# Launch checklist for a client site

> Everything to check before a client site goes live: content, the site URL, redirects, the sitemap, roles and what to do after launch.

Run through this list before you point the domain at the new site. Each item takes a minute or two, and together they catch most of what goes wrong on launch day.

## Content

- Every page has a title that says what the page is about, and a meta description. The SEO panel checks both as you edit.
- Images have alt text. The panel lists the ones that don't.
- Placeholder text and test entries are gone. Search for "lorem" and for your own test names.
- The 404 page says something useful and links back to the main pages.
- Legal pages are in place, with the correct company details.

## Technical

- The site URL in settings is the production URL. Canonical links and the sitemap are built from it.
- Run a full build after changing it, so every page carries the new address.
- Redirects from the old site's addresses are in place, under SEO in the admin.
- `/sitemap.xml` lists the pages you expect, and nothing else.
- `/robots.txt` doesn't block anything by accident, including AI crawlers you want to allow.
- HTTPS is on, and the plain HTTP address redirects to it.

## Forms and mail

- Each form sends to the right mailbox. Submit every one of them once, for real.
- Mail settings are for production, and a test mail arrives.
- Form submissions land in the inbox, and spam checks are switched on.
- A webhook, if you use one, points at production rather than staging.

## Before you hand over

- Your client has their own login, with an editor role rather than your admin account.
- You have shown them working copies, preview links and publishing.
- Any paid plugin has its licence activated for the public domain. Local and staging hosts never needed one.
- You know who owns those licences, and it's written down in your handover notes.

## After launch

- Open the site in a private window, on a phone, and read one page from top to bottom.
- Check analytics the next day, to be sure page views are being counted.
- Run the site through the SEO checks in the dashboard and fix anything that comes up.

Next, read [handing over a site to a client](https://lettern.org/resources/handing-over-a-site).

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Source: https://lettern.org/resources/launch-checklist · Updated 2026-10-30