Post-migration Forensic Analysis

An after-the-fact reconstruction of what a launch broke, in what order, and what can still be recovered.

Where This Sits

6

Components in the finished document

3

Measured directly, not asserted

3

Pieces that carry my judgment

This is a Diagnostics deliverable, which means it establishes what is true about the site now. It is the unit of scope: it can be commissioned on its own, priced on its own, and accepted on its own, whether or not anything else is bought alongside it.

It is not a package and not a retainer. It is one document with 6 components, and the list below is the whole of it.

What Is Inside It

Every component is listed with the one sentence that says what it is. They are grouped by how each one is produced, because the difference between a number a tool gave me and a number I decided matters more than most reports admit.

Measured

Pulled straight from tools and logs. No interpretation, so you can re-run any of it yourself and get the same numbers.

Old URL inventory
Every URL that currently exists and earns traffic, links, or both.
Redirect chain inventory
Every multi-hop redirect and loop currently live on the site.
Index coverage snapshot
A point-in-time count of what is indexed, what is excluded, and the reason given for each exclusion.

Judged

My reading of the evidence. This is the part you are actually paying for, and the part you are entitled to argue with.

Traffic loss attribution
The share of a decline assigned to each candidate cause, with the evidence for each.
Historical timeline
Traffic and ranking history annotated with site changes, algorithm updates and market events.
Prioritised recommendation list
Every recommendation in the order it should be acted on, with the reason for that order.

Commission This Deliverable

If this is the document your team is missing, or you want it adapted to a portfolio, a migration, or an in-house standard, the conversation starts here.