SEO-Friendly Site Migration Tips from Actual SEO Media, Inc.

Actual SEO Media, Inc. gives tips on how to migrate your site effectively without impacting your SEO negatively.

HOUSTON, TX, UNITED STATES, June 3, 2024 /EINPresswire.com/ -- Site migration can be a challenging and difficult process to many people, especially for those who struggle with their SEO. While proper site migration does improve SEO and website performance in general, improper site migration can certainly tank that SEO for good. Actual SEO Media, Inc. has experience in website building and design, and thus knows the latest tips on how to migrate a site without adversely affecting its SEO.

Understanding Site Migration

Migrating a site does not only include changing a site’s location. Rather, it can encompass changes in its structure and its design, as well as its technology. Some common reasons for site migration include changing a site’s server, architecture, domain name, and platform.

Servers such as Wix or WordPress can improve a site’s functionality, as well as its SEO. If a company is undergoing a rebrand, then changing its domain name is requisite. And if a website is not properly secured, it could be vulnerable to hackers and bad actors; it will certainly not inspire confidence in users who come across the website. Therefore, changing a site’s encryption to HTTPS is not only recommended but Google highly favors websites that are secured.

Migrating a site can be hard on its SEO, but only in the short term. Properly done, a site migration will improve SEO and increase online traffic flow.

Tips on How To Migrate A Site Properly

Before beginning any action, a website’s owner must set goals, developing a timeline for the project. Gathering data is also recommended. Analytic tools such as Google Search Console (GSC), and Google Analytics 4 (GA4), and Semrush have tons of data on pre-migration sites for easy comparison. Getting the expertise of an SEO specialist can be helpful as well.

Depending on the kind of site migration, website owners should make specific preparations. For example, if they want to change their host provider, they should set up an account with that host. The same goes for changing the site platform of a given website and purchasing a new domain. Running a site audit will also allow owners to identify crucial issues in their site’s technical SEO.

Making a site copy and backing it up is also recommended in case something goes wrong and a website owner loses crucial site information. Usually, this is done by copying a website’s files to a subdomain, duplicating its database, and updating its URLs.

Once this staging site is set up, the website owner will need to block search engines from accessing the site. This is easily done by adding password protection, a meta robots tag, and a no index tag on the staging sites’ pages.

Running an audit on the staging site is also recommended to catch grievous errors before they are migrated onto the new site and check the site’s overall health score. Once the website is free of errors, the website owner will need to allow the Googlebot to access it.

Once a website’s data is successfully in the staging site, website owners can prepare the new site. Actual SEO Media, Inc. recommends that website owners perform smaller migrations rather than implementing large changes all at once. One small migration is to set up an analytics tool like Semrush or GA4 on the new site.

Other strategies include:

-Changing old URLs to new site URLs
-Adding a server-side 301 redirect
-Updating URLs on the staging site
-Changing relative URLs to absolute URLs

Post Site Migration

Once these changes are implemented, owners should back up their staging site and rerun the audit, as well as collect all the data required. Larger websites tend to have more problems, so website owners should move page content section by section.

When all the content is moved to the new site, website owners should then remove all temporary blocks to the new site, including password protection and the like, and enable all redirects and removals. External URLs should be updated, and website owners should remove outdated links.

A low SEO score after a site migration need not be a permanent change. With the latest tips from Actual SEO Media, Inc., website owners can successfully move their site without adverse permanent effects on their SEO. On the contrary, as website owners implement the latest advice on migrating a website, they may find that their new website’s SEO score may even be higher than the old one, as well as improved functionality for their website in general.

As a leading SEO company in Houston, TX, Actual SEO Media, Inc. uses various techniques to help its clients expand their online presence. By harnessing the power of search engine optimization, the company empowers its clients to market their services more effectively and achieve greater visibility on the web. For more information, contact Actual SEO Media, Inc.'s main office at (832) 834-0661 or by email at: info@actualseomedia.com.

Jamin Mootz
Actual SEO Media, Inc.
+1 832-834-0661
email us here