What to keep before changing supplier
Changing your website does not necessarily mean changing your domain name. Keep useful page addresses where possible; if they change, redirect each old page to its relevant replacement. No method guarantees unchanged Google positions.
Ask for a backup, a page list, management access and the domain holder’s identity. Also list email accounts, booking links, reusable photos and text. The domain guide explains why the website, hosting and email are separate.
Include pages found in Search Console, the sitemap and incoming links. A restaurant menu or old service page may still attract visitors even when it is absent from the main navigation.
Map old addresses to new ones
Download the URL mapping template (.txt)
For each address, record its content, destination, responsible person and test result. Keeping the address avoids an unnecessary change. If a service disappears with no equivalent, agree on appropriate handling rather than redirecting every old page to the homepage.
Fictional educational example: a restaurant’s /carte/ page becomes /menu/. The old address sends visitors to the new one with a permanent redirect; the destination displays the menu and responds normally. This mechanism was exercised on a local server, not on a client website.
Checks to request before going live
- Browse the new website on a phone: useful content, links, contact details, menu, prices and booking.
- Have permanent redirects tested for changed addresses, without loops or unnecessary chains. The expected technical detail is HTTP status 301 or 308 and an accessible destination.
- Check domain ownership and the settings needed for email before changing hosting. Test outgoing and incoming mail after the switch.
- Check internal links, canonical addresses and the new sitemap. The public website must not retain indexing blocks used during preparation.
- Keep the previous state and a recovery plan until checks are complete; do not cancel services that are still needed.
Check Google after the switch
In Search Console, inspect a few important pages and the sitemap. If the domain changes, check the applicable change-of-address procedure; a redesign on the same domain is not automatically a domain change.
Update links in the Google profile and other profiles you manage. Retain redirects long term and monitor old addresses still being visited. Google needs to crawl the pages again; visibility can fluctuate during the transition.
Then compare periods of equal length using the same country and query filters. A few days of results are not enough for a conclusion. Maps calls and direction requests remain separate from website clicks.
What to ask TAO Labs
Mention your existing website in the website brief and attach the completed mapping template. Taking over or redesigning an existing website needs assessment and a quote before agreement; this guide does not promise a migration included in the subscription. See the offer, the terms and how we work.
Sources and limits of the example
Official documentation consulted on 17 October 2026; linked pages are in French. The local example checks an old link, its destination and a nonexistent address. It demonstrates neither email migration nor unchanged Google rankings.