Before you launch: a website checklist for small businesses

The last week before a website launch is when small details get missed. The design is done and everyone is ready to go live, and then a month later someone notices the contact form has been sending messages nowhere.

Here’s the checklist I run through before any small-business site goes live. It works whether you’re launching a brand-new site or relaunching an old one.

It works on a phone

Most visitors will see your site on a phone first, so test it on real phones, not just a narrow desktop browser window.

• Text is readable without zooming, and nothing scrolls sideways.
• Buttons and links are big enough to tap without hitting the one next to them.
• Phone numbers and email addresses open the phone or email app when tapped.

It loads quickly

A slow site loses visitors before they read a word. The usual culprits are oversized images, auto-playing video, and too many plugins or third-party scripts.

• Resize images to the size they’re actually shown at, and use modern formats like WebP or AVIF.
• Run your key pages through Google’s free PageSpeed Insights and fix the biggest issues it flags.
• Remove anything you added “just in case” and aren’t using.

Search engines can understand it

• Every page has its own title and meta description, written for people, that says what the page is about.
• Each page has one clear main heading, and headings follow a logical order below it.
• The site has an XML sitemap, and you’ve submitted it in Google Search Console so you can see how Google finds and indexes your pages.
• If customers find you locally, your Google Business Profile is claimed, complete, and links to the new site.
• If you’re replacing an old site, old addresses redirect to the matching new pages instead of showing an error.

People can reach you

The whole point of most small-business websites is to start a conversation, so make that easy.

• Your contact details or a clear “contact us” link are on every page.
• You’ve submitted every form yourself and confirmed the message arrived, including on a phone.
• Form messages go to an inbox someone actually checks.

Everyone can use it

Accessibility helps every visitor, not just people with disabilities, and it’s increasingly expected.

• Images that carry meaning have descriptive alt text.
• Text has enough contrast against its background. WCAG, the main accessibility standard, asks for a contrast ratio of at least 4.5:1 for normal-sized text.
• You can reach and use every link, button, and form field with the keyboard alone.
• Every form field has a visible label.

You own it, and it’s secure

This is the part most often overlooked, and the hardest to fix later.

• The domain is registered in your business’s name, in an account you control, with auto-renew turned on.
• The site loads over HTTPS everywhere, with a certificate that renews automatically.
• Hosting and site admin accounts use strong, unique passwords and multifactor authentication.
• Backups are running, and you know how to restore one.

You can measure it

• Analytics is installed and recording visits.
• Important actions, like form submissions or calls, are tracked so you can see what’s working.
• If you collect personal information or use analytics, your privacy policy says so.

The final pass

Click every link. Check the favicon, the 404 page, and how the site looks when you share a link on LinkedIn or in a text message. Read every page out loud once. You’ll catch typos you’ve looked past a dozen times.

Planning a new website or a refresh? Tell me about it. I design and build fast, search-friendly sites for small businesses, and this checklist is part of every launch.