Technical SEO and website performance: a pre-launch checklist
What to check before launch: Core Web Vitals, mobile UX, crawlability, metadata, structured data, accessibility and analytics.
What to check before launch: Core Web Vitals, mobile UX, crawlability, metadata, structured data, accessibility and analytics.
Start SEO with site structure and intent
Plan information architecture before optimizing code. Each important page should answer a specific visitor need. Use readable URLs, descriptive links and a clear heading hierarchy.
Avoid near-duplicate pages created only to repeat variations of a keyword. Useful, understandable content matters more than keyword repetition.
Performance: images and critical resources first
Oversized photos, autoplay video, large JavaScript bundles and webfonts can all slow down a page. Choose appropriate resolutions, compress media and lazy-load below-the-fold content.
Monitor Core Web Vitals: LCP, INP and CLS. Test on real mobile hardware and realistic network conditions.
Crawlability and metadata
Review server responses, XML sitemap, robots.txt, canonical URLs, title tags and descriptions. Multilingual websites need correct hreflang associations and document language.
Important content should exist in crawlable HTML. Avoid accidental noindex directives. Add structured data only when it accurately describes real information.
Accessibility is part of quality
Keyboard navigation, contrast, form labels, alternative image text and meaningful headings improve usability. Decorative video should be muted and motion should respect reduced-motion preferences.
Test contact forms for validation, readable errors, mobile use and genuine server-side confirmation.
A practical launch checklist
Before go-live, test mobile layouts and forms, audit links and redirects, verify indexability, images and Open Graph metadata, and measure performance.
After launch, use real data rather than assuming the project is finished. Optimization is an ongoing process.