Check a website before launch
A reliable launch rests on simple evidence: pages answer real questions, actions work, the site remains usable on mobile, and search engines can access public content. This seven-step review helps assign each check, record the result and resolve blocking issues before publication.
Three decisions before launch.
- Test real journeys with final content on desktop and mobile.
- Resolve blocking errors before asking search engines to discover new URLs.
- Appoint a launch owner and prepare a recovery path.
Review content in context
Check headings, contact details, displayed prices or dates, internal links, downloads and error messages. Each important page should answer an identifiable question and offer a useful next step. Open third-party links to confirm their destination; replace or remove a resource that has moved.
Verify image rights, meaningful alternative text and any required credits. On a bilingual site, compare both versions of the same page: language links should lead to relevant translations.
Complete tasks as a visitor would
Choose three representative tasks, such as finding a service, filtering a directory and sending an enquiry. Complete them without administrator access, using a keyboard and then a pointer or touch. Record the step, expected result, actual result and person responsible for resolving any gap.
Submit a test form using non-sensitive data. Check required fields, clear error messages, acknowledgement and actual delivery. Also test empty filter results and navigation after a search with no matches.
Check small screens and slow connections
Open priority pages on at least one real phone. Menus, tables, cards and controls should remain readable without awkward horizontal scrolling. Confirm that main images crop well and that essential information is available as text rather than only inside a picture.
Simulate a slow connection to spot oversized media. Images should declare their dimensions. Content below the first screen may load later, while the main visual should be available promptly.
Run a first accessibility review
Navigate by keyboard: visible focus, logical order, usable menus and forms. Enlarge the text and review contrast, headings, page language and alternatives for informative images. These quick checks expose common problems; they do not replace a full assessment against the applicable standard.
Verify discovery signals
For every page intended to appear in search, check the HTTP response, title, description, canonical URL and absence of accidental exclusion instructions. The robots.txt file should not block required resources. An XML sitemap should list public canonical URLs. For translations, check reciprocal hreflang annotations and a dedicated URL for each language.
For a redesign, prepare permanent redirects from important old URLs to their corresponding new pages. A sitemap helps discovery; it does not guarantee indexing.
Measure a few verifiable outcomes
Review Core Web Vitals using field data where available, then investigate slow pages with a laboratory tool. Test one useful event, such as a successful form submission, only if analytics has been planned and documented. Arrange a review of server errors and broken links after launch.
Publish with an owner and recovery plan
Record the backup, release version, approval owner and rollback steps. After publication, repeat the three critical journeys on the public domain, then check certificates, redirects, forms and priority pages. Schedule another pass a few days later to review user feedback and crawl errors.