Website redesign timeline for a small business
A useful website redesign timeline shows what needs to be ready before the next stage can begin: content, design decisions, working pages, tested customer actions and launch approval. The work behind those milestones determines the dates.
Below is an illustrative six-week plan for a small WordPress service website. It assumes one language, a short agreed page list, prepared copy and photos, access to the existing accounts, one decision-maker and an inquiry form with a defined destination. Your project's schedule should reflect its actual scope, review time and the team's availability.
Define the work before assigning weeks
Start with the current website and the main action a customer should take. List the pages to keep, rewrite, combine or retire, then identify the work each page needs. A service page with ready copy and a page that needs new photography have different dependencies.
Confirm which parts of the WordPress setup will stay. A design change, a new editing structure, a move between hosts and a change to the booking system each add their own work. Our WordPress vs custom website guide explains how to compare the platform and functionality before choosing the build.
The proposal should state who prepares the content, who approves it, what functionality is included and what happens when those requirements change. Use our website cost guide to compare the scope behind the quote.
A six week example for a focused WordPress redesign
This example is a planning worksheet. The weeks show a possible sequence for the assumptions above; dates are agreed for the actual project. Content checks and testing should continue as the work develops.
| Example week | Main work | What needs to be ready to move forward |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Review the current site, agree priorities and map the pages and customer journey. | Confirmed scope, account access, page list and content responsibilities. |
| 2 | Prepare page copy and image selections; agree navigation and the design direction. | Reviewed content and a clear decision on the proposed direction. |
| 3 | Build the main layouts and configure the WordPress editing tools. | Representative pages checked with real content and the agreed phone layouts. |
| 4 | Complete the remaining pages, inquiry flow and agreed connections. | A complete journey ready for review, including the destination and response after submission. |
| 5 | Review content, editing, accessibility, performance and migration details. | Resolved launch issues, approved content, checked redirects where needed and an owner handover plan. |
| 6 | Approve the release, launch, verify the live site and complete handover. | Live pages and customer actions checked, accounts and instructions handed over, and continuing responsibilities agreed. |
If copy, brand direction or account access still needs work, include that preparation in the schedule. If the project adds another language, payments, customer accounts or a new business process, estimate those requirements before relying on this example.
What our WordPress projects show about scope
Aloha Florals 808 brings floral photography, service pricing and inquiries together in a custom WordPress theme. A wedding inquiry asks different questions from a lei request. For work like this, the schedule needs room to agree the service information, select the images and check each inquiry path.
Birdsong Kyoto combines Japanese and English pages with a trial-booking journey. Parents select an available trial date and receive confirmation in the language they used. A comparable scope needs content review and journey checks for both languages, alongside the owner's editing tasks.
These examples identify work to include in an estimate. A page count alone would miss the different content, language and customer-action requirements in each project.
Make review time part of the schedule
Agree who gathers feedback and who can approve the next stage. Set review dates around when that person can participate. Consolidated feedback makes it easier to identify the decision the team needs to resolve.
For each review, ask what is being approved: the page structure, the visual direction, the final wording or the working customer journey. Test the agreed task, such as finding service pricing and sending the right kind of inquiry, alongside the page's appearance.
When a request changes the scope, have the team explain the effect on the fee and schedule before proceeding. Adding a language, replacing a booking tool or rewriting the content after layouts are built can affect work that was already reviewed.
Can we launch a smaller version first
Yes, when the first release can support a complete customer journey on its own. Agree which pages and functions are essential, what will follow and who handles the later work. Keep necessary contact information, working forms and migration checks in the first release. Give later items their own scope and dates.
Include WordPress migration and launch checks
Before launch, identify the content and URLs that need to carry over, the accounts needed for release, and the people who can approve it. Agree how the existing site can be recovered if the release needs to be reversed.
If URLs change, map the old addresses to their relevant replacements and test the redirects. Google's site migration guidance explains the search work involved in URL changes. Our WordPress redesign checklist covers the wider preparation and launch inventory.
Include phone layouts, keyboard access, images, owner editing and the agreed inquiry or booking flow in the review. A customer action needs a checked destination and confirmation, with a named person responsible for what follows. Where analytics is included, check the agreed consent and measurement behavior.
Separate the launch date from search processing
A live website and Google's indexed version can update at different times. After launch, use Search Console to check important URLs, sitemap processing and any reported indexing issues. For pages whose addresses change, include the migration follow-up in the project plan.
Google says crawling can take a few days to a few weeks, and requesting a crawl does not guarantee inclusion. Treat those checks as follow-up work alongside the live-site verification.
Does a redesign guarantee better rankings
No. Agree what search foundations the project includes, such as page structure, titles, crawlability, internal links and migration checks. Evaluate later search performance against an appropriate baseline. Continuing SEO and content work has its own scope and fee.
Ask for a schedule you can review
Before agreeing a launch date, ask these questions:
- Which pages, languages and customer actions are included?
- What copy, images and account access must be ready before work begins?
- Who reviews each stage, and how much time is reserved for feedback?
- Which requirements could change the estimate after discovery?
- What must pass before launch, and who approves the release?
- Who owns handover, post-launch checks and continuing care?
Use the answers to compare proposals and identify preparation your team can complete now. Keep dependencies visible in the schedule so a missed input can be addressed before it affects the release.
Plan your website redesign
Bring your current website, the customer action you want to improve and any date your business needs to plan around. Through our website design and redesign service, we can help define the pages, content and functionality needed for a useful proposal.
Tell us about your website. We will agree the scope and schedule for the work together.