Website redesigns

Maybe your site was built years ago by someone who's moved on. Maybe it looks dated next to your competitors, is awkward on a phone, or every small change needs a developer. A redesign fixes all of that. The part most owners worry about is the move itself: will email stop working, will Google forget about us, will old links break? Moving a site carefully is most of the work in a redesign, so here's exactly how I do it.

Signs it's time

• It's hard to use on a phone, which is where most of your visitors are.
• You can't update it yourself, or you're afraid to touch it.
• It's slow, or the browser shows security warnings.
• It no longer describes what you do, what you charge, or who you serve.
• You pay for hosting, plugins, or a maintenance contract and aren't sure what you're getting.
• Customers call to ask questions the site should already answer.

What you keep

Your domain name

Your address on the web stays exactly the same. When the new site is ready I point your domain at it, and nothing about who owns the domain changes. If it's registered in someone else's name, like a former designer's, I'll help you move it into yours first.

Your email

Email is the thing most likely to break during a move, because it runs on the same domain settings as your website. Before I change anything, I record every setting your email depends on and carry each one over, so your inbox keeps working through the switch.

Your search traffic

Every page on your current site has an address that Google knows and other sites may link to. I list them all, decide where each one belongs on the new site, and set up permanent redirects from the old addresses to the new ones. Old links and bookmarks still land somewhere useful, and search engines can follow the move. It's the best way to protect the search traffic you've built, though nobody can promise your rankings stay exactly the same.

Your content

The words, photos, documents, and blog posts worth keeping come across. Anything out of date is rewritten or retired, with your approval.

What you get

• A custom-crafted design built around your business and your customers, not a template.
• A site that works well on phones, tablets, and computers, and loads quickly.
• A simple dashboard to edit your own pages, text, photos, hours, and prices.
• Hosting, SSL, backups, and updates, handled by me every month.
• Basic search setup on every page, plus Google Business Profile setup and analytics on Business.

How a redesign goes

1. A free 20-minute call. We look at your current site together: what works, what doesn't, and what it needs to do now.
2. An inventory of the old site. Every page, file, and setting that matters, including your domain and email settings, recorded before anything changes.
3. A clear proposal. The new page list, what moves across, what gets rewritten, the price, and the timeline, in writing.
4. Design and build. The new site is built at a private address while your current site stays live, so customers never see a half-finished site.
5. Your review. You check every page, and I make changes until it's right.
6. Launch. I point your domain at the new site, switch on the redirects, and check your email, forms, and key pages right away.
7. The weeks after. I watch for broken links and changes in search traffic, then your site moves into regular monthly care.

Plans

A redesigned site moves onto the same hosted plans as a new one:

• Starter: $19 a month, up to 5 pages. Setup is $399, or $0 down with $34 a month added for your first 12 months.
• Business: $39 a month, up to 15 pages, with a blog or galleries, Google Business Profile setup, analytics, and 30 minutes of changes a month. Setup is $799, or $0 down with $67 a month added for 12 months.
• Business + Tools: $79 a month, everything in Business plus one business tool and an hour of changes a month. Setup is $1,499, or $0 down with $125 a month added for 12 months.

Extra pages are $29 each, and I can rewrite old pages for $49 a page. Every price is on the pricing page.

What I'll need from you

• The address of your current site, and who hosts it today if you know.
• Access to your domain registrar (the company you pay for the domain name), or help from whoever has it.
• Your logo, and any colors or fonts you already use.
• Anything the old site is missing: new services, new photos, updated prices.

Don't cancel your old hosting yet. It stays on until the new site is live and checked. And if your domain is registered with the same company as your old hosting, keep the domain registration when you cancel the hosting: that's the one thing you never want to lapse.

Redesign or builder?

If you're on Squarespace, Wix, or WordPress and like editing it yourself, you may not need a full redesign. Builder setup polishes the site you already have. If you're weighing the move, Leaving Squarespace or Wix walks through the decision.