When two RIAs merge, the safest website plan is to map every important page on both sites to a new home before launch, redirect each old URL to its closest match, and watch Search Console closely for the first 90 days. Skip that, and a firm can lose much of its organic traffic overnight, along with the inquiries that came with it.
A merger is one moment in a firm’s wider marketing plan. For the full picture, see our guide to wealth management marketing in 2027.
It’s a growing risk. DeVoe & Company counted a record 322 RIA M&A transactions in 2025, up from the previous record of 272 in 2024. Each deal usually ends in a rebrand, a merged website or both. Legal, custody and client-communication plans tend to be thorough. The website often gets a launch date and little else.
Why merged firms lose visibility
Search engines rank individual pages, not brands. When a firm’s old pages disappear or all redirect to a new homepage, Google treats the rankings those pages earned as gone. Common causes:
- Old URLs return “page not found” errors
- Every old page redirects to the new homepage instead of the matching page
- Two near-identical pages (two “Retirement Planning” pages, two team bios) compete with each other
- Google Business Profiles, directories and LinkedIn still show the old name and address
- The new site launches with
noindexleft on from staging
[YOUR EXAMPLE: a post-merger clean-up you’ve handled, anonymised]
Before the announcement (6–8 weeks out)
- ☐ Crawl both websites and export every URL
- ☐ Pull 12 months of Search Console data for each site: top pages, top queries, clicks
- ☐ Export backlinks for both domains; flag the pages with the most valuable links
- ☐ List every Google Business Profile, directory listing and social profile for both firms
- ☐ Decide the domain strategy: new domain, one firm’s existing domain, or both kept for a period
Build the redirect map (4–6 weeks out)
- ☐ Map every old URL with traffic, rankings or backlinks to its closest new page
- ☐ Use permanent (301) redirects, page to page, never everything to the homepage
- ☐ Merge duplicate pages into one stronger page and redirect both old versions to it
- ☐ Set canonical tags where similar pages must both stay live
- ☐ Keep advisor bio URLs stable, or redirect each to that advisor’s new bio
Prepare the new site (2–4 weeks out)
- ☐ Carry over page titles, meta descriptions and headings for top-ranking pages
- ☐ Update schema with the new firm name, address and advisors
- ☐ Have compliance review the merged site’s disclosures and ADV links
- ☐ Test the redirect map on staging
Launch day
- ☐ Remove
noindexand check robots.txt - ☐ Turn on redirects and spot-check the top 50 old URLs
- ☐ Submit the new XML sitemap in Search Console; use the Change of Address tool if the domain changed
- ☐ Update Google Business Profiles, LinkedIn and key directories with the new name, address and website
The first 90 days
- ☐ Check Search Console weekly for 404 errors, indexing drops and ranking changes
- ☐ Fix any missing redirects within a day of finding them
- ☐ Ask partners (CPAs, attorneys, publications) to update links to the new site
- ☐ Compare inquiries and organic traffic against the pre-merger baseline at 30, 60 and 90 days
- ☐ Keep redirects in place for at least a year; longer is safer
FAQ
Should we keep both old websites running after the merger?
Only briefly, if at all. Two live sites split authority and confuse clients and search engines. Redirect both into the new site once it’s ready.
How much traffic is normal to lose after a migration?
A short dip in the first few weeks is common. A well-planned migration should recover within a few months. A sharp, lasting drop usually means missing or incorrect redirects.
When should the SEO work start?
Before the deal is announced. The crawl and redirect map take weeks, and it’s much easier to do them before the old sites change.
Planning a merger or rebrand? Talk to me before you announce. I’ll review both sites and build the redirect plan with your web team. See the migration service →
This article is for general information and isn’t legal or compliance advice. Confirm any marketing changes with your CCO.