How to do SEO migration

An SEO migration requires strategic planning before you move anything. Start by conducting a complete audit of the current site—document all indexed pages, their rankings, traffic metrics, and backlink profiles using tools like Screaming Frog and Ahrefs. Create a detailed URL mapping spreadsheet showing old URLs matched to their new equivalents. This becomes your reference guide and prevents orphaned pages. Decide on your migration approach: if you're redesigning on the same domain, you can work faster with 301 redirects; if moving to a new domain entirely, plan for a much longer recovery period since Google needs to re-evaluate your authority from scratch. Communicate your migration plan to clients upfront—explain that rankings typically drop 20-40% initially before recovering over 3-6 months, depending on domain authority and competition.

Execute the migration in phases rather than all at once. Set up 301 redirects from every old URL to its new equivalent before you launch, and test them thoroughly to ensure they're working correctly. Update your XML sitemap with new URLs and resubmit it through Google Search Console. Update internal links across the site—redirect chains waste crawl budget and dilute link equity. If you're migrating to a new domain, set up a new GSC property immediately and upload your sitemap there. Monitor crawl errors in GSC daily for the first two weeks; you'll catch redirect issues and broken links quickly. Update your robots.txt and ensure your new domain isn't accidentally blocked.

Post-launch monitoring is critical and shouldn't stop after a week. Track your top 50-100 keyword rankings weekly for the first month, then switch to monthly tracking. Watch organic traffic in Google Analytics and set up alerts for significant drops. Check your backlink profile in Ahrefs or SEMrush—some sites may link to your old domain, and you might need to reach out requesting updated links. If you're moving to a new domain, expect a temporary drop in authority as Google re-evaluates. Respond quickly to any issues: if a major page's rankings collapse, investigate whether the redirect is working or if on-page optimization was lost during migration. Keep detailed documentation of what went wrong and what worked so you can improve your process on future migrations.