I have worked on several projects(line of business web applications) in my career that involved a complete UI overhaul. Most of these projects were enterprise web applications that took a substantial amount of time to re-design. Some of them were done with a complete swap and some done in phases.
I was surprised by the reactions of the customers. If I had bet on the outcome I would have lost my pants. The wholesale swaps caught a ton of grief from the customer. The design really wasn't the issue, it was that it changed period. The phased changes went smooth as silk but looked strange for a while. A very undesirable UI for the interim.
Is it better to do complete re-designs in phases or a complete swap with the new design?
If dealing with a phased approach, is it worth the trouble to maintain both designs for a while, allowing the user to choose which want to use?
Even if possible, is it effective, or will the same problems surface when the old version is no longer available?
Answer
Think you need to look at it from the other view. Both approaches are correct if handled/planned. What's important on re-designs i work with is managing the users. Start a fun but informative section on the home page discussing the plans. Poke fun at the old site, stick in some polls, involve them in the change.
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