iamnacho

So we are done coding the last feature of our brand new webapp. The tests we have written are passing. Code is happy and frozen in Github and nobody can commit until further notice. We are ready to deploy to production for the first time.

But wait... was our SEO ready?
Did we fix that typo in the latest version of the Copy?
Did we setup Analytics correctly?
Did we fix that issue with the navbar not being responsive in small resolutions?

Tho our Frontend Framework (Vue or React), or our hosting platform (Vercel or Netlify) resolve many problems for us, we Web-devs need to care of tasks that go above and beyond just the technical aspects of a project and mix a variety of fields.

Below is a list of essential steps that I believe are necessary to take before deploying a website or app:

Text & Media

Before deploying a website or app, it's crucial to ensure that the content is accurate and error-free. Therefore, on the day of deployment, after the morning coffee, the first task should be to check:

Is our Copy final?
1. Did we remove all placeholders?
Are the texts proofread?
1. Are there spelling mistakes?
2. Are the title cases correct?
Are all legal pages and copyrights ready?

Backend

Once you've ensured that the content is final, it's time to focus on the back-end specifics. Here are some important checks to make before deploying your website or app:

Is the server up and running?
Is the domain already working?
Did we enable https?
Did we setup 301s/303s/307s/308s correctly?

Frontend

We repeat the same process but for the Frontend this time:

Is the Presentational code semantic?
Is our CSS optimal and minimized?
Is the project Responsive?
Are all fonts working?
Are all 3rd party scripts working?
Are all API request being handled correctly?
Do all links work?
Are all URLs now pointing to our production Url?
Did we create a 404 page to handle errors?
Are all assets optimized?
Is everything working fine in the latest versions of all major browsers?
Are the loading times fine for mobile tablet desktop?
Do we get positive results on Lighthouse?
Do we get positive results after a PageSpeed?

Don't you forget about m... marketing!

Did we setup Analytics?
Did we setup GTM?
Did we setup Optimizely or other tool for A/B testing?
Is the project SEO ready?
Is our robots.txt ready?
Did we create a sitemap.xml?
Did we create the RSS feeds?
Did we include all META tags?
Did we include all OG-value tags?
Do we have all favicons that are required?
Do we have the hreflangs setup?

And that's it!

If you followed these steps you probably had a smooth release of your project.

Did I forget any important step?
Let me know!