A good migration can still fail if you skip the prep work. This pre-migration checklist helps you capture the right baseline data, reduce risk, and avoid ugly surprises after launch. If you are planning a platform change, redesign, or CMS move, the work you do before migration will shape what happens after it.
This article is part two of our migration series. In part one, we covered the questions to ask before deciding whether a move is worth it. Once that decision is made, the next step is simple. Take a clear snapshot of your current site before anything changes.
Part 2: Take a snapshot of your current site
A stable migration needs real prep before a single page, image, or record moves. You need a solid “before” view of the site so you can compare results after launch.
That baseline helps you do three things:
- Benchmark: Set a reference point for traffic, engagement, conversions, and performance.
- Set goals: Decide what should improve, and what must stay steady.
- Reduce risk: Spot weak points before the migration exposes them.
This matters most in the first 30 days after relaunch. If search traffic drops, page speed slows down, or subscriptions fall off, your team needs to know what changed and where to focus first. If you need website migration support, this is the stage where good planning saves the most time.
For example, if you never recorded page speed on the old CMS, you will not know whether the new site is slower or by how much. That makes it harder to fix issues like heavy media, lazy loading mistakes, or redirect chains.
How to gather before data
Your baseline should be simple, consistent, and easy to review. For publishers planning a CMS move, this usually means pulling numbers from analytics, search tools, subscription systems, and performance reports into one sheet.
Refact uses a pre-migration snapshot template built from work with media and content-heavy sites. The goal is not to track everything. It is to track the numbers that tell you whether the new site is healthier than the old one.
Engagement metrics to track
- Views per session: Shows how much content people read in one visit.
- Engagement rate: Measures the share of sessions with meaningful activity.
- Average engagement time: Shows how long users stay active on the site.
Traffic metrics to track
- Sessions from organic search: Shows how well the site performs in search.
- Sessions from referrals: Shows traffic from backlinks, partners, and mentions.
- Sessions from social: Shows how social distribution contributes to visits.
Conversion metrics to track
- Total subscribers: Shows the size of your email list or member base.
- Average new subscribers per week: Shows list growth over time.
- Total purchases: Shows how much revenue the site drives.
- Average new purchases per week: Shows sales pace before the move.
Performance metrics to track
- Core Web Vitals: Track LCP, FID, and CLS to measure speed and layout stability.
- Lighthouse scores: Review performance, accessibility, best practices, and SEO.
| Metric group | What it tells you | Why it matters after launch |
|---|---|---|
| Engagement | How readers use the site | Helps spot UX or content issues |
| Traffic | Where visits come from | Shows if search or referral channels dip |
| Conversions | Whether the site drives action | Shows business impact, not just visits |
| Performance | How fast and stable the site feels | Helps explain ranking and user behavior changes |
Create a full backup and staging environment
Before making changes, create a full backup of your current site. This is your fallback if something breaks during the move.
Steps to follow
- Create a full backup:
- Files and databases: Back up all site files, media, and database records.
- Version control: If possible, track code and config changes in Git.
- Set up staging:
- Mirror the live site: Build a working copy in a secure staging environment.
- Control access: Limit access to the people working on the migration.
- Test safely: Use staging to test imports, redirects, templates, and QA without affecting the live site.
Identify stakeholders and decision-makers
Site migrations are not solo projects. Editors, developers, marketers, sales teams, and leadership all have a stake in the result.
List the people involved early. Then define who gives input, who approves changes, and who makes final calls when priorities clash. This saves time and keeps the project moving when hard decisions come up.
Final check before you move
If your baseline data is messy, your backups are incomplete, or decision-making is unclear, fix that before migration starts. A calmer launch usually comes from better prep, not faster development.
If you want help planning a safer migration, talk with Refact. We help teams move content-heavy sites without losing traffic, data, or momentum.