PHP Upgrade & Site Optimization

My website is still running on PHP 7.x and the very first thing I want is a clean, fully tested upgrade to the current stable PHP 8 release. Once the codebase is running smoothly on the new version, I’d also like you to tighten up on-page SEO, configure a reliable webmail solution, and trim down load times so the pages feel noticeably faster.

Here’s how I see the work unfolding:

• Upgrade all site code to PHP 8.x, fix any compatibility issues you uncover, and confirm that every public-facing page and back-end function is error-free.
• Review and improve key SEO elements—meta tags, internal linking, schema markup—making sure nothing breaks the design or content flow.
• Set up or repair webmail so messages are delivered consistently and don’t end up in spam.
• Apply practical speed optimizations (caching, image/asset compression, database tweaks, etc.) and show measurable gains on tools such as Google PageSpeed Insights or GTmetrix.

I’ll supply full site and hosting access as soon as we start, and I’m happy to answer questions quickly so you can keep moving. Please outline the approach you’d take for the PHP jump, the tests you’d run before we switch it live, and any prior projects that show you can handle the end-to-end polish I’m after.