SEO Case Results | Potatoes USA — PotatoGoodness.com
Presented by John Vargo
SEO Strategy & AI Optimization Expert
Webolutions Digital Marketing Agency
A Website Redesign That Put Years of SEO Progress at Risk
In November 2018, Potatoes USA launched a redesigned PotatoGoodness.com website. The project introduced a significant search engine optimization risk: more than 200 existing pages were excluded from the new website despite Webolutions’ recommendation to preserve them.
Webolutions had been managing the organization’s SEO program, helping PotatoGoodness establish organic search visibility across potato nutrition, cooking methods, preparation information, and recipes.
Before the redesign, Webolutions advised against eliminating substantial amounts of established website content because those pages contributed to the site’s organic search presence.
The concern proved consequential. Over the following seven months, historical SEMrush reports documented a 35.3% decline in Top 10 Google keyword rankings and a 40.8% decline in Top 3 rankings.
The experience illustrates why protecting existing search visibility is an essential consideration in website redesign planning.
The SEO Impact: 1,326 First-Page Rankings Lost
PotatoGoodness entered the redesign with thousands of Google keyword rankings.
By June 2019, both its highest-ranking keywords and its broader first-page search presence had declined substantially.
| Google Organic Ranking Metric | November 2018 | June 2019 | Change |
| Top 3 Keyword Rankings | 1,298 | 769 | −40.8% |
| Top 10 Keyword Rankings | 3,755 | 2,429 | −35.3% |
The measurable impact included:
- 529 fewer keywords ranking in Google’s Top 3 results.
- 1,326 fewer keywords ranking on Google’s first page.
- A substantial reduction in the website’s reported organic keyword visibility.
The timing and magnitude of the decline were consistent with Webolutions’ concerns about removing established content during the redesign.
Although website migrations can involve multiple ranking factors, eliminating more than 200 pages introduced a significant risk to the site’s existing search visibility.
Why Preserving Established Website Content Matters
A website’s existing pages represent more than individual pieces of content.
Over time, those pages may establish rankings for relevant searches, earn backlinks, attract organic visitors, and contribute to the website’s broader topical relevance.
For PotatoGoodness, established resources covering nutrition, preparation methods, and recipes helped the website compete across a wide range of informational searches.
Removing substantial amounts of content can reduce the number of search queries a website can satisfy and disrupt the relationships between pages.
Webolutions’ recommendation to preserve the existing content reflected an important principle of experienced SEO management: a redesigned website should protect valuable organic search assets while improving the visitor experience.
This requires evaluating page-level rankings, organic traffic, backlinks, internal links, and content relevance before deciding which pages to retain, consolidate, redirect, or remove.
Rebuilding Google Rankings Through Continued SEO
Despite the initial setback, Webolutions continued its long-term SEO program for PotatoGoodness.
The engagement involved ongoing keyword analysis, website optimization, content recommendations, and sustained backlink development.
Rather than evaluating the website solely on its performance immediately after the redesign, Webolutions continued monitoring organic search rankings and identifying opportunities to improve visibility.
Historical SEMrush reports document substantial ranking growth in the years that followed.
Google Ranking Recovery: November 2018 Through January 2024
| Google Organic Ranking Metric | Before Redesign: Nov. 2018 | Post-Redesign: June 2019 | January 2024 |
| Top 3 Rankings | 1,298 | 769 | 3,671 |
| Top 10 Rankings | 3,755 | 2,429 | 9,122 |
By January 2024, PotatoGoodness had achieved:
+183% more Top 3 rankings compared with November 2018.
+143% more Top 10 rankings compared with November 2018.
These results demonstrate that the website ultimately surpassed its pre-redesign ranking levels by a substantial margin.
While the historical data does not establish that any single SEO activity produced the recovery, it documents the broader improvement achieved during a sustained optimization program.
What This SEO Experience Demonstrates
The PotatoGoodness experience provides important lessons for organizations planning website redesigns or managing organic search performance.
- Protect Existing SEO Assets Before Redesigning a Website
Established website content can contribute significantly to organic visibility.
Before removing pages, organizations should evaluate their rankings, organic traffic, backlinks, and relationships to other important website content.
- Involve SEO Expertise Before Making Migration Decisions
SEO considerations should influence website architecture, content preservation, URL changes, redirects, and internal linking before a redesigned website launches.
Addressing these issues during planning can help avoid unnecessary ranking losses.
- Measure the Impact of Major Website Changes
Historical keyword rankings and organic traffic reports provide valuable evidence when evaluating the impact of a website redesign.
For PotatoGoodness, the decline in Top 3 and Top 10 rankings made the reduction in search visibility measurable.
- Recognize the Value of Sustained SEO Management
Search engine optimization is an ongoing process.
The PotatoGoodness experience demonstrates why consistent performance analysis, content recommendations, technical oversight, and authority development remain important after a website launches.
Even following substantial ranking losses, continued SEO efforts can support opportunities to rebuild and expand organic search visibility.
SEO Results Presented by John Vargo
John Vargo leads SEO strategy and AI optimization initiatives at Webolutions Digital Marketing Agency.
His work emphasizes measurable Google ranking performance, organic search visibility, technical SEO, competitive analysis, content optimization, and website authority development.
Through the SEO Results collection, John presents documented examples of long-term SEO performance, strategic decisions, and lessons from real-world engagements.
This article is part of a series examining Webolutions’ SEO work for Potatoes USA.
For a broader perspective on the engagement, read How a Decade of SEO Increased PotatoGoodness.com’s Top 10 Google Rankings by More Than 1,000%.
Protect Your Website’s Google Rankings During a Redesign
A website redesign should improve your organization’s digital presence without unnecessarily sacrificing established organic search visibility.
Webolutions helps organizations identify SEO risks, evaluate existing rankings, improve website architecture, and develop strategies to strengthen long-term organic search performance.
Explore our SEO Services to learn how experienced optimization can help protect and improve your website’s search visibility.
For businesses competing in Colorado, our Denver SEO Services provide strategies focused on local and regional organic search performance.
Data source and methodology: Historical keyword ranking figures are based on Webolutions’ SEMrush reports for PotatoGoodness.com. Keyword counts represent rankings identified within SEMrush’s database at each reporting date. Database coverage may have changed over time. The ranking changes do not independently establish the cause of the decline or subsequent growth.
