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A website redesign that keeps what's already working.

A full redesign, from discovery to launch, by one design and engineering team. Old URLs are redirected, search is compared before and after, and every page is checked on a phone and with a screen reader before it ships.

Launch check: redirectsExample
/about-us/our-team//about/team301 tested
/2019/04/annual-report//reports/2019301 tested
/programs.php?id=12/programs/job-training301 tested
/news/category/press//news/press301 tested
/es/contacto//es/contact301 tested

Built from a full crawl and the Search Console record, then checked on the preview before launch.

The process

Five stages, one project.

Each stage ends in something you can review: notes from the people who use the site, a content model, page designs, a preview link, and a launch report. The build starts from Launch, our open-source reference sites, not from an empty folder.

Our open-source starting pointChoosing the CMS
  1. 01

    Discovery

    Who comes to the site, and what they come to do. We read your analytics and Search Console, talk to the people who publish, and find what causes the most trouble today.

  2. 02

    Structure

    How your content is organized: page types, navigation, and the records (programs, locations, events) that should power pages instead of being retyped on each one.

  3. 03

    Design

    Pages and editor blocks, side by side. Every page design comes with the blocks your editors will use to build the next one.

  4. 04

    Build

    Every feature is reviewed on a preview link and lands in your repository as a pull request. You see the real page, not a mockup of it.

  5. 05

    Launch

    Content moved, old URLs redirected, search compared. Launch is a checklist with owners, not a weekend.

One team

Design and engineering in the same room.

Strategy, design, and engineering sit in one project instead of a handoff between studios. Designers know what the CMS can do while they design, and engineers build from decisions they were part of.

  • One plan and one point of contact from discovery to launch
  • Page designs and editor blocks designed together
  • Engineers in design reviews, designers in preview reviews
  • Your team signs off at each stage before the next one starts

The result is one site, not a design file someone else has to translate.

Launch

Redirect every old URL. Compare search before and after.

A redesign is where sites quietly lose years of search traffic: a URL changes, a redirect is missed, and pages that ranked are gone. We treat search as part of the launch checklist.

The SEO audit we run
  • Every URL that earns traffic or links is mapped from a full crawl and the Search Console record
  • Redirects are tested on the preview before launch, not patched after complaints
  • An SEO audit at launch, and we fix what it finds
  • Search clicks and indexing compared with the old site in the weeks after launch

A redesign can still move rankings. The comparison is how you see a drop early and fix it, not a promise that nothing changes.

Speed and accessibility

Fast on a phone, usable by everyone.

Speed

Mobile first

Speed is measured on every preview and on real visits, so a slow page is caught before launch rather than after.

Accessibility

WCAG 2.2 AA

We build and test to WCAG 2.2 AA: automated checks on every preview, plus keyboard and screen reader passes on the pages people use most.

Languages

Multilingual

Every language you publish in today carries across, and editors manage each translation in the CMS beside the original.

The quote

What the quote includes.

After the first conversation we send a written quote. It has three parts, so you can plan for the build and for what comes after it.

A timeline

Stages with dates, and what you review at the end of each one.

A price for the build

What discovery through launch costs, with the scope it covers written down.

The ongoing costs

Hosting, maintenance, and any licenses, so the monthly cost after launch isn't a surprise.

Before the quote

What we'll ask first.

A first conversation is mostly questions. The answers decide the scope, so we would rather ask them before quoting than after.

  • A redesign of today's site and content, or new functionality too?
  • Who uses the site most, and what do they come to do?
  • What causes the most trouble today?
  • Who publishes, and how often?
  • Which tools should the site connect to?
  • Is there a date the new site needs to be ready for?
FAQ

Frequently asked questions

How long does a redesign take?
It depends on how much content moves and how many new features come with it. The quote sets a timeline, and if the new site has to be ready for a date, we plan back from it.
Do we have to leave WordPress?
No. If your editors want to keep WordPress, we keep it as the editor and rebuild the public site in front of it. If you're ready to leave, Payload is where we usually start.
Payload and headless WordPress
Should we audit the current site first?
Ideally, yes. An audit of the current site tells the redesign which URLs need redirects and which pages carry search traffic you can't afford to lose.
Our SEO audit
Who moves the content?
We plan the move with you and script it where the old content allows. Pages that need rewriting are flagged early, so they don't hold up launch.
Is the new site certified as accessible?
No. The checks are part of the work: automated tests on every preview, plus keyboard and screen reader passes. They are not a certification.

Start with what isn't working today.

Bring the site you have, the problems it causes, and the date you're working toward. We'll tell you what we'd do first.

Payload and headless WordPressCustom web applications