Most teams know when it is time to redesign their site.
The homepage feels dated. Navigation no longer matches how you talk about the business. New products and programs are bolted onto an old structure that was never designed for them.
What stops people is not the need. It is the feeling that a redesign will be expensive, disruptive, and hard to land.
It does not have to be that way.
If you treat a redesign as a structured project — not a wish list or a vague “new site” request — you can make real progress without burning everyone out.
Step 1: Clarify what the site actually has to do
Before you think about layouts, colors, or platforms, get clear on the jobs your site has to perform.
For example:
- Generate qualified leads for a specific set of services
- Support enrollment, registration, or application flows
- Communicate clearly with members, donors, or partners
- Serve as a credible reference point for people who hear about you elsewhere
Write those down in plain language. If you cannot explain what the site needs to do, no design system or theme choice will fix it.
When we run Web Design & Development projects, this is where we start: matching business goals to how the site should work day to day.
Step 2: Decide what stays, what changes, and what can wait
Redesigns derail when everything is up for renegotiation at once.
A simple exercise:
- Keep – pages and sections that are working well enough today
- Change – pages that need new structure, content, or functionality
- Later – ideas that are valid but not critical for launch
This gives you a V1 scope that is realistic. You can still keep a “future ideas” list, but it is explicit that those items will not hold up launch.
Pair this with a Website Audit & Technical Review if you want a neutral perspective on what should be fixed now versus later. The audit becomes your X-ray before surgery.
Step 3: Map a clear structure before designing anything
Good design is easier when it sits on top of a clear information architecture.
Start with:
- A draft sitemap organized by audience or goal
- The key page types you will need (home, services, case studies, resources, etc.)
- The top navigation and footer structure
Resist the urge to add every imaginable page. Focus on the paths that matter most:
- “I am new here — what do you do?”
- “I know roughly what you do — what is the right service for me?”
- “I am ready — how do I start a conversation or buy?”
Our Web Design & Development work usually includes a simple IA workshop to get alignment here before we design a single pixel.
Step 4: Design for reuse, not one-off pages
The fastest way to slow down a redesign is to treat every page as a custom snowflake.
Instead, think in terms of reusable components:
- Hero patterns
- Content sections (text + image, columns, stats, quotes)
- Call-to-action blocks
- Testimonial or logo rows
- Resource or article cards
Design these first. Then use them to assemble pages.
This approach:
- Keeps the build phase predictable
- Makes future pages easier to create
- Helps your content and marketing team move faster after launch
It is the difference between a one-off art project and a real design system.
Step 5: Plan for SEO and performance from day one
Redesigns are a great chance to tighten up:
- Service page structure and internal linking
- On-page SEO (titles, headings, descriptions, schema)
- Core Web Vitals and real-world performance
You do not need to “do SEO” separately from the redesign. You need to bake it into layouts, templates, and content decisions.
Pairing your project with ongoing SEO & Content Strategy and Performance Optimization & Core Web Vitals work makes sure the new site is not just prettier, but easier to find and faster to use.
Step 6: Define done
Many redesigns fail because “done” is never defined.
Before you start, agree on:
- Launch criteria (which pages and flows must be ready)
- Technical requirements (tracking, forms, integrations)
- Content thresholds (which pages are fully written versus placeholder)
- Post-launch warranty period and support
From there, your project timeline can be honest:
- Discovery and planning
- Design and content
- Build and integration
- QA, launch prep, and training
That is essentially the structure behind our Web Design & Development service. We do not pretend the work is simple, but we do make it manageable.
If your site is clearly ready for a redesign, the next step is not to shop for themes. It is to get a clear, realistic plan.
That might start with a Website Audit & Technical Review, a scoped Web Design & Development project, or a conversation about where you are today. The important part is choosing a path that your team can actually execute — and then sticking to it.