We make redesign work easier by treating it as a systems project. That means content, design, performance, redirects, and internal linking are reviewed together before launch decisions are locked in.
Google’s current site move guidance is clear that visible URL changes need a mapping from old URLs to new ones, updated internal links, canonical updates, and a redirect strategy. That is relevant even when a redesign starts as a ‘visual refresh,’ because redesign work often changes routing and page relationships.
web.dev also frames better user experience as something that can directly affect business outcomes. For redesigns, that matters because the redesign should not only look fresher; it should reduce friction in loading, interaction, and content flow so the new version performs better than the old one.