(Pre-launch, During Launch, and Post-launch Tasks in 2025)

Launching a WordPress website is more than uploading a few pages and clicking “Publish.” It’s a careful, strategic process that involves planning, testing, optimizing, and promoting your site to ensure it performs flawlessly from day one.

Whether you’re building a personal blog, portfolio, online store, or business website, following a structured launch checklist can help you avoid common mistakes and ensure your website is professional, functional, and ready for visitors.

• Pre-launch
  
• During launch
  
• Post-launch
  

Let’s dive in.

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🏗️ Pre-launch Checklist: Laying the Foundation

Before your WordPress site goes live, there’s important groundwork to cover to ensure your design, functionality, and security are solid.

✅ 1. Get Domain & Hosting

Choose a domain that reflects your brand and is easy to remember. Purchase it through a registrar like:

• Namecheap
  
• Google Domains
  
• GoDaddy
  

Select a reliable WordPress hosting provider such as:

• Bluehost (Beginner-friendly)
  
• SiteGround (Great support)
  
• WP Engine (Managed hosting)
  
• Hostinger (Budget option)
  

Your hosting must include:

• SSL certificate
  
• Daily backups
  
• WordPress compatibility
  
• Good performance
  

✅ 2. Install WordPress

Most hosting providers offer one-click installation. After installation:

• Log in at yourdomain.com/wp-admin
  
• Set your admin username, password, and email
  
• Keep login credentials secure
  

✅ 3. Choose a Theme

Pick a theme that suits your site’s purpose and is:

• Responsive (mobile-friendly)
  
• SEO-optimized
  
• Lightweight and fast-loading
  
• Compatible with Gutenberg or page builders
  

Free theme examples:

• Astra
  
• Neve
  
• OceanWP
  
• Twenty Twenty-Four (Default theme)
  

Premium options offer advanced features and support (e.g., Kadence, Divi, or GeneratePress).

✅ 4. Install Essential Plugins

Plugins enhance functionality. Start with essentials:

Function	Recommended Plugins
SEO	Yoast SEO, Rank Math
Security	Wordfence, Sucuri
Backups	UpdraftPlus, Jetpack
Speed	WP Rocket, LiteSpeed Cache
Forms	WPForms, Forminator
Image Optimization	Smush, ShortPixel
Analytics	Site Kit by Google

Avoid plugin overload—only install what you need.

✅ 5. Set Up Site Structure

Organize your site with key pages:

• Home
  
• About
  
• Contact
  
• Services or Products
  
• Blog
  
• Privacy Policy & Terms
  

Use the Block Editor or page builder to design layouts.

✅ 6. Configure Site Settings

Under Settings:

• General: Set site title, tagline, and timezone
  
• Reading: Choose homepage display (static page or blog feed)
  
• Permalinks: Choose Post name structure for clean URLs
  
• Discussion: Manage comments and moderation settings
  

✅ 7. Upload Your Logo and Favicon

Go to Appearance > Customize > Site Identity to upload:

• Logo
  
• Site icon (favicon)
  
• Set title and tagline
  

✅ 8. Customize Menus and Widgets

• Create navigation under Appearance > Menus
  
• Add widgets in Appearance > Widgets (e.g., search, recent posts)
  

✅ 9. Optimize for Mobile

Preview your site on phones and tablets:

• Use Chrome DevTools (right-click > Inspect > Toggle Device Toolbar)
  
• Test menus, images, and readability
  

✅ 10. Review SEO Readiness

Set up:

• Title tags and meta descriptions
  
• XML sitemap (via SEO plugin)
  
• Alt text for images
  
• Robots.txt file
  
• Canonical URLs
  

Install SEO tools (Google Search Console, Bing Webmaster Tools) and verify ownership.

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🚀 During Launch Checklist: Go Live with Confidence

It’s launch day! But don’t hit “publish” without verifying every critical detail. This is the moment where everything must be tested and ready.

