Relaunch

RELAUNCH

The term "launch" comes from the English language and refers to the "introduction" of a new product or service, while a "relaunch" is a "reintroduction" of an existing product.

A distinction is often made between a product relaunch and a website relaunch:

PRODUCT RELAUNCH

A product relaunch is a measure taken by a company to extend the life cycle of a product. By making changes to the design or function of the product, an attempt is made to stop a drop in price, possibly prevent a decline in sales or use the revision as an opportunity to improve a failed product marketing. An example of a product relaunch is a new model of a car with the same name, such as the Mercedes Benz A-Class. This extends the life cycle of the product and allows research and development costs to be spread over a longer period.

WEBSITE RELAUNCH

In web development, the term is usually used in connection with a website relaunch. Such a project is carried out in order to eliminate existing shortcomings of a website or, more generally, to optimize and improve the structure, design or content or to take a completely new approach. It is important not to confuse a website relaunch with a redesign. In the latter case, website structures usually remain the same. The relaunch has different goals, offers many more possibilities, but also higher risks than a simple redesign.

Although a relaunch usually always brings significant improvements to a website, many people shy away from it or are unsure when the time is right. With this article, we hope to remedy this and give you a clearer picture of a website relaunch and important points to consider.

WHEN SHOULD/CAN A WEBSITE RELAUNCH BE DONE?

There are many reasons, occasions and objectives for a change in a company:

• Relaunch as a "renovation": by far the most common reason for a new project. In the course of such a "renovation", structural, technical and content-related legacy issues, such as outdated interfaces or a design that is no longer up to date, are identified and subsequently removed or modernized.
• Environmental factors that cannot be influenced: There are factors such as changes in legislation (GDPR) that force website operators to make fundamental adjustments.
• Personnel, corporate or organizational changes are often seen as a reason for a relaunch to reflect the corresponding change on the website. Examples at strategy level would be a planned internationalization, a revision of the positioning in the market or a new branding.

The above list could go on and on. The bottom line is that any major change that affects a website in any way can result in a relaunch. The improvement serves not only as a tool to correct existing errors, but is above all an opportunity for far-reaching optimization.

WHAT ARE THE OPPORTUNITIES OF A RELAUNCH?

• Optimization & modernization: Up-to-date and reliable technology as well as an appealing, modern design contribute directly and indirectly to the appearance of a website and have a significant influence on the brand image and external perception.
• SEO improvements: "Cleaning up" old URLs and consolidating content offers particular opportunities so that content is optimally indexed for visitors and target groups. If done correctly, this can lead to better rankings and therefore more SEO traffic for the website.
• "Tidying up": Switching off sub-systems that are no longer required or deleting outdated articles and content brings major benefits, particularly in the areas of performance and maintenance.
• Competitive advantage: Instead of just catching up with a relaunch and fixing "problems", you also have the opportunity to proactively create something new in order to gain an advantage over the competition.

WHAT ARE THE RISKS OF A RELAUNCH?

Even if a relaunch is generally to be recommended due to the many opportunities offered by corresponding changes or projects, there are also a few common sources of error that have a particular impact on search engine optimization:

• Incomplete redirect management: old linking structures are lost, inner linking and backlinks no longer have a target. Users end up in a dead end.
• Incorrect indexing: Content is excluded from Google searches or content that cannot be included is indexed.
• Insufficient testing of new functionalities, systems and designs

Ignoring these sources of error can damage a website in many ways, not just with regard to search engines. That's why you should always keep an eye on them in order to carry out a successful website relaunch.

HOW DO YOU GO ABOUT A RELAUNCH?

Relaunches require appropriate expertise in order to avoid the above-mentioned mistakes and exploit all opportunities. We therefore recommend planning and support from an experienced agency that not only identifies and prevents errors at an early stage, but also significantly improves the ranking and visibility of the website and its content in search engines through SEO measures, backlink strategy and technical optimization.

Concept before the relaunch

• Website structure
• navigation
• Page types
• Page elements
• Content categories, subject areas and clusters
• Website skeleton (wireframe)
• Processes and workflows
• Interface requirements
• Databases
• Rights system
• Schedule and project management

Please also read our article "SEO: What you should consider when relaunching your website"

Further information:

https://wirtschaftslexikon.gabler.de/definition/relaunch-46755

https://www.xovi.de/wiki/Relaunch

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