Site migrations are critical moments for SEO. Without planning, it is common to lose rankings, traffic, and backlinks. The essential steps for a safe migration are:
- URL mapping: list every URL on the current site and define where each one will redirect on the new site. Use 301 (permanent redirect).
- Preserve high-value content: pages that rank well and have backlinks should keep identical URLs or have a flawless 301 redirect.
- Schema markup: reimplement every schema that existed on the previous site.
- Updated sitemap: submit the new sitemap to Google Search Console immediately after the migration.
- Post-migration monitoring: track rankings, traffic, and crawl errors daily during the first 4 weeks.
The most serious mistake in a migration is skipping redirects. Every old URL without a redirect becomes a 404 error, and all the accumulated SEO value (backlinks, ranking history) is lost. Netlinks has a dedicated migration playbook that minimizes risk and preserves your organic equity.