Why migration SEO is a separate purchase
A domain change, new CMS, revised URL structure or major content consolidation can affect how people and search engines reach valuable pages. A visually successful launch can still damage organic acquisition if old URLs disappear. Bring in SEO expertise before the build is locked when search traffic materially supports the business.
Different moves need different controls
Visual redesign without URL changes: focus on rendering, metadata and internal links. CMS and URL restructure: inventory existing pages, map destinations and specify redirect behaviour. Domain move: coordinate Search Console properties, permanent redirects and index monitoring. Ask for risk assessment matched to the actual change, not an identical package for every migration.
A useful migration statement of work
Require an inventory of important existing URLs, old-to-new mapping, redirect recommendations, checks for canonical and hreflang where applicable, staging QA, a launch test plan and clear post-launch monitoring. Ask to see the actual deliverable format and acceptance criteria.
Use established search guidance
Google Search Central recommends preparing and testing the destination, mapping URLs, using appropriate permanent redirects and monitoring after a move. Redirecting unrelated old pages to a generic homepage is not a sound substitute for relevant mapping. See Google’s official site move documentation.
Clarify SEO and development ownership
Specify who defines redirect mappings, who implements rules, who tests and who signs off. Developers need a concrete QA checklist; the SEO team needs awareness of CMS and hosting constraints. A shared issue log is more useful than two agencies assuming the other one owns the problem.
Scope and cost drivers
Complexity comes from URL count, site templates, multiple languages, content consolidation, legacy systems and quality of existing analytics. Price discovery, technical support, launch QA and post-launch monitoring separately. Agree on contingencies and rollback decisions before deployment.
Red flags and realistic expectations
Promises of zero traffic fluctuation, missing redirect inventories, no acceptance testing and unclear implementation accountability are warning signs. Google notes that rankings can fluctuate while moved URLs are recrawled. A credible partner explains uncertainty and the monitoring plan.
Questions to ask finalists
Which migrations resemble ours? How will redirect testing work? What signals will you monitor after launch? Who resolves 404s? Who updates internal links and sitemaps? Request a sanitised checklist and use the agency RFP template to compare approaches.
