Inventory before replacement
Combine the XML sitemap, CMS export, analytics landing pages, Search Console coverage and backlinks. The public navigation is rarely a complete list of URLs that people and search engines use.
Give every old URL a decision
Retain a useful route, redirect it to a materially equivalent replacement, or retire it intentionally. Blanket redirects to the homepage confuse users and can behave like soft 404s.
Keep identity consistent
Use one canonical host and stable organization details. Preserve email-related DNS records while changing web hosting, and verify canonical tags, structured data, sitemap and robots behavior in production.
Measure the business path
Traffic is not the final measure. Track service and case-study visits through estimate starts, valid submissions, qualified opportunities and accepted work so content decisions can improve commercial outcomes.