Strategies for Maintaining User Experience and SEO Value When Removing Old Pages from Your App

If all the old pages are no longer in the new app, this changes the situation significantly

In this case, the 301 redirect would not be the most appropriate solution because there's no equivalent content to redirect users to.

Creating a custom 404 error page

Instead, you may want to consider creating a custom 404 error page that informs users the content they're looking for no longer exists and guides them to relevant or important parts of your new app. This can help maintain a positive user experience despite the missing pages.

From an SEO perspective

From an SEO perspective, removing old pages without proper redirection can lead to a loss in "link juice" or SEO value that those pages had accumulated. If these pages had backlinks pointing to them, the SEO value of these backlinks might be lost.

To mitigate this, you could reach out to the owners of the websites that are linking to your old pages and ask them to update their links to point to relevant pages in your new app.

Updating your XML sitemap

Remember, any significant changes to your website or app should be accompanied by an updated XML sitemap and submitted to search engines. This can help search engines understand the new structure of your app and index it accordingly.

In conclusion

In conclusion, while the removal of old pages from your app does present some challenges, there are strategies you can employ to maintain user experience and SEO value.