Website Redesign SEO: A Hubspot-Style How-To Guide
Planning a website redesign can be exciting and risky at the same time, and using a Hubspot-inspired framework helps you launch a fresh site without losing search traffic you worked hard to earn.
This guide adapts lessons from the original Hubspot website redesign SEO article into a practical, step-by-step process you can follow for any platform or CMS.
Why a Hubspot-Style SEO Plan Matters During Redesign
When you redesign without a clear SEO plan, you risk:
- Dropping key pages and losing rankings
- Breaking internal links and navigation paths
- Forgetting redirects and creating 404 errors
- Launching slower templates that hurt Core Web Vitals
A Hubspot-style approach keeps you focused on:
- Protecting existing organic traffic
- Preserving top-performing content
- Improving technical performance and UX together
- Launching with clean tracking and analytics
Step 1: Run a Pre-Redesign SEO Audit the Hubspot Way
Before you change layouts, themes, or copy, audit your current site. This is the foundation of every Hubspot-inspired redesign workflow.
Inventory All Existing URLs
Start by crawling your current website.
- Export a full URL list from your CMS or analytics.
- Use a crawler (e.g., Screaming Frog, Sitebulb) to capture:
- Title tags and meta descriptions
- H1–H3 headings
- Status codes (200, 301, 404, 5xx)
- Canonical tags
- Combine these sources into a single master sheet.
Identify High-Value Pages
Next, identify content that deserves maximum protection, following the prioritization mindset used in Hubspot-style audits.
- Pull organic traffic and conversions from analytics.
- List pages that drive:
- Organic sessions
- Leads or sales
- Backlinks or mentions
- Mark these as “must-protect” in your spreadsheet.
Map Keywords and Topics
For each important URL, document:
- Primary keyword and intent
- Supporting long-tail keywords
- Current position and impressions (from Search Console)
This matches the structured, topic-based approach popular in Hubspot content strategy.
Step 2: Plan Your New Site Architecture with Hubspot Principles
Redesign is the right time to improve structure while staying SEO-safe.
Create a Logical Topic Cluster Structure
Borrow the topic cluster model championed by Hubspot to organize your content.
- Define core pillar topics (e.g., “website redesign”, “technical SEO”).
- Assign existing and new pages under each pillar.
- Plan internal links between pillar and cluster content.
Make sure that high-value pages remain within a few clicks from the homepage.
Decide on URL Changes Carefully
Only change URLs when there is a strong reason, such as:
- Removing parameters for clean slugs
- Fixing keyword-relevant but user-friendly URLs
- Aligning structure with your new navigation
Whenever you change a URL, plan a one-to-one 301 redirect from the old address to the new address.
Step 3: Protect On-Page SEO Elements in a Hubspot-Inspired Redesign
During template or CMS changes, on-page details are easy to break. A Hubspot-minded checklist keeps things stable.
Preserve or Improve Title Tags and Meta Descriptions
For every key URL, confirm:
- Title tags still target the primary keyword
- Meta descriptions remain compelling and accurate
- No important field is left blank during migration
Where performance is weak, rewrite titles and descriptions to improve click-through rate.
Maintain Heading Structure and Content Relevance
Heading structure guides both users and search engines.
- Ensure each page has exactly one H1.
- Use H2–H3 subheadings to reflect logical sections.
- Keep important phrases and topics from the old version, unless data shows they underperform.
When following a Hubspot-style content update, aim to clarify intent and improve readability rather than rewriting everything from scratch.
Avoid Thin or Duplicate Content
Redesign projects sometimes merge or split pages. When you do this, check that:
- Combined pages still answer the full user intent
- You avoid creating near-duplicate copies of the same topic
- Canonical tags are set correctly if you must keep similar pages
Step 4: Implement Technical SEO Best Practices the Hubspot Way
Design and development changes can strongly affect performance and crawlability.
Optimize Page Speed and Core Web Vitals
Use best practices often emphasized in Hubspot-style performance optimization:
- Compress and lazy-load images where appropriate
- Minimize render-blocking scripts and CSS
- Use modern image formats (like WebP) when supported
- Test Core Web Vitals in PageSpeed Insights and Search Console
Ensure Clean, Crawlable Code
Before launch, confirm these technical details:
- No important pages are blocked by robots.txt
- Noindex tags are used only where intentional
- Canonical tags point to the preferred version of each page
- Structured data (where used) still validates correctly
Step 5: Build a Robust 301 Redirect Map
Redirects are critical in any SEO-safe redesign inspired by Hubspot documentation.
How to Create Your Redirect Map
- Use your URL inventory sheet as the source of truth.
- For every changed or removed URL, assign a destination that best matches intent.
- Use 301 (permanent) redirects, not 302 (temporary), for long-term changes.
Keep these principles in mind:
- Avoid redirect chains (A → B → C). Map A directly to C.
- Never redirect to irrelevant pages just to “save” authority.
- Test your redirects in staging before going live.
Step 6: Launch Checklist Based on Hubspot-Style Processes
On launch day, follow a structured checklist inspired by Hubspot implementation playbooks.
Pre-Launch Checks
- Test the staging site for crawlability and key templates
- Run a limited crawl to identify major 404s or redirect loops
- Verify analytics and tag manager code on key pages
- Double-check hreflang and regional settings if you have international sites
Post-Launch Monitoring
Right after launch, you should:
- Run a full crawl of the live site
- Compare old vs. new URL lists to catch missed redirects
- Submit the updated XML sitemap in Search Console
- Watch for crawl errors, sudden traffic drops, and ranking volatility
Step 7: Optimize After Launch Using a Hubspot Mindset
A redesign is not the end of your SEO work. Borrowing from the continuous improvement model used in Hubspot tools, keep iterating.
Track Performance and Behavior
Monitor:
- Organic traffic trends by page group
- Rankings for your primary and secondary keywords
- Engagement metrics such as bounce rate, time on page, and conversion rate
Use this data to decide where to refine copy, layouts, or calls to action.
Run Content and UX Experiments
After everything stabilizes, test improvements:
- A/B test key landing page templates
- Update internal links to surface supporting content
- Expand top-performing articles with additional helpful details
Get Expert Help with a Hubspot-Inspired Redesign
If you want specialist support combining technical SEO, conversion strategy, and a Hubspot-style process, consider partnering with an experienced consultancy.
Agencies like Consultevo can guide your team through audits, mapping, redirects, and post-launch optimization while protecting existing performance.
By following these structured steps and learning from the original Hubspot website redesign SEO framework, you can relaunch your site with confidence, maintain your organic visibility, and set yourself up for long-term growth.
Need Help With Hubspot?
If you want expert help building, automating, or scaling your Hubspot , work with ConsultEvo, a team who has a decade of Hubspot experience.
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