Launch Checklist

See also spreadsheet: Project_Estimates_Quotes_Launch_golive.xlsx

  • review robots.txt (incl disable components and other CPTs as needed)
  • sitelist.xml
  • child theme screenshot.png file
  • favicon
  • login page styling
  • SEO settings on WP Pages
  • WP Reading setting to “Search Engines Encouraged”
  • Backupbuddy running (w/ stash?)
  • screenshots for my portfolio
  • save off a pre-launch backup to MBA
  • Google Analytics setup
  • Webmaster Tools setup
  • test outbound emails (do they go out? do they end up in Gmail spam? need Sparkpost or Suite SMTP setups?)
  • 404 page
  • Old web site URLs 301 redirected to new URLs or new home page
  • check for broken links
  • basic WP styles on style /typography page done
  • user doc written (if necessary)
  • browser testing
  • responsive testing
  • mobile styling / test
  • remove test form submissions
  • remove test pages, posts, comments, components, etc
  • Load time is 3 seconds or less (this might be helpful (https://developers.google.com/speed/pagespeed)
  • backup old site if replacing
  • enable caching?
  • ping search engines
  • remove unneeded mm_log calls
  • Google Open Graph settings
  • site admin email setting
  • GF form submit notifications – check email addrs
  • review / enable woo email notifications (are there any?)
  • activate Akismet for comments (and forms?)
  • enable comments?
  • ensure all WP pages (and TEC events?)  have comments off
  • configure WP admin color scheme for client users?
  • configure admin “Screen Options” for client users
  • set up postname-based permalinks
  • apple touch icons?
  • confirm all images reasonable download size
  • validate HTML
  • validate CSS
  • confirm no loading errors via dev tool console
  • test site as a logged out user!
  • delete unused themes except one fallback twenty-*
  • remove any lingering ImportBuddy scripts/files
  • deactivate (and delete?) all unused plugins
  • turn off WP_DEBUG? (note this disable less recompiles, so re-enable if changing .less files.  Also disables debug.log logging so tread lightly.  Perhaps keep on until launch is proven)
  • confirm RSS feed works
  • alt tags on all images
  • add site to MacBook versions script (in ~/bin)
  • Yoast SEO XML sitemap:
    • disable admin metabox for CPTs in Yoast settings: Titles & Meta / Post Types and Titles & Meta / Taxonomies
    • disable CPTs in Yoast settings: XML sitemap / Post    Types and XML sitemap / Taxonomies
  • log in as client user and turn off all obnoxious plugin notifications
  • Run a Wordfence scan
  • in WP admin set admin email to client email (or keep martha@trumpetvine.com, depending)

  • other ideas

  • Submit site map to Google Analytics
  • Use Google XML Sitemap and submit that to Google Webmaster Tools
  • Verify site ownership with Google Webmaster Tools and Bing Webmaster Tools.
  • Verify sitemap is valid with Google and Bing Webmaster Tools
  • add site to list at /sites-using-trumpetvine-framework/
  • set up backupbuddy, with Stash
  • consider non-backupbuddy backups – code guard on hostgator?
  • exclude /wp-content/debug.log from backupbuddy backups
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