Somewhere on an older business website, there is usually a page everyone forgot.
It might contain warranty information customers still use. It might describe a service the company stopped offering three years ago. It might be the only place that explains what to do before an appointment.
Website redesigns have a way of uncovering these surprises at the worst possible time.
A content inventory prevents that. The name sounds formal, but it’s really just a list of what the website has and what should happen to it.
One row per page is enough
A spreadsheet works fine. Give every page a row and record its web address, title, purpose, and who inside the company knows whether it is accurate. Add important forms, downloads, videos, galleries, and tools too.
Then choose a plain-language decision: keep it, improve it, combine it with something else, or remove it. You may also discover pages the business needs but never had.
The useful part is not creating the spreadsheet. It’s having the conversations the spreadsheet forces.
Is that financing information still correct? Does the business really serve that town? Is the person on the About page still employed? Who receives the estimate form? Does the warranty language match what the company currently provides?
A beautiful redesign can publish incorrect information just as efficiently as an ugly website.
Low traffic doesn’t always mean low value
It’s tempting to delete anything that receives few visits. That can be a mistake.
Preparation instructions, payment details, service limits, and customer forms may be used by a small number of people at an important moment. Ask what job a page performs before judging it only by traffic.
The opposite is also true. A page can attract visits while bringing people who will never become customers. Numbers are useful, but they need business context.
Every decision should have a real owner. “Marketing will review it” is vague. “Darryl approves the service details by Friday” is a decision someone can act on.
Record why pages are being combined or removed. Those notes help the website team send old addresses to the right new place, and they prevent the same debate from starting again six months later.
Once the new site is live, add each new page address and its next review date. The inventory becomes a maintenance plan instead of a file that disappears into a forgotten folder.
It isn’t exciting work. Neither is labeling the circuit breakers until the lights go out. A little organization early prevents a great deal of confusion later.
Related reading
Why Every Small Business Should Have a Digital Asset Inventory
What Should You Keep, Rewrite, Combine, or Remove During a Redesign?
Sources
Google Search Central: Site moves with URL changes
Planning a redesign? Talk with TechDad Technology about your website and the pages you need to preserve.