Free Small Business Website Launch Checklist

32 things every US small business should verify before going live. Skip any of them and you'll bleed leads, rankings, or trust.

1. 01Custom domain registered (yourbusiness.com, not yourbiz.wixsite.com)
2. 02SSL certificate active and forcing HTTPS
3. 03Mobile-responsive layout tested on iPhone and Android
4. 04Lighthouse performance score ≥ 90 on desktop, ≥ 70 on mobile
5. 05Page weight under 1.5 MB
6. 06Hero loads in under 2.5 seconds on 4G
7. 07Click-to-call button in mobile header
8. 08Google Business Profile claimed and linked
9. 09Contact form with email + SMS notification
10. 10Calendar booking integration if applicable
11. 11Privacy policy and terms of use pages
12. 12Cookie banner (required for EU traffic)
13. 13Google Analytics 4 installed
14. 14Google Search Console verified
15. 15XML sitemap submitted
16. 16robots.txt allowing all major + AI bots
17. 17Unique <title> on every page (under 60 chars)
18. 18Unique meta description on every page (under 160 chars)
19. 19Single H1 per page using the target keyword
20. 20Internal links between every cornerstone page
21. 21Alt text on every image
22. 22Schema.org markup: Organization, LocalBusiness, FAQPage where relevant
23. 23Open Graph + Twitter Card meta tags
24. 24Favicon and Apple touch icon
25. 25404 page with navigation home
26. 26Hosting backup configured (daily)
27. 27Uptime monitoring (e.g. UptimeRobot free tier)
28. 28GDPR/CCPA-compliant data handling for forms
29. 29Testimonial or review section above the fold
30. 30Pricing visible (or 'starting at' if quote-based)
31. 31About page with founder photo and US business address
32. 32Email signed up to a CRM or ESP (HubSpot, Mailchimp, ConvertKit)