# A pre-launch checklist for business websites

> Twenty checks worth running before a site goes live — content, mobile, speed, search and handover. Tick them off as you go; your progress stays in your browser.

By Odd Birds Studio · 27 Oct 2026 · Launch · 2 min read

Launch day problems are rarely dramatic. They are a broken contact form, a page that does not fit a phone, an analytics tag nobody installed. Each one is small; together they decide whether the first week brings enquiries or embarrassment.

Use this list in the last few days before a website goes live. It is interactive — tick items off and your progress is kept in this browser.

## Content and links

Placeholder text and stale details are the fastest way to lose trust. Read every page once more as if you were a customer seeing it for the first time.

### Content and links

- [ ] Every page has a real title and description — no placeholder text anywhere
- [ ] Contact details, prices and opening hours match what the business uses today
- [ ] Every form has been submitted for real, and the message arrived
- [ ] No broken links, including in the footer and the menu

## Mobile and accessibility

Most visitors will arrive on a phone. Resizing a desktop browser is not the same as holding a real device in one hand on a bright day.

### Mobile and accessibility

- [ ] Every page checked on a real phone, not only a resized browser
- [ ] Buttons and links are easy to tap with a thumb
- [ ] Text has enough contrast to read outdoors
- [ ] The whole site can be used with a keyboard alone
- [ ] Images have meaningful alt text, and decorative ones are hidden

## Speed

A page that feels instant on office Wi-Fi can take several seconds on mobile data. Check on the slowest realistic connection, not the fastest.

### Speed

- [ ] Images are resized and served in modern formats like WebP or AVIF
- [ ] The home page tested on a throttled mobile connection
- [ ] Unused scripts, plugins and fonts removed
- [ ] Core Web Vitals checked in PageSpeed Insights

## Search and sharing

Search engines and social networks read your pages differently from people. A few minutes here decides how the site looks when someone searches for it or shares a link.

### Search and sharing

- [ ] A sitemap is published and submitted to Google Search Console
- [ ] Staging or test pages are not indexable
- [ ] Links shared on social media show the right title and image
- [ ] Old URLs redirect to their new pages if the site is replacing another

## Tracking and handover

A website the business cannot update or access is a liability. Make sure the keys — accounts, passwords and know-how — are in the right hands before launch.

### Tracking and handover

- [ ] Analytics installed and recording visits
- [ ] The business owns the domain, hosting and analytics accounts
- [ ] Someone on the team knows how to update content

> **The one check people skip**
>
> Submit every form on the live domain, not only on the test site. Email delivery, spam filters and security settings often behave differently once a site moves to its real address.