This article covers the essential steps to prepare your website before making it live to the public.
1. Review Your Content and Pages
Start by checking every page on your website. Click through each menu item and read your content aloud. Look for spelling mistakes, missing information, or placeholder text that needs updating.
Check that your business hours and contact details are correct. Verify your phone number, address, and email are accurate. Test that your contact form works by sending yourself a test message.
Make sure all your images load properly and look good on both desktop and mobile devices. Replace any stock photos with your own business images if possible.
2. Test Your Website on Different Devices
View your website on a smartphone, tablet, and computer. Check that text is readable, buttons work, and images display correctly on each device size.
Test your website in different web browsers - Chrome, Safari, Firefox, and Edge. What looks good in one browser might appear differently in another.
Ask family or friends to look at your website and give feedback. Fresh eyes often spot issues you might miss.
3. Set Up Your Domain Name
If you have a custom domain name (like yourcompany.ie), make sure it's properly connected to Web60. Your domain should point to your new website, not show an error page.
Check that both www.yourwebsite.ie and yourwebsite.ie work correctly. Both versions should load your website.
If you're moving from an old website, your domain connection might take 24-48 hours to fully update across the internet.
4. Create a Backup Before Launch
Make a backup of your website before going live. This gives you a restore point if anything goes wrong during launch.
Web60 creates automatic backups, but creating a manual backup before your launch date ensures you have a copy of your website exactly as you want it to appear.
5. Plan Your Launch Announcement
Decide how you'll tell customers about your new website. This might include updating your social media profiles, sending emails to existing customers, or updating your Google My Business listing.
Prepare your social media posts, email newsletters, or printed materials ahead of time. Having these ready means you can announce your launch immediately after your website goes live.
Consider soft-launching first - tell a small group of trusted customers or contacts before announcing publicly. This gives you a chance to fix any issues that come up.
6. Final Technical Checks
Test all your website's links to make sure none are broken. Click every button, menu item, and link to verify they work correctly.
Check that your website loads quickly. If pages take more than a few seconds to load, you may need to optimise images or review your content.
Verify that your SSL certificate is working - your website URL should show "https://" with a padlock icon in the browser address bar.
If you're still stuck with any of these steps, contact Web60 support for help with your website launch preparation.
FAQ
Q: How long before launch should I start preparing?
A: Start your launch preparation at least one week before your planned go-live date. This gives you time to fix any issues you discover during testing.
Q: What if I find problems during my pre-launch testing?
A: Make a list of all issues you find and fix them before going live. It's better to delay your launch by a few days than to launch with problems that frustrate visitors.
Q: Should I announce my website launch on social media?
A: Yes, but only after you've thoroughly tested everything works correctly. A soft launch to friends and family first can help you catch any remaining issues.
Q: Can I make changes to my website after it goes live?
A: Yes, you can continue editing your website after launch. However, major changes are easier to make before you start driving traffic to your site.
Q: What happens if my domain doesn't connect properly?
A: Domain connections can take 24-48 hours to work fully. If your domain isn't working after this time, contact Web60 support for assistance.
Q: Do I need to tell Google about my new website?
A: You don't need to tell Google immediately - they'll find your website automatically. However, you can speed up the process by submitting your website to Google Search Console after launch.
Last updated: 1 March 2026