Homepage launch day: the order to do things in

Key takeaways

On homepage launch day, work through a fixed order: take a backup, publish, remove any search blocks, test the form on a phone, confirm tracking, check speed and links, and only then announce it. Keep someone available for 48 hours. A calm launch is the result of a short run sheet, not of luck.

• Back up first, then publish.
• Remove noindex and password protection.
• Test the form and tracking on the live site.
• Announce only after those checks pass.

What is the right launch-day order?

The right order protects your enquiries first and your announcement last. Each step takes minutes, and it should be written down with a name beside it, because launches often happen under time pressure. Do not tell customers until the page has passed every check on the live site.

• 1. Take and confirm a full backup.
• 2. Publish the new page.
• 3. Remove noindex, passwords and staging links.
• 4. Submit the form from a phone.
• 5. Confirm tracking events are firing.
• 6. Check links, speed and display.
• 7. Inspect the URL in Search Console.
• 8. Tell your team, then your customers.

• How to create a high-converting homepage for an SME
• Website launch checklist: before, during and after
• Plan a rollback before you change your homepage

Who needs to be available?

You need the person publishing, someone who can fix forms and tracking, and whoever answers enquiries. Tell front-line staff what has changed, so that they can recognise new questions. Keep your developer available for 48 hours. Launching when your only technical contact is away is an avoidable risk.

• Who you need to create a homepage
• When to launch a new homepage: pick the quiet week

What should you check on the live site?

Check the page on a phone and a laptop, click every button, test the menu, confirm that images load over https and look for mixed-content warnings. Run PageSpeed Insights on the live URL. Staging hides some problems, including those caused by caching and security settings that only apply in production.

• 'Not secure' warning on your website: what it means
• Which devices should you test your website on?

What should you avoid on launch day?

Avoid making last-minute content edits, adding new plugins or changing the domain at the same time. Change one big thing at a time. Do not start a paid campaign in the same hour, because you need to confirm that the page works before paying to send people there.

• Change one thing at a time: a homepage change log

What happens in the first 48 hours?

Check the enquiry inbox, compare form submissions with GA4, watch for errors and ask the team what customers are saying. Do not judge conversion yet, because the sample is too small. Your only goal for these two days is confirming that nothing is broken.

• The first 30 days after launching a homepage

What does this look like in practice?

A pattern we see at launch: the page goes live, a message goes to the whole mailing list within the hour and the first replies say the form does not work. Holding the announcement until the live checks pass costs an hour, and it protects the one moment when people are paying attention.

• See client work
• Website Design & Development for UK businesses

Homepage launch day checklist

• Confirm the backup.
• Publish the page.
• Remove search blocks.
• Test the form on a phone.
• Confirm tracking.
• Check links and speed.
• Brief your team.
• Announce last.

• Replace your homepage without losing rankings
• When to launch a new homepage: pick the quiet week

Next step

Write your run sheet now, with a name beside each step. If you are launching this month, it will take ten minutes and save you a very long afternoon.