📋 Planning & Analysis
📚 Table of Contents
🎯 Why Planning Matters
Critical First Step: Never implement redirects without thorough analysis. Poor planning can result in traffic loss, ranking drops, and broken user experiences. This section provides comprehensive frameworks for successful redirect planning.
🔍 Domain Analysis Framework
📊 Domain Health Assessment
- Check Domain Indexation
site:yourdomain.comVerify the domain is indexed by search engines and check how many pages are in the index.
- Analyze Domain History Use Archive.org to check historical content and usage patterns. Look for any suspicious or spammy content in the past.
- Verify Trademark Status Check USPTO, UK IPO, and EU trademark databases to ensure no legal conflicts.
- Assess Link Profile Quality Use Ahrefs, SEMrush, or Majestic to analyze backlinks, referring domains, and overall link quality.
- Check for Penalties Review Google Search Console for manual actions, algorithmic penalties, or security issues.
🔗 Backlink Analysis Checklist
- Total number of referring domains and backlinks
- Domain Rating/Authority scores (Ahrefs DR, Moz DA)
- Link quality and spam score assessment
- Anchor text distribution and diversity
- Geographic distribution of linking domains
- Link velocity trends over time
- Top linking pages and their relevance to your niche
- Ratio of dofollow to nofollow links
🎯 Quality Indicators
- High-authority referring domains (DR 50+)
- Natural anchor text variety (<10% exact match)
- Relevant, contextual links from related sites
- Consistent, organic link growth patterns
- Links from diverse IP ranges and countries
🚨 Red Flags
- Sudden massive link drops or spikes
- High spam score (>30% in most tools)
- Unnatural anchor text patterns
- Links from penalized or banned sites
- Paid link networks or PBN footprints
# Domain analysis tools and commands
# Check indexation
site:yourdomain.com
site:yourdomain.com inurl:specific-page
# Check domain authority
# Use Ahrefs, Moz, or SEMrush for:
- Domain Rating (DR)
- Domain Authority (DA)
- Trust Flow / Citation Flow
# Historical analysis
# Visit archive.org and check:
- Content history over time
- Design changes and redirects
- Any suspicious patterns
🗺️ Content Mapping Strategy
📋 Page-by-Page Mapping Process
- Inventory All URLs Export all URLs from Google Search Console, XML sitemaps, and crawling tools like Screaming Frog.
- Prioritize by Traffic and Value Use Google Analytics to identify highest-traffic pages and most valuable conversion paths.
- Identify Content Relationships Map old content to the most relevant new content based on topic, keywords, and user intent.
- Plan Consolidation Opportunities Combine thin or duplicate content into comprehensive, authoritative pages.
- Create Redirect Rules Document exact source and destination URLs with reasoning for each mapping decision.
🎯 Mapping Best Practices
1:1 Mapping Rule: Always try to redirect to the most relevant, similar content. Avoid redirecting everything to the homepage - this wastes link equity and provides poor user experience.
📊 Mapping Priority Levels
- Exact Match: Same content, just different URL
- Topical Match: Similar content on same topic
- Category Match: Related content in same category
- Parent Page: Redirect to section or category page
- Homepage: Only as absolute last resort
🎯 Content Quality Assessment
- Page traffic and engagement metrics
- Keyword rankings and search visibility
- Backlink profile and link equity
- Content freshness and relevance
- Conversion performance
📊 Content Mapping Template
# Content Mapping Spreadsheet Template
| Old URL | New URL | Match Type | Monthly Traffic | Priority | Backlinks | Notes |
|---------|---------|------------|-----------------|----------|-----------|-------|
| /old-product-page | /new-product-page | Exact | 1,250 | High | 45 | Same product, URL change |
| /old-category/ | /new-category/ | Exact | 890 | High | 23 | Category rename |
| /discontinued-item | /similar-products | Topical | 430 | Medium | 12 | Related products page |
| /legacy-contact | /contact | Exact | 150 | Low | 3 | Contact page update |
# Match Types:
- Exact: Same content, different URL
- Topical: Related content, same topic
- Category: Broader category page
- Parent: Section or main page
- Homepage: Last resort only
🔍 Pre-Redirect SEO Audit
📈 Current Performance Baseline
🎯 Traffic Metrics
- Organic traffic volume and trends
- Top landing pages and their performance
- Conversion rates by page and traffic source
- Bounce rates and user engagement metrics
- Session duration and pages per session
🔍 Ranking Analysis
- Current keyword positions and visibility
- Featured snippet ownership and SERP features
- Local ranking positions (if applicable)
- Competitor comparison and market share
- Brand vs non-brand keyword performance
🔗 Link Profile Assessment
- Total backlinks and referring domains
- Domain authority and trust metrics
- Internal linking structure and optimization
- Anchor text distribution and diversity
- Link velocity and growth patterns
🛠️ Technical SEO Checklist
- Current site architecture and URL structure analysis
