Great content cannot rank if search engines cannot crawl, understand and trust your site. Use this checklist before you launch.
1. Crawlability
- Publish a
robots.txtthat allows important pages. - Generate an XML sitemap and submit it in Google Search Console.
- Use clean, descriptive URLs.
2. On-page basics
- One unique title tag (under about 60 characters) per page.
- A compelling meta description for every page.
- One H1 per page with a logical H2/H3 structure.
- Descriptive alt text on meaningful images.
3. Speed and Core Web Vitals
Compress images, serve modern formats, enable gzip/Brotli, cache static files and avoid heavy scripts. Aim for fast Largest Contentful Paint on mobile.
4. Mobile and security
Use a responsive layout, enable HTTPS and redirect HTTP to HTTPS and non-www to your preferred host.
5. Structured data
Add Organization, BreadcrumbList, FAQ and Service schema where relevant so search engines can show richer results.
Launch-day checklist you can print
- Site is not blocked by
robots.txtor a leftover "noindex" setting from development. - Every page has one unique title, one meta description and one H1.
- XML sitemap is submitted in Google Search Console and Bing Webmaster Tools.
- HTTPS works everywhere, with
wwwand non-wwwredirecting to one version. - Old URLs redirect (301) to their new equivalents if you rebuilt an existing site.
- 404 page returns a real 404 status and links to useful pages.
- Open Graph image and favicon are set so shared links look professional.
- Analytics and Search Console are installed and verified.
Core Web Vitals in plain language
Google measures real-user experience with three main signals. Aim for these "good" ranges, then test on a mobile connection rather than only on your office Wi-Fi.
| Signal | What it measures | Good target |
|---|---|---|
| LCP (Largest Contentful Paint) | How fast the main content appears | 2.5 seconds or less |
| INP (Interaction to Next Paint) | How quickly the page responds to taps and clicks | 200 milliseconds or less |
| CLS (Cumulative Layout Shift) | How much the layout jumps while loading | 0.1 or less |
Common fixes: compress and resize images, serve modern formats such as WebP, set image width and height, remove unused scripts, enable caching and compression and avoid heavy page-builder plugins.
Internal linking and site structure
Search engines discover and understand pages through links. Keep important pages within three clicks of the home page, link related pages to each other with descriptive anchor text and avoid orphan pages that no other page links to. A logical structure such as Services > Service page > Related blog helps both users and crawlers.
Mistakes we see on new websites
- Leaving the development "discourage search engines" setting on after launch.
- Using the same title and description on many pages.
- Images of several megabytes on the home page.
- Forms and buttons that break on small phones.
- No redirect plan when the old site had rankings.
Frequently asked questions
How long until a new website appears on Google?
Pages can be discovered within days once the site is crawlable and submitted, but ranking for competitive searches takes longer and depends on content quality and competition.
Do I need a developer for technical SEO?
Basic items are easy to check yourself. Speed, structured data, redirects and crawl issues usually need a developer, which is why our SEO team works together with our engineers.
Can you check my site?
Yes. Request a free website audit and we will send a prioritised list of fixes.
6. Measure
Install GA4, verify Google Search Console and Bing Webmaster Tools, and review indexing and performance monthly.
Need help? Request a free website and SEO audit, or let our SEO team fix it all for you.