✅ 1. Double Check Content and Design

Proofread all content:

• Grammar and spelling
  
• Internal links
  
• Page formatting
  
• Placeholder images or text
  
• Accessibility (alt tags, contrast, font size)
  

✅ 2. Test All Forms and CTAs

Submit test forms to ensure:

• You receive the submissions
  
• Notifications work
  
• Confirmation messages or thank-you pages load
  
• CAPTCHA works (spam protection)
  

✅ 3. Configure SSL & HTTPS

Ensure your SSL certificate is active:

• Check for mixed content errors
  
• Confirm the padlock icon shows in browsers
  

✅ 4. Test Website Speed

Use tools like:

• GTmetrix
  
• Google PageSpeed Insights
  
• Pingdom
  

Fix issues like:

• Large images
  
• Too many scripts
  
• Unused plugins
  
• Render-blocking JavaScript
  

Aim for page load times under 3 seconds.

✅ 5. Check for Broken Links

Run a broken link check with:

• Broken Link Checker plugin
  
• Screaming Frog (desktop tool)
  
• Ahrefs or SEMrush (paid tools)
  

Fix or redirect any 404 errors.

✅ 6. Submit Sitemap to Search Engines

Once your SEO plugin generates a sitemap (yourdomain.com/sitemap.xml):

• Submit it in Google Search Console
  
• Submit it to Bing Webmaster Tools
  

This speeds up indexing and improves visibility.

✅ 7. Enable Caching and CDN

Enable browser caching and use a Content Delivery Network (CDN) like:

• Cloudflare
  
• Bunny.net
  

This improves load speed globally and reduces server strain.

✅ 8. Install Analytics

Track traffic, behavior, and conversions using:

• Google Analytics (via Site Kit)
  
• Microsoft Clarity for heatmaps and user session recordings
  

Set goals to track:

• Form submissions
  
• Product purchases
  
• Newsletter signups
  

✅ 9. Remove Maintenance Mode

If using a coming soon plugin (e.g., SeedProd), disable it so your site is publicly accessible.

✅ 10. Announce Your Launch

Promote your launch across platforms:

• Social media (Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Twitter)
  
• Email newsletters
  
• Online communities or forums
  
• Press releases or blog announcements
  

Create excitement and attract visitors from day one.

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🔁 Post-launch Checklist: Maintain, Optimize, and Grow

The launch is just the beginning. Now you’ll focus on keeping your site secure, optimized, and ready for long-term success.

✅ 1. Backup Regularly

Set up automated backups using:

• UpdraftPlus
  
• BlogVault
  
• Jetpack Backup
  

Store backups off-site (Google Drive, Dropbox, Amazon S3).

✅ 2. Monitor Performance and Uptime

Use tools like:

• Uptime Robot
  
• Jetpack Monitor
  
• Better Uptime
  

Set alerts for downtime, slow speeds, or broken pages.

✅ 3. Update Software Regularly

• Weekly plugin updates
  
• Monthly full-site reviews
  
• Backup before every major update
  

✅ 4. Monitor SEO Health

Keep improving your rankings by:

• Publishing fresh content regularly
  
• Updating old posts
  
• Fixing crawl errors in Google Search Console
  
• Building backlinks
  
• Monitoring keyword rankings
  

✅ 5. Analyze User Behavior

Use Google Analytics and Clarity to:

• Track popular pages
  
• See where users click
  
• Identify drop-off points
  
• Improve conversion paths
  

✅ 6. Tighten Website Security

In addition to a firewall plugin, consider:

• Two-factor authentication (2FA)
  
• Changing your login URL
  
• Disabling XML-RPC
  
• Limiting login attempts
  

Consider professional security tools like Sucuri or MalCare.

✅ 7. Collect and Implement Feedback

Add:

• Feedback forms
  
• Surveys
  
• Chatbots
  
• Comment sections
  

Listen to your visitors and refine the experience.

✅ 8. Grow Your Email List

Start building relationships:

• Add sign-up forms (using Mailchimp, MailerLite, etc.)
  
• Offer lead magnets (eBooks, checklists, discounts)
  
• Send regular newsletters
  

Email marketing is one of the highest ROI tools for website owners.

✅ 9. Build a Content Strategy

A blog or content hub helps with SEO, trust-building, and customer education. Plan out:

• Monthly content calendars
  
• Keyword-focused topics
  
• Promotional campaigns
  

Tools like Notion, Airtable, or Trello can help manage your content pipeline.

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✅ Final Thoughts: Launch with Confidence

Launching a WordPress website is a major step—but it doesn’t have to be overwhelming. With the right checklist, tools, and mindset, you can confidently move from concept to a fully functioning, high-performance site.