If you are in the process of having a new website built then you need to have a strategy and plan that you follow in order to ensure that everything is done correctly and to minimise any unnecessary disruption to your business.
Firstly, you need to make sure that you keep the structure of the URL’s the same as the are on the old site for as many pages as possible. This will mean you do not have to set up redirects as the old links will automatically go to the new pages once the site is live. IF you do have a different structure or have the site on a new domain then you will need to set up redirects. Ensure that these redirects are going to the relevant pages as much as possible and not just to a home page.
It is vital that you test your website as much as possible before it goes live. Having broken links or parts of pages that do not display or work correctly can be off putting and you may find that the your visitors leave and do not come back again. It is often a good idea to get someone to test the site who has not been involved in the build process as they will be able to look at it with a fresh set of eyes.