What happens after launch: keeping a website healthy and growing

Launch day feels like the finish line. The site is live, the old one is gone and everyone can finally relax.

In reality, launch is when the website starts working for you, and when you start learning how real customers use it. A site left alone slowly gets out of date, less secure and less useful. A little regular care keeps it earning its keep.

The first few weeks

The first weeks after launch are when small problems show up:

• a form that does not work on one type of phone,
• a page that confuses people,
• a link from an old page that now leads nowhere,
• a question customers keep asking that the site does not answer.

That is normal. It is why we include a period of fixes after every launch, and why we watch the site closely in those first weeks.

Do this after launch:

• Make sure Google Search Console is set up and the sitemap is submitted.
• Check that enquiries from forms are arriving where they should.
• Redirect important old addresses to their new pages, so you keep any search ranking they had.
• Ask a few customers to use the site and tell you what was hard.

Ongoing care

Security updates. Software, frameworks and plugins need regular updates (security basics).

Backups. Automatic, stored elsewhere, and tested.

Monitoring. Something should tell you quickly if the site goes down, slows down or starts showing errors, ideally before customers notice.

Renewals. The domain and any certificates or subscriptions must renew on time. An expired domain can take your site and email offline.

Content. Prices, opening hours, team members, offers and photos all go out of date. An out-of-date site makes a business look closed.

Measuring what works

After a month or two, look at real data:

• How many people visit, and from where (search, social, direct)?
• Which pages do they read? Where do they leave?
• How many enquiries, bookings or sales came through the site?
• Which searches bring people to you?

You do not need complicated dashboards. A handful of numbers checked monthly tells you a lot.

Improve in small steps

The best websites are improved continuously, based on evidence:

• rewrite a page that people leave quickly,
• add answers to the questions customers keep asking,
• publish useful articles that bring in search traffic,
• add a feature, such as online booking, once you know there is demand (online booking).

One small, well-chosen change each month adds up to a site that is much better a year later.

How to plan for it

There are three common approaches:

1. Do it yourself, if the site is simple and you are comfortable with updates and backups.
2. Pay as you go for fixes and changes when you need them.
3. A monthly support plan covering updates, backups, monitoring and a set amount of changes each month.

Whichever you choose, decide it before launch, so the site is never left without someone responsible for it. And make sure you own the accounts, so you can always change who looks after it (who owns your website).