A Checklist for Launching eCommerce Sites - The Basics

Your site is ready to go, you have all of your merchandise created and you're ready to launch your eCommerce website. With all the work that goes into launching a new online store, it can be easy to forget some thing. Who knows, you may perhaps be overlooking something that didn't know you were supposed to accomplish!

Forgetting a small detail can be as easy to forgetting the most important ingredient at the store However, the consequences can be significantly more dire.

So, to make sure you don't get the sinking "what did I forget" feeling We've put together an crucial checklist before you launch. Just like a rocket, make sure you've gone through the entire checklist twice!

You might want to print the checklist or share it to the internet?

Design:

When a potential customer visits your website, you want to impress them! Your site should get the attention of potential customers, demonstrate the quality of your goods and your business is professional, and guide your visitors to where you would like them to take them ( hint: it's usually on the page for checkout!).

Here are a few important design considerations:

• Do you have your logo and color scheme consistent? A consistent brand lets your visitors know that they're in the right spot. Check every page on your site for uniform colours, fonts, and other style elements. Make sure you check hover colors for links and buttons!
  
• Do you make clearly-defined calls to action? If you don't make your visitors purchase what are they doing? Utilize buttons with colors that appear on the page and choose language that's actionable - "Buy Now", "Shop Tees", or "Find the right Size."
  
• Are your checkout and cart pages be easily accessed? The last thing you'd want to do is cause an interested customer to leave because they can't figure out what to do to checkout. A great option is to add cart icons on the upper right-hand part of your menu. This expands to include links to your Checkout page. Then, no matter where the user is visiting your website, they can purchase.
  
• Are you able to grab the attention of your visitors immediately? If you don't attract your website's users' attention during the first few minutes, they'll go away. 55% of users spend just 15 minutes on websites! Make sure to showcase your products' pictures on your home page, use appealing text, or even show videos of your product on display to attract interest.
  
• Do you have a"favicon? A favicon is the symbol that is displayed in the browser address bar and your bookmarks list. It needs to be well-branded and easily identifiable so that in the event that your customers are browsing 32 tabs of cat video open, they will be able to navigate returned to your shop.
  
• Are your products displayed properly? You don't want your website's design in itself to detract from the product - they must be the main focus! It is important that on your catalog and category pages, users are able to discern your product from others and know what each is and how to find out more information.
  
• Do you have a retina-friendly image of the image? Many devices now have retina display screens, with a greater density of pixels, making content look crisper. If you want to ensure that your logo is completely ready, make sure you include a version with a retina resolution that's exactly two times the dimension of your original. A lot of themes allow you to achieve this, or it's possible to use a plugin similar to WordPress Retina 2.x.

 Functionality:

It's not really important whether your website looks stunning and impresses but if your website isn't working! Go through each of these details to make sure that your website is easy for your customers to use.

• Do all of your links function? Make sure you check all links on pages, products, headers, and footers. If you're linking to other websites, they should be able to be opened in a different tab.
  
• Do forms work? Fill out your contact form , and verify that it goes through. Check to see that your customer gets a confirmation email or an email, and you are notified of the submission.
  
• Is your contact information accurate and visible? It's always good to provide multiple options for your customers to contact you. Are your address, email address, and phone number readily accessible?
  
• Do you have a website with a 404 page? What happens if you click on a wrong link or if you type the wrong URL? A 404 page can be a great way to guide users to the information they're searching for - make the most of it! Add links to relevant pages and a search box which could allow you transform a mistake an opportunity to make money.
  
• If you're migrating from an alternative platform, will existing customers access their orders? Make sure that they are able to log into their account and see their tracking details and subscriptions, if applicable. You'll also want to backup all your purchases from the previous website.
  
• Are you removing unneeded files? Go through your WordPress backend and delete unused themes, plugins, pages, and posts. Those are easy access points to hackers, and they could be found in Google search results.

 eCommerce:

It's your first time launching a shop in the end, and it is important to ensure that your store is running smoothly and can help your customers convert to buyers. These are the most important things to consider:

• Are taxes set up correctly? Taxes are an crucial aspect of running your enterprise and you need to make sure that they're set up correctly. It is possible to find your tax settings by going to Settings > Tax. You'll be able to find a range of options that will work for your particular situation, however we do recommend consulting with your accountant or tax expert to make sure you're following correct actions.
  
• Do your checkout procedures function? If there's a credit card error, is your message match? Go through your checkout process in its entirety, from placing a purchase in your cart to selecting an option for shipping, to paying. Make sure you check each of your methods of payment if there are multiple payment options. Check out the account or entering incorrect information into - the CVV on your credit card, as an instance. Make sure an appropriate error message appears so the cardholder knows what issue is.
  
• Are coupon codes working? Test each of coupon codes to confirm they offer the proper discount (free shipping, percent off, etc.) during the checkout process.
  
• Are variations possible? If you have variably priced products, consider changing the variations, and ensure that prices and photos adjust accordingly.
  
• Is your shipping working? Whether your shipping calculations are weight-based, product-based, or cart-based, try several combinations of options to see if that the calculations are correct. Review all options for shipping in place and experiment with various shipping options. It is also important to ensure that the shipping labels you have set up function properly.
  
• Does the currency of your website change in accordance with its needs? Do you have an international website that supports the ability to convert currencies? Check that your changes are appropriate for the goods as well as shipping.
  
• If the product is digital, are they delivered upon the purchase? If you sell digital items through your online store ensure that all the correct files are uploaded and successfully delivered after the purchase. Visit the Settings tab, then Product > Downloadable Items to see the options available for the delivery of files.
  
