You are loving your new website, it looks great and you just want to get it up! However, here are two very important things to consider before you sign it off –
1. Your site will now be available in all its glory to the public, your prospects and clients so you don’t want anything to look wrong or not work. 2. The website creation project is now complete and the responsibility for your website is now yours and not your web developers.
Consider it like signing off your artwork proof before it goes to print. Normally, any fixes after this are considered website support and maintenance and are billable to you on top of the cost for creating the site. So it’s important that you take the time to do a thorough check of your site for anything that is incorrect or not working before you sign it off.
Here are some key things to check before you approve your completed website:
- Check that each and every page is loading correctly and looking the way you planned it.
- Test your website in other computers as well as multiple browsers
- Test your website on mobile devices like phones and tablets to see how it looks in the smaller screen view.
- Read through all the text on every page and make sure it is correct
- Try navigating around the site and just make sure the navigation is easy to use and fully functional. Don’t forget to test your breadcrumbs.
- Click through ALL the links to make sure there are no broken links.
- Test that all your images are loading properly
- Check that all your contact details are correct
- Fill in any forms as tests to check that you get a thank you message and that the form goes through. Get others to test this for you on different computers too.
- Make sure you have Copyright, privacy and any required Terms and Conditions on there
- Ensure your sitemap is correct and loaded onto the website as this is what Google and other search engines use to navigate your site.
- Check that any SEO done for your site has been implemented
- Take note of the loading times. If your website is too slow to load, visitors will move on.
- Get someone not involved with the website to do a check and see how they find it to use.
Rigorously checking your site to make sure it is correct and getting all the fixes done before it goes live will ensure there is both credibility and longevity in your site and give you one less thing to worry about for a while. However, remember that the internet is dynamic and your website should be constantly changing and adapting to be optimal. Your website is also a piece of software, so like all software it will get bugs, require maintenance and upgrading when a new version comes out. So don’t just expect to put your site up and leave it indefinitely, or you may find yourself in trouble without support down the track. Have a plan for your website moving forward. Consider buying some support and maintenance hours from your Web Developer so if anything goes wrong they are ready to help. Having support hours with an online marketing company like Blaze Marketing, will mean not only do you have someone regularly maintaining your site, but you also have back up for emergencies and your own web team to constantly improve your website, keep it fresh and working seamlessly for greater engagement and lead generation.
