Moving from one application to another.
WHEN THIS ARISES
Outgrowing a platform Consolidating onto one system Moving away from something unmaintained A rebuild taking the opportunity to change
WHAT TRANSFERS
Content, usually, through an export and import or a migration tool Media files, with some manual work Users, sometimes, though passwords rarely transfer
WHAT DOES NOT
Design, which must be rebuilt Plugin functionality, which has no equivalent URL structure, unless you deliberately preserve it
THE SEO CONSIDERATION
This is the risk. Changing platform usually changes URLs, and every changed URL needs a redirect.
Export your current URLs before starting. Map each to its new destination. Implement 301 redirects.
Skipping this loses the search traffic you have accumulated.
THE PROCEDURE
- Build the new site fully on a subdomain or staging.
- Migrate content and check it.
- Rebuild the design.
- Map and prepare redirects.
- Switch, implement redirects, submit a new sitemap.
- Monitor for 404s and traffic changes for a month.
THE HONEST QUESTION
Is the new platform genuinely better for your needs, or merely newer?
