Working with an SEO Company During Website Redesign: A Complete Guide

Hiring an SEO company to improve your search rankings is a smart investment. But when you’re also redesigning your website, timing and coordination between your web design team and SEO team become critical. Poor coordination leads to wasted effort, costly rework, and missed opportunities.

At TinyFrog Technologies, we work alongside SEO companies on many projects. We’ve seen what works and what doesn’t. In this guide, we’ll explain when to bring in your SEO team, how to coordinate effectively, what to expect, and common mistakes to avoid.

Why SEO Companies and Web Design Teams Must Collaborate

Web design and SEO are deeply interconnected. Decisions made during design directly impact search rankings:

• Site structure affects how search engines crawl and index your content
• Page titles and URLs influence ranking signals
• Content organization impacts keyword targeting
• Technical implementation affects site speed and mobile performance
• Navigation structure determines internal linking

If your SEO company isn’t involved until after design is complete, they’ll likely request changes to fundamental elements – which means rework, delays, and additional costs.

When to Bring in Your SEO Company (Phase-by-Phase Timeline)

The biggest mistake is bringing your SEO team in too late. Here’s the ideal timeline:

Phase 1: Strategy (Week 1-2) – SEO MUST BE INVOLVED

Your SEO company should participate in strategy discussions from day one. During this phase, they provide input on:

• Site structure and page hierarchy
• Which pages to keep, eliminate, or consolidate
• Keyword strategy and content focus
• URL structure and redirects from old site
• Target audience and content strategy
• Competitor analysis insights

These foundational decisions are difficult and expensive to change later. SEO input during strategy prevents costly revisions.

Phase 2: Wireframes (Week 3-4) – SEO SHOULD REVIEW

Once wireframes are created (page structure without design), your SEO team should review:

• Content hierarchy on each page
• Placement of key elements (headlines, CTAs, content sections)
• Navigation structure and internal linking
• Mobile layout considerations

Catching issues at the wireframe stage means design hasn’t been applied yet – changes are quick and inexpensive.

Phase 3: Design (Week 5-6) – SEO CAN PROVIDE LIGHT REVIEW

During visual design, SEO involvement is lighter but still valuable. They may comment on:

• Readability and text sizing
• Image optimization opportunities
• Visual hierarchy supporting content goals

Phase 4: Development (Week 7-10) – SEO PROVIDES TECHNICAL SPECS

During development, your SEO team should provide:

• Technical SEO requirements (schema markup, meta tags, redirects)
• Final page titles and meta descriptions
• Alt text guidelines for images
• XML sitemap specifications
• Robots.txt configuration

Phase 5: Pre-Launch (Week 11) – SEO DOES FINAL AUDIT

Before launch, your SEO company should audit:

• All technical SEO elements are implemented correctly
• 301 redirects from old site are set up properly
• No pages are accidentally blocked from search engines
• Page speed meets benchmarks
• Mobile experience is optimized

What Your SEO Company Should Provide

To work effectively with your web design team, your SEO company should deliver:

During Strategy Phase

• Keyword research and target keyword list
• Content recommendations for each page
• Competitor analysis insights
• URL structure recommendations
• List of pages to keep/consolidate/create

During Development Phase

• Page title formulas for each page type
• Meta description guidelines
• Schema markup requirements
• Alt text strategy
• 301 redirect map (old URLs to new URLs)

Pre-Launch

• Technical SEO audit
• Final checklist of requirements
• Sign-off that SEO elements are properly implemented

How Web Designers and SEO Companies Collaborate

Successful collaboration requires clear communication and mutual respect. Here’s how it should work:

Kick-off Meeting

Schedule a joint meeting with your web design team, SEO company, and key stakeholders. Discuss:

• Project goals and timeline
• Roles and responsibilities
• Communication channels (email, Slack, project management tool)
• Review and approval process

Regular Check-ins

Don’t wait until launch to sync. Schedule brief check-ins:

• After strategy phase: SEO reviews site structure
• After wireframes: SEO reviews content hierarchy
• Midway through development: SEO provides technical specs
• Pre-launch: SEO audits implementation

Document Everything

Keep a shared document tracking:

• SEO requirements and specifications
• Decisions made and rationale
• Outstanding items and ownership
• Redirect mapping

Common Mistakes and How to Avoid Them

Mistake 1: Bringing SEO in Too Late

Problem: SEO company reviews site after design is complete and requests major changes.

Solution: Include SEO in strategy phase before any design work begins.

Mistake 2: Not Setting Clear Expectations

Problem: Web design team and SEO company have different assumptions about deliverables and timing.

Solution: Define roles, deliverables, and timeline clearly in kick-off meeting.

Mistake 3: Letting SEO Override UX

Problem: Making the site SEO-focused to the point where user experience suffers. Learn how to balance UX and SEO for optimal results.

Solution: Balance SEO requirements with user experience. Good UX ultimately helps SEO.

Mistake 4: Forgetting 301 Redirects

Problem: Launching redesigned site without mapping old URLs to new URLs, causing broken links and lost rankings.

Solution: SEO company provides redirect map early. Web team implements before launch.

Mistake 5: No Pre-Launch SEO Audit

Problem: Launching site without verifying SEO elements are properly implemented.

Solution: Schedule pre-launch SEO audit 1-2 weeks before go-live to catch issues.

Questions to Ask Your SEO Company

Before starting a website redesign, ask your SEO company:

• Have you worked on website redesign projects before?
• At what phases do you need to be involved?
• What deliverables will you provide and when?
• How do you communicate with web design teams?
• What’s your process for pre-launch audits?
• How do you handle 301 redirects?

Not sure where to start? Read our guide on how to choose an SEO company. If they can’t answer these clearly, they may not have redesign experience.

What if You Don’t Have an SEO Company Yet?

If you’re planning a redesign but haven’t hired an SEO company, you have two options:

Option 1: Hire SEO Before Redesign Starts

This is ideal. Bring SEO expertise in from the beginning to inform strategy and structure.

Option 2: Build with SEO Best Practices, Hire SEO Later

If budget or timing doesn’t allow hiring SEO now, ensure your web design team:

• Follows technical SEO best practices
• Creates logical, keyword-friendly URL structure
• Implements proper heading hierarchy
• Optimizes page speed and mobile experience
• Leaves room for future SEO optimization

This isn’t as effective as having SEO from day one, but it prevents major issues.