The complete Wix redesign SEO preservation checklist

This capstone lesson combines every lesson in this module into a single, comprehensive checklist that you can use as your redesign project management tool. Print it, share it with your designer, and work through it systematically. Every item represents a potential ranking loss if missed. This checklist has been refined from dozens of real Wix redesign projects and covers every scenario that commonly causes ranking losses.

Phase 1: Pre-Redesign Audit (Before Any Changes)

• 1. Complete Screaming Frog crawl exported and saved
• 2. GSC Performance data exported (Pages and Queries, last 6 months)
• 3. GA4 landing page data exported (last 6 months)
• 4. Backlink analysis completed and exported
• 5. Core Web Vitals recorded for top 10 pages
• 6. All structured data documented with JSON-LD code saved
• 7. All Custom Code entries documented and saved
• 8. Robots.txt and XML sitemap copies saved
• 9. Existing URL redirects exported
• 10. Top 20 page content saved (text, headings, screenshots)
• 11. Master URL inventory created with traffic and backlink data
• 12. Risk assessment completed with risk level documented

Phase 2: URL Mapping and Redirect Planning

• 13. URL mapping spreadsheet created with every old URL and its new destination
• 14. Every URL categorised: unchanged, renamed, merged, or removed
• 15. 301 redirect plan documented for every changing URL
• 16. Redirect targets verified as topically appropriate (no blanket homepage redirects)
• 17. No redirect chains planned (all redirects go directly to final destination)
• 18. Blog post URLs included in the mapping (commonly forgotten)
• 19. Wix CMS dynamic page URLs included in the mapping
• 20. High-priority redirects identified (pages with traffic and backlinks)

Phase 3: Content Migration

• 21. Every page categorised: Group A (protect), B (improve), C (merge), D (remove)
• 22. Group A page content preservation documented (H1, meta, headings, word count)
• 23. Group B improvement plans created with specific enhancements listed
• 24. Group C merge targets identified with content combination plan
• 25. Group D redirect targets identified
• 26. No content removed from Group A pages
• 27. Group B pages enhanced with additional depth, FAQs, or missing topics
• 28. Image alt text preserved or improved for all migrated images

Phase 4: Technical SEO Preservation

• 29. All custom JSON-LD schema re-added to appropriate pages
• 30. All site-wide tracking code re-implemented (GA4, GTM, pixels)
• 31. Canonical tags verified on all pages (self-referencing to new URLs)
• 32. No accidental noindex tags on pages that should be indexed
• 33. Open Graph and Twitter Card meta tags present on key pages
• 34. XML sitemap updated with all new URLs and submitted to GSC
• 35. Robots.txt verified as correct (not blocking important pages)
• 36. Core Web Vitals tested and comparable to or better than pre-redesign
• 37. All Rich Results Test passing on pages with structured data
• 38. Mobile responsiveness verified on all key pages

Phase 5: Internal Linking

• 39. Navigation structure matches the planned architecture
• 40. All Group A pages have equal or more internal links than before
• 41. No important page is more than 3 clicks from the homepage
• 42. All internal links point to current URLs (not through redirects)
• 43. Breadcrumb navigation implemented and reflecting correct hierarchy
• 44. Contextual links within body content updated to new URLs
• 45. Zero orphan pages in the new site structure

Phase 6: Pre-Launch Verification

• 46. All 301 redirects implemented and tested
• 47. Every redirect verified by visiting the old URL in an incognito browser
• 48. No redirect chains exist (verified with Screaming Frog)
• 49. All pages load correctly on desktop and mobile
• 50. Contact forms, booking widgets, and eCommerce checkout working
• 51. SSL certificate active on all pages
• 52. Google Search Console still connected and verified
• 53. Google Analytics tracking confirmed working (real-time report shows data)

Phase 7: Post-Launch Monitoring (90 Days)

• 54. Daily monitoring running for first 7 days
• 55. Weekly monitoring running for weeks 2-4
• 56. Monthly monitoring running for months 2-3
• 57. Traffic comparison vs pre-redesign baseline documented
• 58. Ranking comparison vs pre-redesign baseline documented
• 59. Any ranking drops investigated and remediated
• 60. Final 90-day report created comparing all metrics to pre-redesign baseline

Scoring Your Redesign Preservation

• 55-60 points: Excellent preservation. Your redesign should maintain or improve rankings.
• 45-54 points: Good but gaps exist. Address missing items within 7 days of launch.
• 35-44 points: Significant risk. Multiple SEO elements are unprotected. Pause and address before proceeding.
• Below 35 points: High risk of ranking loss. Do not launch until the score reaches at least 45.

Complete How-To Guide: Using the Redesign Preservation Checklist

Follow these steps to use this checklist for your Wix redesign project

• Print the checklist or create a digital copy in your project management tool
• Work through Phase 1 completely before making any design changes
• Complete Phase 2 before implementing any URL changes
• Work through Phase 3 alongside the content migration process
• Complete Phase 4 after the redesign is built but before it goes live
• Verify Phase 5 after the new navigation is implemented
• Run Phase 6 as your final pre-launch quality assurance check
• Do not launch until your Phase 6 score is at least 45 out of 53
• After launch, execute Phase 7 monitoring on the documented schedule
• At Day 90, compile your final report comparing post-redesign metrics to the pre-redesign baseline
• Archive the entire project documentation for reference in future redesigns
• Share this checklist with any designer or developer involved in future Wix redesigns