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When is it better to rebuild a website than to patch it?

When a site is heavy, was never built for mobile, and every small fix needs a developer, a rebuild is usually the cheaper decision. The one real risk is losing what Google already knows: ranking URLs, content built up over years, and links from other sites. So a proper rebuild starts by mapping every existing URL, carries over the business's real content, and ends with a 301 redirect from every URL that changes - so the new site inherits what the old one earned instead of starting from zero.

What we found on the old site

Kobi Hamekarsem has been in the trade for over 20 years, but his website did not show it:

  • The homepage weighed about 3.4MB, mostly images - heavy for a phone, which is where most people search for a tradesman.
  • Google had no structured description of the business. The site had no structured data (Schema) at all.
  • There was no WhatsApp link, and the site listed two different phone numbers.
  • The only recommendation letter was an image, so neither Google nor AI engines could read it.
  • The sitemap had not been updated since 2020.

What we built

A fast site on modern technology

A 27-page static site built from scratch in Astro, with compressed images and a self-hosted font. The homepage now weighs about a third of what it did.

Keeping what Google knows

All 21 URLs of the old site still work: 16 stayed at exactly the same address, and five redirect (301) to the matching new page.

A clear definition for Google and AI

Structured data for the business, its services, its articles and the site structure - so search engines and AI engines know exactly what Kobi does.

One tap to get in touch

WhatsApp and phone on every page. We removed the contact form: the inbox behind it was unreliable and leads could get lost. Today every enquiry goes straight to Kobi's phone.

Accessibility without an overlay

A full accessibility statement under the Israeli standard (IS 5568), with a named accessibility coordinator and a clear way to get in touch - no overlay plugin papering over problems.

Real content only

All of the business's real content was carried over. A senior agronomist's recommendation letter was typed out in full next to the scan, and the gallery shows only photos of Kobi's own work.

Old site New site
Homepage weight ~3.4MB ~1.1MB
Structured data for Google None Business, services, articles and site structure
WhatsApp No link On every page
Recommendation letter Image only Full text next to the scan
Sitemap Last updated in 2020 Updates automatically with every change

The results: two weeks after launch

The site went live on September 15, 2026, and the following week we shipped a round of improvements: the three main service pages grew from about 400 words to over 1,000 each, built around the questions people actually type into Google; two new guides - on the forest officer (who to ask for a felling permit) and on spotting a dangerous tree - written from official sources only; and the felling-permit guide updated to the current law. We also started posting updates on the Google Business Profile and added an llms.txt file that explains the business to AI engines.

In a manual check on September 28, in an incognito window, the site already appeared on Google's first page for 8 key phrases, searched about 300 times a month combined:

Search phrase (Hebrew) Searches / month
כרסום שורשים (root grinding)~110
כרסום עצים (tree grinding)~40
השמדת שורשים של עץ (killing tree roots)~30
כריתת עץ בבית פרטי (felling a tree at a private house)~30
כריתת עץ בחצר פרטית (felling a tree in a private yard)~30
כריתת עץ בבית משותף (felling a tree at an apartment building)~20
כרסום גדם עץ (stump grinding)~20
עצים מסוכנים (dangerous trees)~20

Rankings checked manually on 2026-09-28. Search volumes from Semrush.

People who ask Google a direct question, such as "who handles a dangerous tree in the Sharon", also find the site on the first page - exactly the kind of search the new guides were written for. Both guides reached the first page (positions 7-8) for related searches within a week.

A source in Google's AI answer

For "killing tree roots", the site appears as a source in the AI Overview Google shows above the results.

Cited in AI Mode

For "felling a tree in a private yard", the felling-permit guide is cited in Google's AI Mode.

Enquiries on WhatsApp

Most important of all: Kobi is already getting enquiries through the site on WhatsApp, straight to his phone.

These are early numbers - a new site keeps gaining strength as Google gets to know it. We will update this page as the data comes in.

Another case study: sold-out products still pulling traffic

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