SEO Migration QA Checklist
Preserve useful URLs and working journeys through a redesign with an inventory, redirect plan and explicit release checks.
Inventory before design.
Collect current routes, important content, form endpoints and page ownership. Identify URLs that will stay, change, merge or disappear. Record the reason for each decision; do not redirect every retired page to the homepage.
The redirect map planner checks the proposed CSV locally; it does not apply host rules.
Prepare a map and a release owner.
Use the redirect planner to catch duplicate sources, loops and chains in a proposed CSV. It produces a planning file, not server configuration or applied redirects. A developer must implement the correct rules for the actual host.
Agree redesign and migration ownership before launch, including who will verify old URLs afterward. For a genuinely new URL, the slug generator prepares text without checking availability. If equivalent localized pages exist, review hreflang annotations separately; this does not establish international project support.
Check before release.
Run the site’s build and available tests. Inspect canonical URLs, metadata, navigation, assets, form submissions and the mobile journey. Confirm that staging restrictions will not be carried into the public site.
Verify after release.
Test old URLs at the actual host, inspect representative destinations and ensure the sitemap reflects canonical public pages. Record failures and the rollback decision owner. A preview screenshot does not verify a production redirect.
Worked example: an old service URL.
Fictional example: /old-installation is becoming /installation. The plan maps the old URL directly to the relevant new service, rather than through another retired path. Keep the old title, content purpose and receiving form in the inventory so the release can be checked against an actual expectation.
- Use the planning CSV to catch duplicate sources and loops before implementation.
- After release, request the old URL at the real host and inspect its status, Location header and final destination.
- Test the destination page and enquiry, record failures and use the agreed rollback boundary.
Useful questions.
Does a valid redirect CSV mean the migration is finished?
No. Rules still need implementation and real-host verification. Canonicals, content, forms, internal links and sitemap behavior also need checking.
Can SearchRally help implement this?
Request a human-reviewed free SEO plan with your website and priorities. Work is selected within an agreed monthly capacity, or scoped as a separate website project. No instant audit or guaranteed outcome is offered.
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