If you run an SME in Switzerland, a website relaunch is one of the most important digital investments for Swiss companies. Whether it’s outdated design, poor performance, or new business requirements, the reasons for a relaunch are varied. This thorough guide shows you everything you need to know.

What is a Website Relaunch?

A website relaunch is the fundamental overhaul of an existing website, going beyond small updates. It typically includes:

Full Relaunch:

  • New design and branding
  • New technical platform
  • New content strategy
  • New features and functionality
  • New URL structure (often)

Partial Relaunch:

  • Design refresh without technical change
  • Technical upgrade without design change
  • Content overhaul
  • Feature extensions

What it is NOT:

  • Small design adjustments
  • Content updates
  • Plugin upgrades
  • Bug fixes

A true relaunch means significant parts of your website are being reconceived and reimplemented.

When Do You Need a Website Relaunch?

Technical Reasons

Your website is outdated:

  • Older than 4-5 years
  • Outdated technology (Flash, old CMS versions)
  • Security vulnerabilities
  • No mobile optimisation
  • Slow loading times

Statistics: 68% of Swiss websites are older than 4 years, 42% of these are not mobile-optimised (Source: Swiss Digital Report 2025).

You can’t grow anymore:

  • CMS limitations
  • No scalability
  • Integrations not possible
  • Performance problems with traffic

Business Reasons

Your business goals have changed:

  • New business model
  • New target audience
  • New markets (international)
  • Rebranding
  • New products/services

The website doesn’t fulfil its purpose:

  • Low conversion rate
  • High bounce rate
  • No leads
  • Poor rankings
  • Outdated brand image

Example: A Swiss B2B service provider had a 6-year-old WordPress website. The conversion rate was 0.8%. After a relaunch with new design, better UX, and clear value proposition, it rose to 3.2%, four times higher.

Design and UX Reasons

Your website looks outdated:

  • Design looks “old-school”
  • No longer contemporary
  • Inconsistent branding
  • Poor user guidance

User experience is poor:

  • Complicated navigation
  • Unclear call-to-actions
  • Slow interactions
  • Forms don’t work well
  • Mobile use frustrating

Rule of thumb: If you’re ashamed of your website when customers visit it, you need a relaunch.

New requirements:

  • revDSG compliance (since September 2023)
  • Accessibility (becoming mandatory for public entities)
  • Cookie consent
  • WCAG standards

Risk: Non-compliant websites can lead to fines up to CHF 250,000 (revDSG).

Website Relaunch Costs in Switzerland

Costs vary significantly depending on scope, complexity, and partner choice.

Budget Relaunch: CHF 8,000-20,000

What you get:

  • 10-15 pages
  • Template-based design with customizations
  • WordPress or Webflow
  • Basic SEO
  • Mobile-optimised
  • Contact form

Suitable for:

  • Small SMEs (1-10 employees)
  • Simple websites
  • Limited budgets
  • Standard requirements

Typical partners:

  • Freelancers
  • Small agencies
  • Inhouse (if available)

More on professional website costs →

Standard Relaunch: CHF 20,000-50,000

What you get:

  • 20-30 pages
  • Semi-custom design
  • WordPress, Craft CMS, or Webflow
  • CRM integration
  • Blog/news system
  • Multilingual (optional)
  • SEO strategy
  • Content revision

Suitable for:

  • Established SMEs (10-50 employees)
  • B2B service providers
  • Professional positioning
  • Growing companies

Typical partners:

Professional Relaunch: CHF 50,000-120,000

What you get:

  • 40+ pages
  • Fully custom design
  • Custom CMS or headless
  • Multiple integrations (CRM, ERP, marketing)
  • Multilingual (3+ languages)
  • Custom features
  • UX research
  • Content strategy and production
  • SEO campaign

Suitable for:

  • Larger SMEs (50-200 employees)
  • B2B with high ticket prices
  • International orientation
  • Strong online presence needed

Enterprise Relaunch: CHF 120,000-300,000+

What you get:

  • 60+ pages
  • Enterprise features
  • E-commerce or platform
  • Complex integrations
  • Multi-site setup
  • Custom functionality
  • Detailed content production
  • Design system
  • Ongoing optimisation

Suitable for:

  • Large companies (200+ employees)
  • E-commerce
  • Platforms
  • International focus

Hidden costs in website projects →

Cost Drivers in Detail

What makes a relaunch expensive?

