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How I Migrated a 600-Page Website Without Losing SEO or Conversions for a Global News Distribution Company

  • makenzieaward
  • Sep 28, 2023
  • 3 min read

Redesigning a large, multi-language website is where most teams lose momentum.


I was brought in to help a global news distribution company consolidate, migrate, and optimize a website with over 600 pages across 7 languages without losing performance in the process. Instead of treating this like a standard redesign, I rebuilt the foundation first: site structure, content alignment and conversion pathways.


The results?


  • +457% increase in pricing page conversions

  • +25% growth in organic search sessions

  • +43.6% increase in marketing-attributed revenue



The Problem: Consolidating a Fragmented Architecture

When I came into this project, the company's website had grown to over 600 pages spanning 7 languages and 5+ subdomains. This structure was driven by engineering needs, not user experience. That's the first thing I had to fix.


The Primary Issues with the Site:


  • The site had multiple, competing homepages

  • Navigation driven by internal structure instead of user behavior

  • High-traffic pages were missing conversion elements

  • The redesign process had already started and stalled multiple times


This wasn’t just a design issue. It was a structural one. And if we approached it like a typical redesign, those same problems would carry into a new UI.


The Solution: Simplify, Align & Convert

We weren’t just updating the look and feel. We were dealing with a site that had grown quickly, across teams and regions, without a consistent system guiding how pages were created, structured, or connected. Jumping straight into design would have solved for aesthetics, but not for performance.


So instead of starting with layouts or templates, I stepped back and defined what actually needed to change underneath the surface.


I structured the entire project around three priorities: simplify, align, and optimize.


  • Simplify the architecture so users could navigate clearly

  • Align content, UX, and messaging around user intent

  • Convert existing traffic into measurable outcomes


Everything we did, from auditing pages to rewriting content to building new flows, mapped back to one of these three priorities. That structure made it possible to make consistent decisions across hundreds of pages, instead of treating each one as a one-off.


1. Audit and Consolidate Before Designing Anything

Before we started designing layouts, we needed to figure out what of the existing page should stay, what should go, and what we were missing. That started by:


  • Reviewing all the pages for performance, relevance and redundancy

  • Consolidating overlapping content to reduce noise and avoid duplicate content issues

  • Reorganizing the structure into a simplified, user-first taxonomy


Most redesigns fail because they rebuild the same complexity in a new layout. I wanted to remove that complexity before it had a chance to carry over.


2. Align Content and Design

Once the structure was clear, I focused on making sure the content and design were solving the same problem. That meant we completly overhauled every page and started from scratch:


  • Rewrote roughly 70% of the site content

  • Standardized page structures so users could navigate intuitively

  • Mocked all pages in Figma to ensure consistency before development


This ensured the pages were built to meet the needs of new and returning site visitors. And also standardized so they'd easily scale for years to come.


3. Build Conversion Into the Structure

Instead of layering CTAs on at the end, conversion was a part of the foundation of the site structure and design.


  • Clear CTAs were embeded in standardized modules

  • Introduced dedicated pricing and sign-up flows


The site already had significant traffic volume. It just wasn't being captured effectively. The redesign needed to tackle that head on.


The Execution: Migrating and Launching at Scale

Once the strategy was locked, execution became a matter of consistency and coordination.


  1. Built modular templates with engineering to standardize design while allowing flexibility

  2. Translated 50+ core pages across 7 languages within the existing domain structure

  3. Removed or redirected 150+ pages and eliminated 5+ subdomains

  4. Ensured every page followed a consistent structure aligned to user intent


The challenge wasn't just getting it live. It was making sure every page reflected intentional user-centric decision-making.


The Results: Measurable Improvements in Traffic & Conversions

The biggest gains came from aligning site structure with conversion intent, not just increasing traffic.


Growth

+25% organic search sessions

+29% overall users


Conversion

+457% pricing page submissions

+28.5% contact form submissions

+16.6% sign-ups


Revenue Impact

+43.6% YoY marketing-attributed revenue


See Where Your Website Is Losing Momentum

If your site has grown over time, there’s a good chance you’re dealing with similar challenges:


  • A structure that reflects internal business structure

  • Content that no longer aligns with your positioning

  • Traffic that isn’t converting as effectively as it should


These aren’t design problems. And they don't get solved by a visual refresh alone.


The fastest way to improve performance isn't more traffic. It's understanding where your structure, content, and conversion pathways are getting in the way of results, and adjusting accordingly.

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