Drupal Development
Drupal for organisations with a lot of content and a lot of editors.
Drupal shines when content is structured, multilingual and managed by many people with different permissions. We build new Drupal sites, upgrade older ones and migrate Drupal 7 sites that are past end of life.
What usually goes wrong
Still on Drupal 7.
Drupal 7 reached end of life in January 2025. Without security releases from the Drupal security team, every month on it adds risk.
Editors fight the content model.
When content types and fields grew without a plan, simple updates need workarounds and the same information lives in three places.
Translations fall out of sync.
Translations managed by hand drift apart, and some pages quietly exist in only one language.
How we approach it
Model the content, then build the experience.
We start with a content model: the types of content you publish, how they relate, who edits them and which languages they need. A clear model makes everything after it simpler, from page layouts to search to translation workflows.
For Drupal 7 migrations we audit modules and custom code, map old content to the new model and use Drupal's migration tools to move content, users, files and URLs reliably. We clean up along the way rather than copying old problems into the new site.
We build with current Drupal practice: Composer-managed codebases, configuration in version control, accessible front-end themes and editorial workflows with roles and content moderation.
What you get
- Content model
- Content types, fields, taxonomies and relationships designed around your editors.
- Drupal 10 or 11 build
- A maintainable site with a custom, accessible theme.
- Drupal 7 migration
- Content, users, media and URLs migrated, with redirects and testing.
- Multilingual setup
- Content and interface translation, language URLs and hreflang.
- Editorial workflow
- Roles, permissions, drafts, review and scheduled publishing.
A good fit if
- You run a Drupal 7 site and need to move.
- You publish a lot of structured content, often in several languages.
- Many people with different roles edit your site.
Probably not the right fit if
- Your site is small and edited by one or two people. WordPress or a simpler setup will be easier and cheaper to run.
Tools we use
- Drupal 10
- Drupal 11
- PHP 8
- Composer
- Twig
- Migrate API
- Drush
- Search API
How the project runs
Drupal 7 migrations typically take 8 to 16 weeks, depending on the amount of content and custom code. New builds are scoped after the content modelling stage.
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Diagnose
Week 1
We review your current site, analytics and competitors, and talk to whoever handles your enquiries. You receive a written diagnosis of where leads are being lost. We need about an hour of your time and access to your analytics.
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Architect
Weeks 2 to 3
Sitemap, content plan and technical architecture. You receive a full site plan and a fixed quote. Design only starts once you have signed off.
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Design
Weeks 3 to 5
High-fidelity design for every page type and screen size. You receive a clickable prototype, and we ask for two rounds of feedback, each within 48 hours.
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Build
Weeks 5 to 9
Development, content entry and testing across devices. You follow progress on a live staging link the whole way, not only at the end.
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Launch and grow
Ongoing
Go-live, monitoring and 30 days of aftercare at no extra cost. Everything we built is yours. If you want to keep improving it, we continue on a monthly plan you can pause or cancel.
Questions buyers ask
Is Drupal 7 still safe to use?
Drupal 7 reached end of life on 5 January 2025 and no longer receives security releases from the Drupal security team. We recommend planning a migration as soon as you can.
Should we move to Drupal 10 or 11, or to another CMS?
If your content is structured and multilingual, modern Drupal is usually the right home. If your needs have become simpler, another platform might be cheaper to run. We compare honestly before you commit.
Will our URLs and search rankings survive the migration?
We map every old URL to its new address, set up redirects and monitor indexing after launch to catch issues early.
Can you take over our existing Drupal site?
Yes. We start with a code and configuration review, then propose a maintenance or improvement plan.
Planning a move off Drupal 7?
Tell us roughly how much content and custom code you have. We will outline a migration plan.
Email us: mahnovasdigital@gmail.com