- Internal linking patterns and optimization opportunities
- Meta tags, titles, and structured data implementation
- Page load speeds and Core Web Vitals performance
- Mobile responsiveness and usability
- XML sitemap structure and completeness
- Robots.txt configuration and crawl directives
- Canonical tag usage and duplicate content issues
- Schema markup implementation and accuracy
# SEO audit data collection commands
# Google Analytics 4 queries
# Export organic traffic data for last 12 months
# Identify top landing pages and conversion paths
# Analyze user behavior and engagement metrics
# Google Search Console data
# Export performance data (clicks, impressions, CTR, position)
# Download coverage report for indexing status
# Check for manual actions or security issues
# Technical SEO tools
# Screaming Frog: Site crawl and technical analysis
# GTmetrix/PageSpeed: Performance metrics
# Ahrefs/SEMrush: Backlink and keyword data
⚠️ Risk Assessment & Mitigation
🚨 Common Risk Factors
High-Risk Scenarios:
- Redirecting large volumes of pages simultaneously
- Changing to completely different content types or niches
- Moving between domains with vastly different authorities
- Implementing during peak business or holiday seasons
- Complex redirect chains or potential infinite loops
- Redirecting without proper content mapping
🛡️ Risk Mitigation Strategies
- Phased Implementation Roll out redirects in small batches (10-20% at a time) to monitor impact and adjust strategy.
- Comprehensive Backup Plans Prepare detailed rollback procedures for critical issues, including backup configurations.
- Thorough Testing Environment Test all redirects in staging environment that mirrors production setup.
- Advanced Monitoring Setup Configure alerts for traffic drops, error rate increases, and performance degradation.
- Stakeholder Communication Plan Inform all teams about potential temporary impacts and response procedures.
📊 Risk Assessment Matrix
| Risk Factor | Probability | Impact | Mitigation Strategy |
|---|---|---|---|
| Temporary ranking drops | 🟡 Medium | 🟡 Medium | Monitor closely, patience required |
| Traffic loss (20-30%) | 🟡 Medium | 🔴 High | Careful mapping, phased rollout |
| Broken user experience | 🟢 Low | 🔴 High | Thorough testing, proper mapping |
| Redirect loops or chains | 🟢 Low | 🔴 High | Testing, redirect validation tools |
| Server performance issues | 🟢 Low | 🟡 Medium | Load testing, server optimization |
📅 Timeline & Implementation Planning
🗓️ Recommended Implementation Timeline
1
2
3
4
5
6
- Week 1-2: Analysis & Planning Phase
- Complete domain and content analysis
- Conduct comprehensive SEO audit and establish baseline metrics
- Perform thorough risk assessment and develop mitigation strategies
- Achieve stakeholder alignment and approval for project scope
- Week 3: Mapping & Documentation Phase
- Complete detailed URL mapping with content analysis
- Create comprehensive redirect rule documentation
- Develop detailed testing plan and validation procedures
- Set up monitoring systems and alert configurations
- Week 4: Testing & Validation Phase
- Comprehensive staging environment testing
- Sample redirect validation and performance testing
- Load testing and server performance validation
- User acceptance testing with stakeholder review
- Week 5: Implementation Phase
- Phased redirect deployment in small batches
- Real-time monitoring and immediate issue resolution
- Search console updates and sitemap submissions
- Internal team communication and coordination
- Week 6-8: Monitoring & Optimization Phase
- Intensive traffic and ranking monitoring
- Proactive issue identification and resolution
- Performance optimization and fine-tuning
- Additional redirect needs assessment and implementation
- Week 9-12: Stabilization & Review Phase
- Long-term performance monitoring and analysis
- Final optimizations and redirect cleanup
- Comprehensive documentation updates
- Success measurement and lessons learned documentation
Pro Tip: Never implement major redirects during peak business periods, holiday seasons, or when key team members are unavailable. Plan for 24/7 monitoring capability during the first week after implementation.
# Implementation checklist template
## Pre-Implementation (Critical)
□ Complete domain analysis and risk assessment
□ Finish URL mapping with content relevance scoring
□ Set up monitoring and alerting systems
□ Create detailed rollback procedures
□ Get stakeholder approval and communication plan
## During Implementation
□ Deploy redirects in small, manageable batches
□ Monitor server performance and response times
□ Check redirect functionality and user experience
□ Verify analytics tracking and data collection
□ Update internal links and navigation elements
## Post-Implementation
□ Monitor traffic trends and ranking changes daily
□ Fix any broken redirects or technical issues
□ Update XML sitemaps and submit to search engines
□ Notify search engines of significant changes
□ Document lessons learned and optimization opportunities
🎯 Ready to Implement?
With thorough planning complete, you're ready for technical implementation!