  1. Design complexity (+50-200%)

    • Template vs. custom
    • Number of unique layouts
    • Animations and interactions

  2. Features and functionality (+30-300%)

    • E-commerce
    • Member areas
    • Configurators
    • Custom tools

  3. Content creation (+20-100%)

    • Rewriting texts
    • Photo shoot
    • Video production
    • Translations

  4. Integrations (+10-80%)

    • CRM (CHF 2,000-15,000)
    • ERP (CHF 15,000-50,000)
    • Marketing tools (CHF 1,000-5,000)
    • Payment gateways (CHF 2,000-8,000)

  5. Multilingual (+30-100%)

    • 2 languages: +30-50%
    • 3 languages: +60-80%
    • 4+ languages: +80-100%

Rule of thumb: Budget 1-3% of your annual revenue or 15-25% of your marketing budget for a professional relaunch.

Timeline: How Long Does a Relaunch Take?

Realistic Timelines

Fast relaunch: 6-10 weeks

  • Small scope (10-15 pages)
  • Template-based
  • Existing content
  • No complex integrations
  • Clear requirements

Typical for: Budget projects, urgent launches

Standard relaunch: 3-5 months

  • Medium scope (20-30 pages)
  • Semi-custom design
  • Content revision
  • Standard integrations
  • SEO optimisation

Typical for: Most SME relaunches

Complete relaunch: 5-9 months

  • Large scope (40+ pages)
  • Custom design
  • New content strategy
  • Multilingual
  • Complex features
  • Testing and optimisation

Typical for: Larger companies, e-commerce

Enterprise relaunch: 9-18 months

  • Very large scope
  • Enterprise features
  • In-depth integrations
  • Multi-site
  • Stakeholder alignment
  • Extensive testing

Website relaunch: Realistic timeline →

Phases of a Relaunch

1. Strategy and concept (2-4 weeks)

  • Goal definition
  • Target audience analysis
  • Content audit
  • Competitive analysis
  • Sitemap and structure
  • Technical requirements

2. Design (3-8 weeks)

  • Wireframes
  • Design concept
  • UI design
  • Design system
  • Responsive variants
  • Feedback loops

3. Development (4-12 weeks)

  • Frontend development
  • Backend/CMS setup
  • Integrations
  • Feature implementation
  • Content migration
  • Basic testing

4. Content (parallel, 4-8 weeks)

  • Writing/revising texts
  • Sourcing images
  • SEO optimisation
  • Translations
  • Content entry

5. Testing and launch (2-4 weeks)

  • Browser testing
  • Mobile testing
  • Performance optimisation
  • Security checks
  • Content review
  • Training
  • Go-live
  • Monitoring

Overlaps: Phases often overlap. Design can begin while strategy is being finalised. Content creation runs parallel to development.

Agency vs. Freelancer vs. Inhouse

Agency:

  • Advantages: Broad skillset, established processes, quality assurance, scalable
  • Disadvantages: More expensive, longer lead times, more overhead
  • Costs: CHF 25,000-150,000+
  • Suitable for: Larger projects, strategic relaunches

Freelancer:

  • Advantages: Cheaper, more flexible, personal contact, faster start
  • Disadvantages: Limited skillset, backup risk, quality varies
  • Costs: CHF 15,000-50,000
  • Suitable for: Smaller projects, specialised requirements

Inhouse:

  • Advantages: Knows company, always available, cheaper long-term
  • Disadvantages: Operational blindness, limited capacity, skills can become outdated
  • Costs: CHF 80,000-140,000/year per person
  • Suitable for: Ongoing maintenance, not one-time relaunches

Detailed comparison: Agency vs Freelancer vs Inhouse →

Selection Criteria

References and portfolio:

  • Implemented similar projects?
  • Industry knowledge available?
  • Quality of previous work?

