The Small Business Website Launch Checklist
Everything that should be true before your new small business website goes live: pages, forms, SSL, speed, SEO, analytics, and what to do the day after.
Before a small business website goes live, it should have its core pages finished, working forms, HTTPS, fast load times on a phone, basic SEO in place, analytics and Search Console connected, and a plan for the old site's URLs. This checklist walks through each item with a short note on what to check and why. Use it whether you built the site yourself, hired someone, or you're about to sign off on a project with us.
Content and pages
☐ Every core page is finished. Most small businesses need a homepage, a page for each main service, an About page, a Contact page, and a privacy policy. Add an FAQ section and some proof of your work (reviews, a portfolio, or case examples). No "coming soon" pages: if a page isn't ready, leave it out of the menu until it is.
☐ No placeholder text anywhere. Search the site for "lorem ipsum," "TBD," "your text here," and template sample content. Check the footer and the 404 page too; that's where leftovers hide.
☐ Your name, address, and phone number are identical everywhere. Compare the header, footer, Contact page, structured data, and Google Business Profile. Pick one format and use it every time.
☐ Prices, hours, and service areas are current. If you publish them, they need to be right on launch day. Outdated facts on a new site undermine trust fast.
☐ Someone other than you has proofread it. You've read it too many times to see the typos. Ask a friend or employee to read every page on a phone.
Functionality
☐ Every form has been tested end to end. Submit each form with real details and confirm the message arrives in the right inbox, not spam. Then check what the visitor sees after submitting. A form that silently fails is worse than no form.
☐ Phone numbers and emails are tappable. On a phone, tapping the number should start a call and tapping the email address should open a new message.
☐ Every link works. Click every menu item, button, and footer link. Run a broken-link checker if the site is more than a handful of pages.
☐ The site works on real devices. Check at least one iPhone, one Android phone, and a desktop browser. Emulators miss things that real thumbs find.
☐ Booking, payments, or other integrations have been tested. If customers can book or buy, make a real test booking or purchase and refund it.
Security and hosting
☐ HTTPS is on, and HTTP redirects to it. Visit http://yourdomain.com and confirm it lands on https://. Browsers flag sites without HTTPS as not secure.
☐ www and non-www go to the same place. Pick one version and redirect the other to it, so you don't have two copies of your site.
☐ You own the domain and the accounts. The domain registrar, hosting, Google Analytics, Search Console, and Google Business Profile should all be in accounts you control, with your designer added as a user rather than the owner.
☐ Backups are set up. Know where backups live, how often they run, and how you'd restore one.
Speed
☐ The site loads quickly on a phone. Run your homepage and one service page through Google's PageSpeed Insights. Aim for Google's "good" Core Web Vitals thresholds:
| Metric | Target |
|---|---|
| Largest Contentful Paint (LCP) | 2.5 seconds or less |
| Interaction to Next Paint (INP) | 200 milliseconds or less |
| Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS) | 0.1 or less |
☐ Images are compressed and correctly sized. A photo straight off a camera is usually far larger than it needs to be. Resize and compress before upload, and use modern formats like WebP or AVIF where your setup supports them. Our post on why websites are slow covers the common fixes.
SEO and GEO
☐ Every page has a unique title tag and meta description. The title names the page's topic (and your area, for local businesses). The description is one or two sentences a searcher would want to click.
☐ Every page has exactly one H1. It states what the page is about.
☐ Images have alt text. Describe what's in the image, briefly and honestly.
☐ The site isn't blocking search engines. Check that robots.txt doesn't disallow the whole site and that pages don't carry a leftover noindex tag from staging. This one mistake can keep a new site out of Google entirely.
☐ AI crawlers are allowed. If you want to be cited in AI answers, make sure robots.txt isn't blocking them. Consider adding an llms.txt file summarizing your business. Our post on GEO explains why.
☐ Structured data is in place and valid. At minimum, LocalBusiness (or a more specific type) and FAQPage if you have an FAQ section. Test it with Google's Rich Results Test.
☐ An XML sitemap exists. Usually at /sitemap.xml. You'll submit it after launch.
Analytics and tracking
☐ Google Analytics is installed. Confirm it's on every page, not just the homepage.
☐ Google Search Console is set up and verified. This is where Google tells you about indexing problems, search queries, and Core Web Vitals.
☐ Form submissions are tracked. At least know how many contact form submissions you get each month, so you can tell whether the site is working.
☐ A cookie or privacy notice is in place if you need one. Requirements depend on where you and your visitors are and what you track. If you're unsure, ask whoever handles your legal questions.
If you're replacing an old site
☐ Old URLs redirect to their new equivalents. List every page on the old site, especially any that get search traffic, and set up permanent (301) redirects to the matching new pages. Skipping this throws away whatever search visibility the old site had.
☐ Old listings point to the new site. Update your Google Business Profile, social profiles, and directory listings if any URLs changed.
The day after launch
- Submit your sitemap in Google Search Console.
- Check Google Analytics to confirm visits are being recorded.
- Submit every form one more time on the live site.
- Update your Google Business Profile with the new website link if it changed.
- Ask three or four customers to visit the site and tell you what confused them.
- Write down anything you want to change, and handle it in one batch a week or two later.
Summary
A website is ready to launch when its pages are finished and accurate, every form and link works, HTTPS and redirects are in place, it loads quickly on a phone, basic SEO and structured data are done, nothing blocks search engines or AI crawlers, and analytics and Search Console are connected. If you're replacing a site, redirects matter as much as anything else on this list. Many of these items are built into the review and launch steps of our process, and every build includes 30 days of post-launch support for whatever turns up afterward.
Frequently asked
Do I need SSL?
Yes. Browsers mark sites without HTTPS as not secure, which puts visitors off and undermines any form on the page. Most hosts include a free certificate, so there's no reason to launch without it.
What should I do the day after launch?
Submit your sitemap in Google Search Console, confirm Google Analytics is recording visits, send a test through every form, and ask a few customers to look around and tell you what confused them.
What pages does a small business website need at launch?
At minimum a homepage, a page for each main service, an About page, a Contact page, and a privacy policy. An FAQ section and some proof of your work, such as reviews or a portfolio, round it out.
Should I launch before everything is perfect?
Yes, as long as the checklist basics are true. A correct, fast, working site can be improved after launch; a site that sits on staging for months helps nobody.