Website Redesign, Without Losing What Already Works
A redesign is riskier than a new build, because you already have something: rankings, links, habits, a URL people have written on printed material. Done carelessly, a redesign quietly throws all of that away. We rebuild sites so that the parts earning you business are protected and the parts holding you back are gone.
Signs it is time
- It looks dated next to the competitors you lose work to
- It is slow, particularly on a phone
- You cannot update it yourself without breaking something
- Your services have changed and the site still describes the old business
- Inquiries come in unqualified, or do not come in at all
- You avoid sending people to it
That last one is the reliable signal. If you find yourself steering prospects to Instagram instead of your own website, the site is costing you money.
What we protect
A redesign should not reset your search visibility, and it usually does. Here is what we hold onto.
Your URLs. Pages that already rank keep their addresses wherever possible. Where a URL genuinely has to change, it gets a proper permanent redirect so the value carries over.
Your rankings. We record what you currently rank for before touching anything, then check it again after launch.
Your content. Copy that is working gets kept and sharpened rather than thrown out for the sake of a fresh start.
Your tracking. Analytics and Search Console stay connected through the transition, so you do not lose your history.
What actually changes
Design, structure and speed, in that order of visibility, and usually in reverse order of impact.
Most redesigns we take on are not really design problems. The site is slow, the pages are thin, the calls to action are vague, and the thing a visitor most needs to know is three scrolls down. Fixing that changes results more than a new colour palette will.
So you get a new look, but you also get a site that loads quickly, reads clearly, and asks people to do something specific.
How the work runs
1. Audit. What is currently ranking, what is broken, what is worth keeping. You get this in writing before any design work starts.
2. Structure. The new page map, with the redirect plan agreed alongside it.
3. Design and build. The new site, built in WordPress, reviewed with you as it comes together.
4. Launch and watch. We stay on it after launch, checking indexing and rankings rather than disappearing on handover day.
See custom WordPress website design for what the build itself includes, or browse the portfolio.
Common questions
Will I lose my Google rankings?
Not if the redesign is handled properly, and protecting them is an explicit part of the work. We record what you currently rank for before touching anything, keep the URLs of pages that already perform, and put permanent redirects in place wherever an address genuinely has to change. Then we check rankings again after launch rather than hoping.
What happens to my existing URLs?
Pages that already rank keep their addresses wherever possible. Where a URL has to change, it gets a 301 redirect so the value carries across and anyone with the old link still lands in the right place. Printed material with old URLs on it keeps working.
Can we keep some of the existing content?
Yes, and usually we should. Copy that is working gets kept and sharpened rather than thrown out for the sake of a fresh start. The audit at the beginning identifies what is earning its place.
How long does a redesign take?
Four to eight weeks for most projects, similar to a new build. Redesigns sometimes move faster because the content already exists, and sometimes slower because there is more to untangle.
What if I only need fixes, not a full redesign?
Then we will tell you that. Plenty of sites that feel tired are actually a speed problem, a structure problem and a weak call to action rather than a design problem. Send us the site and you will get an honest answer either way.
What does it cost?
Quoted as a fixed scope and a fixed price before work starts. The audit comes first, so the quote is based on what your site actually needs rather than a guess.
Let’s look at what you have
Send us your current site and tell us what frustrates you about it. We will tell you honestly whether it needs a redesign or just a few fixes. The first conversation is free.