new platform
/in/nikkiroseh/ | @nikkirhalliwell #BrightonSEO
Slide 32
Slide 32 text
33
Failure to
replicate or
replace features
from the old
website
/in/nikkiroseh/ | @nikkirhalliwell #BrightonSEO
Slide 33
Slide 33 text
Integration Issues
with new Payment
Gateways
/in/nikkiroseh/ | @nikkirhalliwell #BrightonSEO
Slide 34
Slide 34 text
Missing or incorrect
implementation of
HREFLANG tags
/in/nikkiroseh/ | @nikkirhalliwell #BrightonSEO
Slide 35
Slide 35 text
Poor user
experience
due to changes
in design and
navigation
/in/nikkiroseh/ | @nikkirhalliwell #BrightonSEO
Incorrect Analytics
implementation
causing loss of data
and inconsistencies
/in/nikkiroseh/ | @nikkirhalliwell #BrightonSEO
Slide 38
Slide 38 text
4
WHAT TO DO IF
THINGS GO
WRONG IN A
MIGRATION
/in/nikkiroseh/ | @nikkirhalliwell #BrightonSEO
Slide 39
Slide 39 text
Review
Analytics Data
Find pages or
keywords that may
have been hit by the
specific changes
/in/nikkiroseh/ | @nikkirhalliwell #BrightonSEO
Slide 40
Slide 40 text
Check Redirects
Verify that all 301
redirects from old to new
are correctly implemented
/in/nikkiroseh/ | @nikkirhalliwell #BrightonSEO
Slide 41
Slide 41 text
Double check
Redirects
Ensure that pages are
carefully and accurately
mapped to relevant pages
/in/nikkiroseh/ | @nikkirhalliwell #BrightonSEO
Slide 42
Slide 42 text
Check for Indexation Blockers
Has the robots.txt file
been updated to allow
crawling?
Are there meta robots
rules in place that are
stopping indexing?
/in/nikkiroseh/ | @nikkirhalliwell #BrightonSEO
Slide 43
Slide 43 text
44
44
Check the XML
sitemap
Has it been updated and
been submitted to search
engines?
Does it contain the right
URLs and reflect the
structure of the site?
/in/nikkiroseh/ | @nikkirhalliwell #BrightonSEO
Slide 44
Slide 44 text
Has the load time been
negatively affected?
Slow loading pages
can negatively affect
UX and rankings.
Check the Site Speed
/in/nikkiroseh/ | @nikkirhalliwell #BrightonSEO
Slide 45
Slide 45 text
Check the Content
Ensure content is relevant
to the target keywords.
Update and add to the
content as needed to align
with user intent and
business goals.
/in/nikkiroseh/ | @nikkirhalliwell #BrightonSEO
Slide 46
Slide 46 text
Check the Status
of Backlinks
Ensure high quality
backlinks are still
pointing to the new
site.
/in/nikkiroseh/ | @nikkirhalliwell #BrightonSEO
Slide 47
Slide 47 text
Some Fluctuations are Normal
➔ Be patient
➔ Monitor over time
/in/nikkiroseh/ | @nikkirhalliwell #BrightonSEO
Slide 48
Slide 48 text
Everyone on
same page
Donʼt panic
Agree next
steps
Monitor your Performance
/in/nikkiroseh/ | @nikkirhalliwell #BrightonSEO
Slide 49
Slide 49 text
Reacting to Traffic Decline
/in/nikkiroseh/ | @nikkirhalliwell #BrightonSEO
Slide 50
Slide 50 text
Based on analysis and feedback, make
necessary adjustments to combat the drops.
Keep detailed records of the steps taken and
their outcomes for future migrations.
Annotate actions on GA to help understand
the impact of the work.
/in/nikkiroseh/ | @nikkirhalliwell #BrightonSEO
Slide 51
Slide 51 text
5
HOW TO
OVERCOME
SEO CHALLENGES
IN MIGRATIONS
/in/nikkiroseh/ | @nikkirhalliwell #BrightonSEO
Slide 52
Slide 52 text
Overcome
SEO Challenges
Be as proactive as possible
1
2
3
Donʼt play the blame game
Use data to inform decisions
/in/nikkiroseh/ | @nikkirhalliwell #BrightonSEO
Slide 53
Slide 53 text
Be methodical in your
approach
4
5
6
Find the positives
Keep communication
open and clear
Overcome
SEO Challenges
/in/nikkiroseh/ | @nikkirhalliwell #BrightonSEO
Slide 54
Slide 54 text
Overcome
SEO Challenges
Donʼt migrate in peak season
7
8
9
Get content on staging ASAP
Leave time for staging checks
and fixes
and …
/in/nikkiroseh/ | @nikkirhalliwell #BrightonSEO
Slide 55
Slide 55 text
10
Encourage multi-layer
approvals for risk
mitigation
Overcome
SEO Challenges
/in/nikkiroseh/ | @nikkirhalliwell #BrightonSEO
Slide 56
Slide 56 text
Move to
subdomain
Move back to
subfolders
/in/nikkiroseh/ | @nikkirhalliwell #BrightonSEO
Slide 57
Slide 57 text
Take control
of your client’s
site migration
with confidence
/in/nikkiroseh/ | @nikkirhalliwell #BrightonSEO
Slide 58
Slide 58 text
Get a copy of my migration
checklist and all other
resources from this talk
Scan me
nikkihalliwell.com/seo-speaker/
brighton-seo-2024/
/in/nikkiroseh/
@nikkirhalliwell
#BrightonSEO
https://speakerdeck.com/nikkihalliwell
Or visit this
Slide 59
Slide 59 text
Nikki Halliwell
Tech SEO Manager
Connect with me to
master your next
migration
/in/nikkiroseh/ | @nikkirhalliwell
#BrightonSEO
https://speakerdeck.com/nikkihalliwell