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Website design & redesign · WordPress · Shopify
Websites built to be found, not just admired
I design and redesign websites with SEO built in from day one: fast, accessible, mobile-first, and structured so Google and AI search tools can understand them. So your site ranks and converts instead of needing to be fixed later.
Built into every site
The short answer
What is website design with SEO built in?
It means search, speed, accessibility, and conversion are designed into your site from the first sketch, not bolted on after launch.
Who it’s for: mission-driven businesses with an outdated, slow, or hard-to-find website, and new businesses that want to launch right the first time. Redesigns and new builds, on WordPress or Shopify.
What it involves: discovery, strategy and sitemap, design, build, launch with redirects, and post-launch tracking. I can write the content too. You work with me directly from start to finish, with no account managers or hand-offs.
Cost and time: every project gets a custom proposal based on scope. Projects typically take several weeks depending on scope, and I give you a realistic timeline before we start.
What “SEO built in” means
What does every site include?
Concrete, checkable standards. Not a plugin installed at the end.
Fast Core Web Vitals
Speed is part of the design, not an afterthought. I build to pass Google’s Core Web Vitals on real devices.
- Largest Contentful Paint (LCP): main content loads quickly
- Interaction to Next Paint (INP): the page responds when tapped
- Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS): nothing jumps around
- Optimized images, lean code, and minimal plugins
Mobile-first & accessible
Designed for phones first, then scaled up, and built to the WCAG 2.2 AA accessibility standard so everyone can use your site.
- Readable type, strong contrast, and large tap targets
- Full keyboard navigation and visible focus states
- Meaningful alt text and labelled forms
Clean structure & technical SEO
Search engines and AI tools understand a page through its structure. Every template is semantic and tidy.
- One H1 per page and a logical heading order
- Descriptive URLs, internal links, and an XML sitemap
- Clean schema markup for your business and services
- Titles, meta descriptions, and canonical tags set up
AI-search-friendly content
Pages lead with clear, direct answers to the questions your clients ask, then go deeper with first-hand expertise. That helps people, Google, and AI assistants alike.
- Answer-first summaries and question-style headings
- Consistent business name, services, and location details
- AI search crawlers allowed and pages indexable in Google and Bing
Conversion-focused layout
A beautiful site that doesn’t turn visitors into inquiries isn’t doing its job. Every page has a clear next step.
- Clear calls to action and simple contact forms
- Trust signals: reviews, results, and real photos
- Page flow built around how your clients decide
Analytics & conversion tracking
You’ll know what’s working from day one.
- Google Analytics 4 with conversion events
- Google Search Console and Bing Webmaster Tools
- Form, call, and purchase tracking
Redesigns
Can you redesign my site without losing rankings?
A redesign is where many businesses quietly lose years of search progress. Mine are planned so you keep what you’ve earned.
Before anything changes, I crawl your current site and record which pages bring in traffic, rankings, and links. I keep your strongest content, then build a full redirect map so every old URL points to the right new page, with no dead ends and no lost authority.
After launch I watch Search Console and Bing Webmaster Tools closely and fix crawl errors fast. Some short-term movement is normal, and no one can honestly guarantee rankings, but a careful migration protects the work you’ve already done.
- Full crawl and traffic audit of your current site
- Page-by-page redirect map (301s)
- Content and metadata carried over or improved
- Post-launch monitoring and fixes
Platforms
WordPress or Shopify?
I build on both, and my own portfolio uses both. I’ll recommend the one that fits how your business works.
WordPress
Flexible, owned by you, and excellent for content and SEO. My usual recommendation for practitioners, professional services, and businesses that win clients through expertise.
- Easy to edit pages and publish articles
- Strong control over technical SEO
- No platform lock-in
Shopify
Checkout, inventory, payments, and shipping built in. The better fit when you sell products online and want a store that’s simple to run day to day.
- Reliable, secure checkout
- Product and collection pages structured for search
- The platform behind my own Root & Reach Botanicals store
How it works
From first call to a site that performs
Six clear stages. You’ll always know where we are and what’s next.
Discovery
We talk about your business, your clients, your goals, and what your current site is or isn’t doing.
