Launch went well, apparently
The new site goes live on a Tuesday. Everyone is pleased. Two weeks later the client asks why their enquiries have dropped. The developer checks and finds the contact form on live is sending to the staging email address. A week after that, the client's SEO consultant points out that the search engine visibility setting in WordPress is still set to discourage indexing, and half the old URLs return a 404 because the redirect map was never loaded.
The studio does have a launch checklist. It is a Google Doc. The developer ticked most of it from memory on launch day, while also handling DNS changes and the client's questions.
Why launch steps get missed
- Launch happens under pressure, usually with DNS changes and client calls going on at the same time.
- The checklist is a document that relies on someone reading and ticking it honestly.
- Many items can only be checked on the live site, after the switch, when attention has moved on.
- Settings that were right on staging, such as noindex and test email addresses, have to be reversed on live.
- Each developer has their own habits, so the checklist is followed differently each time.
A checklist is only as good as the attention of the person holding it at the busiest moment of the project.
What a missed step costs
Lost leads from broken forms. Lost search traffic from missing redirects or noindex left on, which can take time to recover. Lost analytics data for the first weeks, which the client wanted for comparing before and after. The agency's launch, which should be the high point of the relationship, turns into a series of apologies.
The go-live check we build
- The checks are defined once for your standard builds, with extras per project where needed, such as e-commerce checkout or booking systems.
- Before launch, the old site's URLs are crawled and the redirect map is prepared and checked against the new site's pages.
- On launch, the check runs against the live domain: SSL valid, HTTP to HTTPS redirect, redirects from old URLs working, no pages set to noindex that should be indexed, robots file correct, sitemap present.
- Analytics and tag manager tags are checked on key pages, and a test event is confirmed.
- Forms are submitted on live with a marked test entry, and delivery to the client's real address is confirmed.
- Staging leftovers are checked: feedback scripts removed, test email addresses gone, debug mode off, staging domain links not present.
- Results show as a pass or fail list. Launch sign-off is blocked until items pass or a named person accepts an exception with a reason.
| Check | Common failure it catches |
|---|---|
| Search engine visibility | Noindex left on from staging |
| Redirects | Old URLs returning 404 |
| Analytics and tags | Tracking not firing on live |
| Forms | Submissions going to test addresses |
| Staging leftovers | Feedback widget or staging links on live |
| SSL and HTTPS | Mixed content or no redirect |
The check does not replace judgement on launch day. It catches the mechanical things so the developer can focus on the parts that need a person.
Launch day with automated checks
DNS switches over. The developer runs the check. Two items fail: a handful of old URLs are not redirecting and the form is still going to the test address. Both are fixed within the launch window and the check reruns clean. The client gets a launch note listing everything checked. Two weeks later, the enquiries are arriving as expected.
Have launches caught you out?
- Your launch checklist is a document ticked from memory.
- Sites have gone live with noindex still on.
- Old URLs have returned 404s after a launch.
- Forms have sent to test addresses on live.
- Analytics have been missing for the first weeks.