WordPress Migration Specialist Needed — Move Business Website to New Host Without SEO Loss

WordPress Migration Specialist Needed — Move a simple 3 page Business Website to New Host Without SEO Loss Fixed budget: $150 We are looking for an experienced WordPress server/hosting specialist to safely migrate an established business website of 3 pages from its current hosting provider to a new managed WordPress host. The website currently experiences intermittent downtime and sometimes displays: “Error establishing a database connection.” The website has approximately one year of SEO history, existing Google rankings, indexed pages and backlinks. SEO preservation and minimal downtime are critical requirements. Important: Hosting and Domain Ownership The domain and new hosting account will remain 100% owned and controlled by us. The freelancer will receive temporary access required to perform the migration. Do NOT register hosting, domains, Cloudflare or other critical services under your own account. Before Migration You must: * Create and verify a complete backup of all WordPress files and the database. * Document the current DNS records before changing anything. * Check the current WordPress and PHP configuration. * Investigate the recurring “Error establishing a database connection” issue and provide your opinion on the likely cause. * Check the current website for obvious technical problems before migration. * Confirm that the new server environment is compatible with the website. Migration Requirements You must migrate: * Complete WordPress installation * WordPress database * Themes * Plugins * Uploads/media * Existing configuration * SSL/HTTPS * Existing redirects * Existing SEO plugin settings and metadata The existing domain name will remain unchanged. SEO Requirements — VERY IMPORTANT The migration must NOT unnecessarily change: * Domain * URL structure * Page URLs/slugs * Page titles * Meta descriptions * Canonical URLs * Robots.txt configuration * XML sitemap * Existing redirects * Website content * Internal links Existing URLs indexed by Google must continue returning the correct pages. Any unavoidable URL change must use the appropriate 301 redirect, but our preference is to make no URL changes at all. Staging & Testing Do NOT immediately point the domain to the new server. First: 1. Copy the website to the new host. 2. Test it using a staging/temporary URL or hosts-file method. 3. Confirm that pages and images load correctly. 4. Test WordPress admin. 5. Test all contact/booking forms. 6. Check mobile functionality. 7. Check HTTPS/SSL. 8. Check for PHP/database errors. 9. Check important URLs for 404 errors. 10. Confirm the site is ready before changing DNS. Only after testing and our approval should DNS be changed. DNS Cutover The freelancer should: * Prepare DNS for minimal downtime. * Point the existing domain to the new hosting. * Verify both www and non-www versions. * Verify HTTPS. * Verify redirects. * Confirm the website is accessible after propagation. * Monitor for errors immediately after migration. The old hosting must NOT be cancelled or deleted during the migration. We will keep the old server available temporarily as a fallback. Backups & Reliability Configure automatic backups on the new hosting and confirm that restoring from a backup is possible. We also want basic recommendations regarding: * WordPress security * Database reliability * PHP version/configuration * Caching * CDN if appropriate * Server monitoring * WordPress updates After Migration Before the project is considered complete, please: * Check the main website pages * Check for broken links/404 errors * Verify forms * Verify SSL * Verify robots.txt * Verify XML sitemap * Verify canonical URLs * Verify that Google Search Console verification still works, if access is provided * Confirm that Googlebot is not accidentally blocked * Confirm no accidental noindex tags were introduced * Confirm the website is stable on the new server Deliverables At completion we expect: 1. Fully functioning website on the new hosting. 2. Same domain and URL structure. 3. Complete backup. 4. Automatic backups configured. 5. SSL configured correctly. 6. DNS configured correctly. 7. No known broken pages or forms. 8. No accidental SEO/indexing changes. 9. Short explanation of what caused, or likely caused, the previous database connection problems. 10. Short summary of everything changed during the migration. Required Experience Please apply only if you have strong experience with: * WordPress migrations * MySQL/MariaDB * DNS * SSL * PHP * WordPress hosting/server configuration * Database connection troubleshooting * SEO-safe migrations * Google Search Console * Minimizing website downtime When Applying Please answer these 5 questions: 1. How will you migrate the website while minimizing downtime? 2. How will you make sure the migration does not damage existing SEO rankings or indexed URLs? 3. How will you test the website before changing the DNS? 4. What are the most likely causes of an intermittent “Error establishing a database connection” on a WordPress website? 5. Please describe 2–3 similar WordPress migrations you have completed. Please do not send a generic proposal. Start your application with the words “SAFE WORDPRESS MIGRATION” so we know you have read the complete requirements. Budget: $150 fixed price. Payment will be released after the website has been successfully migrated, tested and confirmed operational on the new hosting.