Strategy & sitemap
Keyword and competitor research shape a sitemap and page plan built around what your clients search for.
Design
Mobile-first designs in your brand, reviewed together and refined until they feel right.
Build
Fast, accessible, semantic pages with technical SEO, schema, and your content in place.
Launch & redirects
Testing on real devices, redirects live, and the site submitted to Google and Bing.
Post-launch tracking
Analytics and Search Console monitoring, quick fixes, and a clear picture of how the site performs.
Recent work
Websites built to be found
Every site ships with technical SEO, schema, fast load times, and AI-search-friendly structure built in from day one.
A complete redesign for a Pacific Northwest security company based in Vancouver WA, paired with local SEO and AI search work. Organic results grew enough to pause paid ads. (opens in a new tab)
Designed from scratch for a law-enforcement training and consulting firm, built to be found by the agencies it serves. (opens in a new tab)
My own pet-safe houseplant brand on Shopify, where I test every strategy before I recommend it to clients. (opens in a new tab)
Results · Arux Group
What a well-built site makes possible
The Arux redesign, combined with ongoing SEO, AI search, and content work. May 2025 to April 2026.
+2,095%
From 702 to 15,411 per month in Google Search.
+1,100%
From 14 to 168 visits per month from organic search.
80%
Grok in April 2026, with Google AI Overviews at 60% and ChatGPT at 40%, against a 30% target. Measured monthly on a fixed set of buyer prompts.
Paused
Organic and AI-driven leads became strong enough that Google Ads were paused.
Questions
Common questions about website design
Cost, timelines, redesigns, content, platforms, and AI search.
How much does a website cost?
It depends on scope: how many pages, whether it is a redesign or a new build, e-commerce needs, and how much content I am writing. After a discovery conversation I send a custom proposal with a clear, fixed scope so you know exactly what you are getting before we start.
How long does a website take?
A website project typically takes several weeks depending on scope. A focused site for a service business moves faster than a large redesign or an online store with many products. I give you a realistic timeline in your proposal, and the biggest variable is usually how quickly content and feedback come together.
Can you redesign my website without losing my Google rankings?
That is exactly what the redesign process is built for. Before anything changes I crawl your current site, record which pages earn traffic and links, and build a full redirect map so every old URL points to the right new page. I keep your best-performing content, then monitor Search Console after launch and fix issues quickly. Some short-term fluctuation is normal, and no one can honestly guarantee rankings, but a careful migration protects what you have earned.
Do you write the website content?
Yes, if you want me to. I can write all of the copy from interviews with you, edit what you already have, or work with your writer. Either way, pages are structured answer-first, built around the questions your clients actually ask, and written in your voice.
Should I choose WordPress or Shopify?
For most service businesses I recommend WordPress because it is flexible, you own it, and it handles content and SEO well. For businesses that sell products online, Shopify is usually the better fit because checkout, inventory, and payments are built in. I build on both, and I will recommend the one that fits how your business actually works.
Will my new website work for AI search?
I build every site so AI search tools like Google AI Overviews, ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Microsoft Copilot can access and understand it: fast, crawlable pages, clean structure, clear answer-first content, consistent business details, and AI search crawlers allowed. The site is the foundation. Being recommended also depends on first-hand expertise, reviews, and mentions on trusted sources, which is what my AI search optimization service focuses on.
Related services
Keep your new site growing
A great website is the foundation. These services help it get found and keep earning.
Website SEO
Ongoing technical and on-page SEO to keep your site healthy and climbing after launch.
Explore website SEO → AI searchAI Search Optimization
Help ChatGPT, Perplexity, Copilot, and Google AI Overviews understand and reference your business.
Explore AI search optimization → Local SEOLocal SEO
Show up in Google Maps and local results when nearby clients search for what you offer.
Explore local SEO →Further reading
Go deeper on this topic
Working locally? See how I approach websites and SEO in Vancouver, WA and in Portland, OR.
Let’s talk
Ready for a website that’s built to be found?
Tell me about your business and your current site. I’ll give you an honest take on what a redesign or new build could do for you.
Prefer email? nikki@rootandreachmedia.com