Moving a website from the Wix platform to another requires careful attention to SEO to avoid losing established rankings and traffic. The process involves backing up the existing site, transferring the domain, exporting and importing content, and implementing redirects. A successful migration prioritizes maintaining SEO elements and ensuring the new website performs as well as, or better than, the original.
Crawling and Mapping the Existing Website
Before initiating any changes, a comprehensive crawl of the existing Wix website is recommended to document its SEO structure. Tools such as Screaming Frog, Google Search Console, Ahrefs, and SEMrush can be utilized for this purpose. The crawl should analyze URLs, metadata, content, and backlinks. This data forms the basis for a URL mapping document, which identifies corresponding pages on the new site. Maintaining URL structure as much as possible minimizes the need for redirects. Pages with high SEO value should be specifically identified during this process.
Transferring the Domain
If a custom domain is associated with the Wix website, it must be transferred to the new platform. This involves unlocking the domain within the Wix account and obtaining an authorization code. Subsequently, the domain’s DNS settings need to be updated to point to the new website’s hosting. This typically requires changing the nameservers to those provided by the new platform. The domain transfer process itself is then initiated with the new platform, and verification is required. Propagation of these changes can take several hours or days.
Exporting and Importing Website Content
Exporting content from Wix involves navigating to the site dashboard, selecting “Site Actions,” and then “Export Site.” This generates a zip file containing all website pages, blog posts, images, videos, and other content. The zip file should be extracted and saved securely. Importing this content to the new platform will vary depending on the platform chosen, but most offer tools or plugins to facilitate a seamless transfer. Maintaining, or improving, existing page titles and descriptions during this process is crucial.
Preserving On-Page SEO Elements
Each page on the original Wix website possesses inherent SEO factors that must be replicated on the new site. Key elements to preserve include title tags, meta descriptions, header tags (H1, H2, H3), internal linking structure, alt tags on images, and schema markup. These elements should be transferred without significant modifications to maintain SEO equity. Structured data can be added on Wix without additional software.
Implementing 301 Redirects
Properly implemented 301 redirects are essential for a successful website migration. If URLs change during the transition, each old URL must be mapped to its new location. A CSV file formatted according to the new platform’s requirements can be used for bulk importing of redirects. Wix provides a URL Redirect Manager within its SEO Tools, allowing for one-by-one or bulk import of redirects. Reviewing and editing redirects after import is recommended to ensure accuracy.
Maintaining High-Performing Content
Identifying and retaining high-ranking blog posts, service pages, and landing pages is vital. Content is considered the foundation of SEO. If content is no longer needed, removing the page is acceptable, but a redirect to a relevant page should be implemented to preserve link equity and user experience. Avoid cutting or removing significant portions of content that currently perform well.
Website Performance Considerations
Web performance is a ranking factor and a crucial element of user experience. The new website should perform as well as, or better than, the original Wix site. Key elements should load without relying heavily on JavaScript or client-side rendering. Wix’s infrastructure utilizes server-side rendering, which allows search engines to read site content effectively.
Monitoring and Ongoing SEO
SEO migration is an ongoing process. Tracking site rankings, traffic, and errors is essential. Tools such as Google Analytics, Google Search Console, Ahrefs, and SEMrush can be used for monitoring. Google Analytics provides traffic insights, while Google Search Console offers data on indexing and search appearance. Ahrefs and SEMrush can track backlinks and overall SEO performance.
Conclusion
Migrating a website from Wix while preserving SEO requires meticulous planning and execution. Crawling the old site, mapping URLs, preserving on-page SEO elements, setting up 301 redirects, retaining high-performing content, and monitoring performance are all critical steps. By following these guidelines, businesses can minimize disruption to search rankings and maintain online visibility during the transition.