Inventory what exists
Collect the old website’s URLs, pages receiving visits and pages linked from other websites. Search Console, the sitemap and analytics provide different parts of this inventory. Include documents and images people may have bookmarked. A good redesign starts with understanding which content should be preserved.
Map URLs to the new content
For each changed URL, identify the closest destination by topic and visitor need. Redirecting everything to the homepage does not replace this work. When a service is discontinued with no suitable replacement, do not create an empty page just to preserve the URL. Base the decision on content and real data.
Test before switching
On the prepared version, check key pages, languages, navigation, search and forms. Verify redirects reach the correct destinations without loops. Check titles, canonicals and the sitemap. For an online shop, also test products, variants and checkout. Keep a clear rollback path in case the switch reveals a problem.
Monitor what happens after launch
Check failing URLs, indexing status and contact functionality. Compare traffic over comparable periods and distinguish visits from actual enquiries. Search engines need to recrawl changed content; submitting a sitemap does not prove this is complete. Record the date and changes to help interpret the data.