A website redesign is a big deal for any trades business. Done right, it can transform your lead generation. Done wrong, it can break everything that was already working. This checklist walks you through every step so nothing falls through the cracks.
Before You Start: The Planning Phase
Define Your Goals
"I want a better website" is not a goal. Be specific:
- Increase monthly lead inquiries by 50%
- Reduce page load time to under 2 seconds
- Rank on page one for "[your trade] [your city]"
- Make the phone number clickable on mobile (yes, this is still a problem for many sites)
Audit What You Have
Before you tear down the old site, document what is working:
- Which pages get the most traffic? Check Google Analytics. Do not accidentally kill a page that ranks well.
- Where do your current leads come from? Contact form? Phone calls? Google Business Profile?
- What do customers say about your current site? Ask a few recent customers. Their feedback is more valuable than your opinion.
- What is your current Google ranking for your most important keywords? Document it so you can measure improvement.
Gather Your Assets
- High-quality photos of your work (at least 10-15 project photos)
- Your current logo in high resolution (vector format like SVG or AI if possible)
- Your license numbers, insurance info, and certifications
- A list of all services you offer with brief descriptions
- Your service area -- cities, counties, or zip codes
- Any existing content you want to keep (blog posts, FAQs, etc.)
During the Build: What Matters Most
Structure and Navigation
- Homepage should clearly communicate: who you are, what you do, where you serve, and how to contact you -- all above the fold
- Individual service pages for each major service (not one giant page listing everything)
- Service area pages if you serve multiple cities
- About page with team info and credentials
- Contact page with form, phone, email, and address
- Blog or resources section for ongoing content
Mobile-First Design
- Design for phones first, then adapt for desktop -- not the other way around
- Click-to-call button visible on every page
- Touch-friendly navigation and form fields
- No horizontal scrolling on any device
- Test on actual phones, not just browser resize
Speed Optimization
- Compress all images before uploading (aim for under 200KB per image)
- Use modern image formats like WebP
- Minimize third-party scripts and plugins
- Choose quality hosting -- not the cheapest shared hosting plan
- Target a PageSpeed Insights score of 90+ on mobile
SEO Foundations
- Unique title tags and meta descriptions for every page
- Proper heading structure (one H1 per page, logical H2/H3 hierarchy)
- Schema markup for local business, services, and reviews
- XML sitemap generated and submitted to Google Search Console
- 301 redirects from old URLs to new URLs (critical -- do not skip this)
- Google Business Profile linked and consistent with website info
Conversion Elements
- Clear call-to-action on every page
- Contact form that is short and simple (name, phone, email, message)
- Phone number in the header, clickable on mobile
- Trust signals: license numbers, insurance, years in business, review ratings
- Social proof: review excerpts, project photos, any awards or certifications
Before Launch: Testing Checklist
- Test every page on iPhone, Android, tablet, and desktop
- Test every form submission -- do you actually receive the emails?
- Test the click-to-call button -- does it dial the right number?
- Check all links -- no 404 errors or broken links
- Run PageSpeed Insights on key pages -- score above 90 on mobile
- Verify Google Analytics tracking is installed and recording
- Verify Google Search Console is connected
- Check SSL certificate is active (site loads with https://)
- Proofread every page -- typos destroy credibility
- Test contact form spam protection -- you do not want 50 spam submissions per day
After Launch: The First 30 Days
- Monitor your rankings for key search terms. A temporary dip is normal after a redesign but should recover within 2-4 weeks if redirects are properly set up.
- Watch for 404 errors in Google Search Console. Fix any broken links immediately.
- Track form submissions and calls. Compare to your pre-launch numbers.
- Ask customers what they think. Real feedback from real customers beats any internal review.
- Fix issues fast. The first month after launch always reveals things you missed. That is normal -- just address them quickly.
Common Redesign Mistakes to Avoid
- Not setting up 301 redirects. If you change any URLs, the old ones need to redirect to the new ones. Otherwise, you lose all your existing Google rankings overnight.
- Prioritizing looks over function. A beautiful website that does not generate leads is a failure. Conversion should drive every design decision.
- Going too long without content. "Coming soon" pages and placeholder text make you look unfinished. If a page is not ready, do not publish it.
- Forgetting about page speed. A gorgeous design that takes 8 seconds to load is worse than an ugly site that loads instantly.
- Not having a measurement plan. If you are not tracking leads before and after the redesign, you will never know if it actually worked.
A website redesign is an investment in your business. With this checklist, you can make sure that investment pays off from day one.