By Mehdi HassanWhat should a rebrand website launch include?
A rebrand website launch should include the new identity across every page, a brand launch landing page that explains the change, and the technical updates that make the new brand appear everywhere the site is shared or found. Customers, investors and press will all look at the site on the day, and each wants a different answer.
Customers want to know whether anything changes for them. Investors and press want the story. Search engines and social platforms need new titles, images and redirects. A good launch handles all three without making anyone dig. Launch day is also where uneven rollouts are most visible, which is why it's a core part of our guide to brand consistency across website, product and deck.
What goes on a brand launch landing page?
A brand launch landing page tells the story of why the brand changed, shows the new identity in use, and answers what's changing for customers. It's the page you link from the announcement email, social posts, the press release and a banner on the homepage.
- A headline that states the change. For example, 'Acme is now Northwind' or 'A new look for the same team'. Clarity beats cleverness on this page.
- The why, in a few paragraphs. What changed in the company, product or market that made the old brand stop fitting. Keep it about customers, not internal process.
- Before and after. Old and new logo side by side, and a few key screens or materials showing the identity in use.
- What's changing for customers. Name, domain, app, invoices, email sender, login URL. Be explicit about anything that requires action.
- What isn't changing. The team, the product, pricing, contracts and support, if that's true. This calms most worried emails.
- The new identity explained. A short tour of the logo idea, colors and type for anyone curious, often with a link to the new online brand guidelines.
- Press and assets. A downloadable logo pack and a contact for media.
- One clear next step. Usually back to the product: try it, book a demo or log in.
What else on the website must change on rebrand day?
Everything that shows the brand on the website must change on rebrand day, including the small assets that are easy to forget. A new homepage with an old favicon, old social preview image and old email footer undercuts the whole launch.
Item | Why it matters | Easy to miss? |
|---|---|---|
Logo in nav, footer and emails | First thing visitors see | No |
Favicon and app icons | Shown in tabs, bookmarks and home screens | Yes |
Open Graph and social images | Shown whenever a page is shared | Yes |
Page titles and meta descriptions | Shown in search results with the old name | Yes |
Blog post images and old landing pages | Old brand lingers in search and ads | Yes |
Product screenshots | Must show the new UI if the product changed | Often |
Docs, help center and status page | Usually on separate tools | Yes |
Transactional email templates | Sent from another system entirely | Yes |
If the rebrand also comes with a broader site redesign, the scope grows. Our article on the website redesign after a rebrand covers what to rebuild and what to simply restyle.
How do you run a rebrand website launch step by step?
You run a rebrand website launch by preparing everything behind the scenes, switching it all on at once, and checking the result the same day. The steps below are the order we follow.
List every surface
Website pages, launch page, favicon, social images, product, docs, help center, email templates, social profiles, deck and invoices. Give each an owner.
Write the launch page and announcement
Draft the story, the before and after, and the customer FAQ. The same messages go into the email, the social posts and the homepage banner.
Build on a preview environment
Build the new site and launch page where you can review them privately, with real content, not placeholders.
Prepare redirects and metadata
Map any changed URLs, update titles and descriptions to the new name, and prepare new social images for key pages.
Switch everything on together
Publish the site, the launch page, the product update and the social profile changes in the same window, then send the announcement.
Check and fix on the day
Click through every key page, share links to test previews, check the favicon, and search your old name to see what's still showing.
Hypothetical example: a launch page for a name change after a pivot
For example, suppose a startup we'll call Ledgerly pivots from bookkeeping software to spend management and renames itself Northwind. Its launch page leads with 'Ledgerly is now Northwind', then two short paragraphs on why: customers were using it to control spend, not to do bookkeeping.
Next comes a before and after of the logo and the dashboard, then a box titled 'What changes for you' listing the new domain, the new login URL and the new invoice name, with a note that existing logins redirect automatically. A second box, 'What stays the same', covers the team, pricing and contracts.
The page ends with a logo pack download and a button to log in. For the strategy behind a change like this, read our article on rebranding after a pivot.
How do you keep search traffic during a rebrand website launch?
You keep search traffic during a rebrand website launch by redirecting every changed URL, updating page titles to the new name, and keeping the old name visible on the site for a while. A rebrand is partly a website migration, and it needs the same care.
The risk is real. Big Leap's case study of Workfront, formerly AtTask, is often cited as an example of a rebrand wiping out organic visibility. People will keep searching for your old name for months, so mention it on the launch page and the About page, for example 'formerly Ledgerly'. After launch, submit the new sitemap and watch indexing in Google Search Console.
Should the launch page be a one-off or part of the new site?
The launch page should be a permanent part of the new site, not a one-off campaign page, because people will keep looking for the story of the change long after launch day. Link it from the About page and keep it updated if details change.
A launch page has a lot in common with a product launch page: one story, one clear action and a lot of attention for a short time. Our guide to the product launch landing page covers the conversion side. If you're coming straight out of a brand sprint, our article on going from brand sprint to website explains how the identity work feeds the page.
What should you check the day after the rebrand website launch?
The day after a rebrand website launch, check that search results, shared links and support questions all reflect the new brand, and fix the gaps quickly. Most problems show up in the first day or two.
- Search your old and new names and note which pages still show the old brand.
- Share key pages in a chat app and on social to confirm the new preview images appear.
- Read every support email about the change and add the answers to the launch page FAQ.
- Check redirects for your top pages and any 404 errors reported in your analytics.
- Confirm the product, docs and emails all show the new logo.
If you're still planning the overall approach, start with whether to rebrand and redesign at the same time before you plan launch day.
