Launch Day Isn’t the Time to Discover Your Contact Form Is Broken.
TL;DR: A website launch without a checklist is a gamble. Missing SSL certificates, broken forms, slow loading, and absent tracking turn launch day into damage control. This 25-point checklist covers content, design, functionality, SEO, tracking, security, and performance. Run through it 48 hours before launch. Fix everything that fails. Then go live with confidence.
We’ve launched over a hundred websites. The ones that went smoothly had one thing in common: a checklist reviewed 48 hours before launch. The ones that had problems? Someone skipped the checklist because “everything looks fine.”
“Looks fine” and “works correctly” aren’t the same thing.
Here are 25 items to verify before any website goes live.
Content & Design
1. Every page has been proofread for typos and grammar errors.
2. All placeholder text (“Lorem ipsum”) has been replaced with final content.
3. All images load correctly and are properly optimized (WebP, under 200KB).
4. Every image has descriptive alt text.
5. Heading hierarchy is correct: one H1 per page, logical H2/H3 structure.
6. All CTAs are specific and benefit-driven, not generic “Click Here.”
7. Contact information (phone, email, address) is accurate on every page.
8. Footer links all work and point to the correct pages.
Functionality
9. Every form works: submit a test entry, verify the confirmation appears, check that the notification email arrives.
10. Phone numbers are clickable (tap-to-call on mobile).
11. Email links open the user’s email client with the correct address.
12. All internal links work (no 404 errors).
13. All external links open in new tabs and point to live pages.
14. The site works correctly on Chrome, Safari, Firefox, and Edge.
15. The site works on mobile devices: test on at least one iPhone and one Android.
SEO & Tracking
16. Every page has a unique, keyword-optimized title tag (under 60 characters).
17. Every page has a unique meta description (under 160 characters).
18. XML sitemap is generated and submitted to Google Search Console.
19. Google Analytics 4 is installed and tracking conversions.
20. Meta Pixel is installed (if running or planning social ads).
21. 301 redirects are in place for any old URLs that changed (critical for redesigns).
Security & Performance
22. SSL certificate is active (HTTPS with padlock on every page).
23. Cookie consent banner works and blocks non-essential scripts until consent is given.
24. Privacy policy and terms of service pages are published and linked from the footer.
25. Mobile PageSpeed score is above 70. All Core Web Vitals pass.
The Launch Day Protocol
48 hours before: Run through all 25 items. Fix failures.
24 hours before: Re-test anything that was fixed. Confirm with the developer that DNS is ready.
Launch hour: Switch DNS. Monitor for 2 hours. Test forms, links, and tracking on the live domain.
24 hours after: Check Google Search Console for crawl errors. Verify analytics data is flowing.
1 week after: Review first week’s traffic and conversion data. Compare against baseline if this is a redesign.
Save this checklist. Use it for every launch. The 30 minutes it takes to run through prevents days of post-launch firefighting.
Want us to handle the launch for you? Every site we build goes through this exact process.
Key Facts
- A pre-launch checklist prevents the most common post-launch emergencies
- Broken contact forms can go undetected for weeks without pre-launch testing
- Every page needs a unique title tag and meta description for SEO
- SSL, cookie consent, and privacy policy are non-negotiable legal and trust requirements
- Google Search Console sitemap submission ensures all pages get indexed
- Mobile testing on real devices catches issues that desktop testing misses
- 301 redirects preserve SEO value when URLs change during redesigns
- PageSpeed mobile score above 70 is the minimum for acceptable performance
- The checklist should be run 48 hours before launch to allow time for fixes
- Post-launch monitoring for 1 week catches issues that pre-launch testing can’t predict
Frequently Asked Questions
When should I run this checklist? 48 hours before the planned launch date. This gives enough time to fix any issues before going live.
What if I find problems the day of launch? Delay the launch if the issues are critical (broken forms, missing SSL, major design problems). For minor issues (typos, image optimization), fix them within 24 hours post-launch.
Do I need all 25 items? Yes. Each addresses a specific risk. Skipping any one can result in lost leads, poor SEO, security warnings, or broken functionality.
Who should run through the checklist? Both the development team and someone from the business who understands the content and goals. Developers catch technical issues. Business owners catch content and messaging errors.