Technical competence:

  • Which technologies do they use?
  • Can they implement your requirements?
  • Do they stay up-to-date?

Process and communication:

  • How structured is their work?
  • How often are there updates?
  • Who is your contact person?

Team and resources:

  • Who specifically works on your project?
  • Junior or senior?
  • Inhouse or subcontractors?

Budget and timeline:

  • Transparent calculation?
  • Fixed price or time & material?
  • Realistic timeline?

Selecting a web developer: What to watch for →

Relaunch Strategy: Critical Success Factors

1. Define Clear Goals

Common goals:

  • Generate more leads
  • Increase conversion rate
  • Improve brand perception
  • Open new markets
  • Improve scalability
  • Reduce costs (maintenance)

Define measurable:

  • From 50 to 150 leads/month
  • Conversion from 1.2% to 3%
  • Page speed from 4s to under 2s
  • Mobile traffic from 45% to 65%

Without clear goals: No relaunch is successful without measurable goals.

2. Think About SEO from the Start

Critical:

  • Plan URL structure
  • Prepare 301 redirects
  • Research keywords
  • Develop content strategy
  • Optimise meta data

Avoid mistakes: A relaunch without SEO strategy can lead to 40-60% traffic loss.

Budget for SEO:

  • Basic: CHF 2,000-5,000
  • Standard: CHF 5,000-12,000
  • Full: CHF 12,000-30,000

3. Develop Content Strategy

Content audit:

  • What to keep?
  • What to revise?
  • What to create new?
  • What to remove?

Content types:

  • Service pages
  • About/team
  • Blog/resources
  • Case studies
  • FAQ
  • Landing pages

Plan realistically: Content takes time. Professionally rewriting 20-30 pages takes 6-10 weeks.

4. Plan Migration Carefully

What to migrate:

  • Content
  • Media (images, PDFs)
  • User data (if relevant)
  • SEO data (rankings, redirects)

301 redirects:

  • Map every old URL to new
  • Prioritise important pages
  • Test before launch

Data backup:

  • Full backup before migration
  • External copy
  • Test restore

Migration costs: CHF 1,000-10,000 depending on complexity

5. Don’t Underestimate Testing

What to test:

  • Functionality (all links, forms)
  • Browser compatibility (Chrome, Safari, Firefox, Edge)
  • Mobile devices (iPhone, Android, tablets)
  • Performance (loading times)
  • SEO (crawlability, meta data)
  • Accessibility (contrasts, screen reader)

User testing:

  • 5-10 people from target audience
  • Run through real scenarios
  • Collect feedback

Plan time: 2-4 weeks for thorough testing

6. Launch Communication

Internal:

  • Inform team
  • Conduct training
  • Document processes

External:

  • Newsletter to existing customers
  • Social media announcement
  • PR/media (if relevant)
  • Update existing bookmarks

Launch timing:

  • Not Friday afternoon
  • Not before holidays
  • Ideally Tuesday-Thursday morning
  • Team available for 48h post-launch

ROI: Is a Relaunch Worth It?

Measurable Returns

Lead generation:

  • Before: 50 leads/month
  • After: 150 leads/month
  • Conversion value: CHF 500/lead
  • Additional revenue: CHF 50,000/month
  • ROI after 2-3 months

E-commerce:

  • Before: Conversion 1.8%
  • After: Conversion 3.5%
  • Traffic: 10,000 visitors/month
  • AOV (Average Order Value): CHF 120
  • Additional revenue: CHF 24,480/month
  • ROI after 3-5 months

B2B service provider:

  • Before: 20 qualified inquiries/year
  • After: 80 qualified inquiries/year
  • Close rate: 20%
  • Deal size: CHF 25,000
  • Additional revenue: CHF 300,000/year
  • ROI after 4-6 months

Measuring website relaunch ROI →

Non-Measurable Benefits

Brand perception:

  • More professional impression
  • More trustworthy
  • Modern and forward-thinking

Internal efficiency:

  • Easier content maintenance
  • Fewer support requests
  • Automated processes

Future-proofing:

  • Scalable
  • Extensible
  • Maintainable

Employee pride: Team is proud of modern website, actively shares it.

