Launch day feels like the finish line, but a website that goes live with gaps — a broken form, missing meta tags, an un-tested mobile menu — can undo weeks of design and build work in the first bad first impression. This checklist covers the 12 things worth confirming before (not after) you tell anyone the site is live.
A website is ready to launch once it passes on mobile and desktop, every form and link works, page titles and meta descriptions are set, Google Analytics and Search Console are connected, a sitemap is submitted, SSL/HTTPS is active, and there's a clear call-to-action on every page. Skipping any of these tends to cost leads or search visibility in the first few weeks.
The 12-point checklist
- Mobile testing on real devices. Check every page on an actual phone, not just a resized browser window — tap targets, menu behaviour and form fields all behave differently on touch.
- Every form actually sends. Submit your own contact form and confirm the enquiry lands in your inbox, not a spam folder or a dead endpoint.
- Every link works. Broken internal links and 404s are one of the fastest ways to lose a visitor's trust — check navigation, footer links and in-content links.
- SSL/HTTPS is active. Browsers flag non-HTTPS sites as "not secure," which kills trust instantly. This should be set up before launch, not after.
- Page titles and meta descriptions are set. Every page needs a unique, descriptive title and meta description — this is what shows up in Google search results.
- Google Analytics and Search Console connected. You can't improve what you can't measure. Both should be verified and receiving data from day one.
- XML sitemap submitted. Submit your sitemap.xml to Google Search Console so new pages get discovered and indexed faster.
- Contact details are correct everywhere. Phone number, email and address should match exactly across the site, your Google Business Profile and any directories.
- Images have alt text and are compressed. Alt text helps accessibility and SEO; compressed images keep your site loading fast.
- A clear call-to-action on every page. Every page should tell the visitor what to do next — enquire, call, book — not just describe your business.
- 404 and thank-you pages exist. A branded "page not found" and a proper thank-you page after form submission both matter more than they seem.
- Backup and staging plan in place. Know how the site is backed up and how future changes get tested before they go live on the real site.
Why this matters more than it seems
Most of these checks take minutes each, but they're the difference between a site that quietly works in the background and one that leaks leads through broken forms or gets buried in search because Google can't properly index it. If you're working with a web designer in Melbourne, all 12 of these should be standard practice before handover — not something you have to ask for.
What's included when you launch with me
Every website I build goes through this exact checklist before it goes live — SSL, analytics, sitemap submission, mobile testing and working forms are standard on every package, not an upsell. See the full web design Melbourne page for what's included at each price point, or the website management page if you want backups and this kind of checking to continue after launch, not just on day one.
If your site runs on WordPress, most of this — backups, updates, uptime — can be automated through the CMS itself; see WordPress CMS setup for how that's configured.