• Are you able to help someone to find what they're seeking? There should be multiple ways for your site users to locate the answer to their issue. Be sure the menu navigation is easy to navigate and your items are categorize in a manner that makes sense. You may also want to think about filters that are by price, color, brand, etc. that will help your customers narrow down your product list.
  
• Are your extensions working? You may have different extensions that are specifically designed for you, like Product Add-Ons or Mix and Match Products. It is important to test for them too!
  
• What is the way your products appear on social media? If you share the product via Facebook Does the proper image show? Does the title and description appear right? It is the Yoast SEO plugin allows you to alter the look of your website on social media.
  
• Do you know if cross-sells or upsells are working? These are efficient methods for increasing the total value of your shopping cart So you must ensure that they're setup in a proper manner. This can be done on every product's individual page by going to the Product Information section and then Linked Products. View a more thorough instruction here.

 SEO:

SEO is a term with lots of hype over it, with good reason. The term Search engines Optimization is the practice of getting your name noticed on websites like Google when people are looking for something you offer.

There is a great deal of time and money on details of each element of SEO (critically important if you want to beat heavy competition) However, merely doing the basics right will put you a step over the vast majority of brand new eCommerce businesses.

• Do you have interesting meta text descriptions? The meta descriptions for your pages and products are the ones that customers find when they search through Google. Make sure that they're compelling and make people want to go to your site over your competitors'.
  
• Do all of your images contain alt texts? Alt text plays an important part in many reasons. It's the sole way that Google is able to "read" your photos and understand what they display. Two, screen readers are able to read alt texts aloud in order for those visually impaired understand the content. The alt text you choose to use should be explicit of the image. It should also contain your target keyword in a natural manner.
  
• Do you have good title tags? The title of your products should be concise and specific. They should contain your target keywords and be designed with your users in mind. Remember, this is what users will see when they search for products through the internet!
  
• What's your URL structure? Your URLs should be clear and concise. It helps users and search engines understand exactly what your product page is about. For example, it's much easier to understand what www.example.com/red-dog-leash is about than www.example.com/index.php?id_reddogleash=360&sid=3a5ebc944f41daa6f849f730f1. Be sure to break phrases with dashes rather than underscores.
  
• If migrating from another platform, are your URLs consistent or changed? If you're moving from another platform, it's essential to make sure that all your URLs are exactly the identical to the website you're using or create 301 redirects. This can help direct Google to the new site and help prevent or minimize a loss in rankings.
  
• Do you have a sitemap and have you submitted your sitemap Google? An XML sitemap is basically a diagram of your site's content that assists Google to know exactly which pages are. It is easy to create a sitemap by using Yoast SEO or similar plugin. You can also send your sitemap to Google using Google Search Console.

 Security:

The last thing you want is for your new website to be hacked and your clients' data compromised when your launch. It's the reason why you take the right measures to protect your website!

• Do you have a firewall set up? A firewall protects your WordPress site from threats. There are two premium firewalls such as Sucuri and Sucuri as well as "freemium" firewall plugins like Wordfence as well as WP All-in-One Security.
  
• Do do you have Do you have an SSL certificate? An SSL certificate encrypts and protects sensitive information, like your customers' credit card information. In addition, it is crucial from a moral and legal perspective, Google also flags websites that do not have an SSL certification as "insecure." It could affect customers' impression of your brand.
  
• Do you have secure security passwords? Use a combination of numbers, symbols, and letters that's at minimum 8 characters long. Also, you might want to think about two-factor authentication which offers additional security for administrators (like a code sent via your mobile phone).
  
• Are you using a spam filter set up? This is particularly essential if you've enabled products reviews or post comments enabled. It'll keep your site safer and will save you hours of weeding out messages that are spam. One of the best solutions can be using the plugin Askimet - just install it and you won't have to think about it ever again!
  
• Are backups in place? You should have regularbackups that are automatic created for your website data and database. There are a variety of options to achieve this via your hosting service provider, or with plugins like Jetpack.
  
• Is everything updated? It's important that you maintain your theme, plugins, as well as WordPress software updated. Old versions are much easier to hack into. If you'd prefer not to think about it, just set up auto-updates in your dashboard.

 Legal:

Having the right legal infrastructure put in place will protect you from potential lawsuits and makes your customers aware of what you do with their information and the way your policies for stores work. Perhaps you'd like to employ a lawyer to help draft the initial legal documents. It's definitely worth it! However, you must ensure they are easily accessible on your site.

• Have you got strict terms and conditions? Terms and conditions define the guidelines for conduct that you have with the visitors to your site that have to be followed if they want to purchase your products. For adding this information to your checkout page, go to the Appearance tab, then Customize and select a terms and conditions page.
  
• Do you have a privacy statement? A good privacy policy explains exactly how you'll manage customer data and information on your website. It establishes credibility and is an important layer of protection to your company. You can add this to your Checkout page through appearance > customize selecting privacy Policy page.
  
• Do you have any return policies? It's important for your customers to know whether or not you accept returns and what your rules are. Provide details on how long the customer has to submit a claim and the condition that must be met for the product, how refunds will be received, and who will pay for shipping.

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The final thing you should do before launch is to have people who have actually used your site test it. Request employees, family members as well as family, or even members of the target group to visit the website and write down the things that they find hard or confusing. There's nothing more satisfying than having a fresh set of eyes looking at everything.

And if you've completed this list, congratulations - you're all set to go live with your website!

Did you launch a website before and forgotten something critical? Are you able to offer tips for people who are about to launch their first site? We'd love to hear your stories by leaving a comment!

You might want to print the checklist or share it to the internet?