Common Relaunch Mistakes

Mistake 1: No Clear Vision

Problem: “We need a new website” without defining why and what it should achieve.

Solution: Define goals, stakeholder interviews, strategy workshop.

Mistake 2: SEO is Forgotten

Problem: After relaunch, 50% traffic loss because redirects are missing or URLs changed without plan.

Solution: Plan SEO from the start, redirect mapping before launch.

Mistake 3: Unrealistic Timeline

Problem: “We need the website in 6 weeks” for a 50-page custom project.

Solution: Realistic planning, build in buffer, phase approach if necessary.

Mistake 4: Too Many Features Immediately

Problem: Want everything at once, project explodes in scope and budget.

Solution: Define MVP (Minimum Viable Product), move rest to phase 2.

Mistake 5: Content Underestimated

Problem: Website is ready, but content is missing. Launch delayed by months.

Solution: Create content plan early, produce parallel to development.

Mistake 6: Only Looking at Price

Problem: Chose cheapest provider, quality lacking, redo after 6 months.

Solution: Consider price-performance, check references, invest in quality.

Mistake 7: Stakeholder Chaos

Problem: 10 people have say, everyone different opinion, project doesn’t progress.

Solution: Clear decision paths, max. 2-3 decision makers, structured feedback.

Mistake 8: No Testing

Problem: Direct launch without testing, forms don’t work, mobile view broken.

Solution: 2-4 weeks testing phase, user testing, check before go-live.

Checklist: Are You Ready for a Relaunch?

Strategy and planning:

  • Clear goals defined
  • Budget set (incl. buffer 15-20%)
  • Timeline realistically planned
  • Stakeholders identified
  • Decision process clarified

Partner selection:

  • Agency/freelancer/inhouse decided
  • 3-5 providers researched
  • References checked
  • Quotes obtained
  • Partner selected

Content:

  • Content audit performed
  • Content strategy developed
  • Responsibilities clarified
  • Timeline for content production
  • Budget for content planned

Technical:

  • Hosting strategy defined
  • CMS choice made
  • Integrations identified
  • SEO strategy available
  • Security requirements clarified

After launch:

  • Maintenance contract concluded
  • Analytics setup
  • Monitoring tools
  • Training planned
  • Communication plan

A website relaunch is an investment that pays off many times over with proper planning and execution.

The key insights:

  1. Clear goals are foundation No relaunch is successful without measurable goals.

  2. Plan budget realistically CHF 20,000-50,000 for most SMEs, plus 15-20% buffer.

  3. Plan time 3-5 months for standard relaunch, don’t underestimate.

  4. Choose the right partner Check references, meet team, chemistry must fit.

  5. SEO from the start 301 redirects, content strategy, technical SEO.

  6. Don’t underestimate content Often the biggest bottleneck, start early.

  7. Testing is critical 2-4 weeks intensive testing before launch.

  8. Measure ROI Before/after comparison, define and track KPIs.

Next steps:

  1. Define goals: What should the relaunch achieve?
  2. Set budget: What can/do you want to invest?
  3. Research partners: Request 3-5 providers
  4. Get quotes: Compare in detail
  5. Make decision: Based on overall package, not just price

Alpine Excellence helps: All branding & design partners with seal are verified and have successfully implemented relaunches for Swiss SMEs. Transparent reviews, real experiences.

A successful relaunch starts with good planning. This guide has given you the foundation. Now it’s your turn.

Transparency Note: Alpine Excellence only lists verified providers. When seal holders are mentioned in this article, it serves to illustrate quality standards concretely, not as advertising.