Handover day looks like the day the work ends. In reality, it's the last day problems can be fixed cheaply. A broken form discovered three months after launch means three months of enquiries that never arrived.
Go through the 20 items below with your agency at the handover meeting, or on your own before handover. Most need no technical knowledge; for those that do, we've written what to ask.
Appearance and mobile checks
1. Open every page on your phone, ideally on both iPhone and Android. There should be no horizontal scrolling, overflowing text or overlapping buttons.
2. Look at the same pages on a tablet and a wide desktop screen. Pixelated images on wide screens are a common problem.
3. Small but noticeable details: the site icon in the browser tab (favicon), and the preview image and title that appear when you share a page link on WhatsApp.
4. Make sure no placeholder text is left. Phrases like 'Lorem ipsum', 'Sample heading' or 'Description goes here' can survive on the most unexpected pages, such as the privacy policy or the 404 page.
5. Click every link in the menu and within pages. Also type a non-existent address and check that a proper 404 page appears.
Forms and contact channels
This is the most important part of the list. It's where the site earns money.
6. Fill in and submit the contact form yourself. Which email address does the message go to? Does it land in spam? After submitting, does the visitor see a thank-you message or page? Try once more from a different email address.
7. Tap the phone number on your phone; the call screen should open. Does the WhatsApp button open with the right number and, if set, a pre-filled message? Does clicking the email address open an email app?
8. Is the location on the map correct? A pin in the middle of the street instead of on the building looks minor, but it sends first-time customers to the wrong door.
9. Is there a link to the KVKK privacy notice next to the form, and a consent checkbox where needed? If cookies are used, does the cookie notice work? It's a good idea to have an expert check the content of these texts.
Speed and security
10. Test the homepage and your most important service page in PageSpeed Insights for mobile. A perfect score isn't required, but if there are red areas, ask why.
11. Is there a padlock in the address bar? Does the http version of the site redirect to https automatically, and does the www version redirect to your preferred version?
12. Admin login: an account specific to you rather than a default username like 'admin', a strong password and, if supported, two-step verification.
13. Are backups set up? How often are they taken, where are they stored, and has a restore been tested even once? 'The hosting company takes backups' isn't enough on its own.
SEO basics: titles, sitemap, Search Console
14. Every page should have its own title and meta description. If the browser tab shows the same title on every page, something's missing.
15. Every page should have a single main heading and a sensible subheading structure. Image alt text shouldn't be left empty.
16. Is there a sitemap (sitemap.xml)? More importantly, is the robots.txt file or a 'noindex' tag on the pages hiding the site from search engines? Forgetting this block, added during development, after launch is one of the most expensive mistakes we see. The site may not appear on Google for months.
17. Has Google Search Console been set up and the sitemap submitted? Is Google Analytics or a similar tool measuring visits? If you've moved from an old site, check a few examples to confirm old addresses redirect to the new ones. We covered setting up Search Console step by step in a separate article.
Account and access handover
18. Is the domain registered in your name, in an account you can access? Who owns the hosting account, and who receives its invoices?
19. Have the access details agreed in your contract been handed over in writing? Admin panel, hosting, domain panel, business email. On the Google side, you should preferably own Search Console, Analytics and your Business Profile; the agency can be added as a manager.
20. Did you get a short training session or a written guide showing how to update content? Are the length and scope of post-launch support in writing?
These last two items are usually things that should be settled at the contract stage. We covered what a website contract should include in a separate article.
The first week after launch
Once the site is live, there are a few more quick checks:
- In Search Console, check whether pages are starting to be indexed and look at the error reports.
- Follow the first real enquiries through the form; if none arrive, test the form again.
- Update the site link on your Google Business Profile, social media accounts and email signatures.
- Send the small bugs you notice during this time to the agency as one list rather than one by one. It's easier to track and nothing gets forgotten.
Print the list and take it to the handover meeting. Going through it item by item with the agency takes half an hour and prevents most of the surprises that can come up in the months that follow.
Blog posts are for general information only and are not a substitute for legal, financial or technical advice.