Ever wondered what happens on Go-Live day? Let me break it down for you.
Launching a website isn’t a single click-and-done moment. It’s a process where a few technical switches are flipped, final checks are made, and the site moves from a private or staging environment into the real world.
Most of the work should already be done long before launch day. The live day itself is about confirming everything behaves exactly as expected once real users and real browsers are involved.
Before the site goes live
By the time launch day arrives, the website should already be fully built, approved and tested. This includes:
- All pages signed off
- Final content and images in place
- Mobile and tablet layouts checked
- Forms tested in a staging environment
- Legal pages added (privacy policy, cookie information, terms if needed)
Launch day is not the time for design changes or new ideas.
Any changes at this stage increase the risk of something breaking.
Making the site live
The actual “go live” moment usually involves one or more of the following:
- Updating DNS settings so the domain points to the live website
- Removing password protection or “coming soon” pages
- Switching the site from a staging URL to the main domain
- Enabling caching and performance tools
Some DNS changes can take a few hours and on some platforms even up to a day or 2 to fully propagate, so it’s normal for different people to see different versions of the site for a short time.
Immediate post-launch checks
Once the site is publicly accessible, a series of quick checks should happen straight away.
This usually includes:
- Opening the site on desktop and mobile
- Clicking through key pages
- Submitting all forms and confirming emails arrive
- Checking contact details and phone links
- Confirming HTTPS (SSL) is active and showing correctly
- Checking page titles and meta descriptions are present
This is also when small issues often appear, such as spacing differences, fonts loading oddly, or images behaving differently outside the staging environment.
These are normal and usually quick to fix.
When we switch an existing website to the newly design website, we tend to do this late in the evening or on Friday afternoon when there is little website traffic so that there is the least amount of disruption to your business.
We encourage you NOT to watch and refresh your website every few minutes as we do the final checks and make the final amendments. We will then email you once everything is completed.
SEO and tracking setup
A website going live without tracking or search visibility is like opening a shop without turning the lights on.
On or immediately after launch day, this should be checked:
- Google Search Console connected
- Google Analytics or equivalent installed
- XML sitemap submitted
- Search engine indexing enabled
- Any old URLs redirected if this is a redesign
- Set up of pixels or other tracking tags that were on your previous website
If we redesigned your website, we will ensure that SEO performance remains the same and is improved with the new website.
If your website is brand new, SEO ranking doesn’t happen instantly. The goal at launch is clean foundations, not rankings.
Legal and compliance checks
If the site collects personal data in any way, compliance needs to be in place from day one.
This includes:
- Privacy policy linked in the footer
- Cookie banner functioning correctly if cookies are used
- Forms clearly explaining how data is used
- Secure handling of contact form submissions
For UK and EU businesses, GDPR compliance isn’t optional and shouldn’t be treated as a last-minute add-on.
Soft launch vs full launch
Not every website needs a big announcement.
Many sites benefit from a soft launch, where the site is live but not actively promoted for a few days. This allows:
- Real users to test the site
- Bugs to appear naturally
- Final tweaks without pressure
Once everything feels stable, promotion can begin.
Expect small tweaks after launch
No website launches perfectly. Even with thorough testing, real users behave differently than expected.
Common post-launch tweaks include:
- Clarifying wording
- Improving button placement
- Fixing minor layout issues
This doesn’t mean the launch failed. It means the website is doing its job.
The most important thing to remember
A website is not a finished product. It’s a living tool that improves over time.
Launch day is simply the point where the site becomes visible. The real value comes from what happens after: refining, improving and responding to how people actually use it.
What we handle vs what you handle on launch day
Website launches work best when everyone knows who is responsible for what. By the time launch day arrives, most decisions should already be made, and the focus shifts to checks and confirmations rather than changes.
What we handle
On launch day, this is typically what we take care of:
- Making the website live on your domain
- Handling hosting and DNS changes if agreed
- Removing any password protection or holding pages
- Final technical checks once the site is public
- Testing forms and core functionality
- Connecting tracking tools like Google Analytics and Search Console
- Ensuring the site is secure and loading correctly
If any small issues appear after launch (which is normal), we’ll fix these as part of the immediate post-launch tidy-up.
What you handle
There are a few things that usually sit with you as the business owner:
- Final approval of content before launch
- Providing access to any third-party tools if needed (email marketing platforms, booking systems, etc.)
- Checking that contact emails are arriving in the correct inbox
- Letting us know quickly if something doesn’t look or feel right
You don’t need to understand the technical side, but your feedback is important once real customers start using the site.
A shared responsibility
Launch day works best as a collaboration. We manage the technical setup and stability of the site, while you bring the real-world perspective of how your customers interact with it.
Clear communication before and just after launch keeps everything smooth and avoids last-minute panic on what should be a positive milestone for your business.
