What sets apart a basic setup from a professionally implemented site
Building a website is easy. Building one that is fast, secure, optimized, and ready to grow with your business — that’s a different story.
This checklist shows common elements we evaluate when building or auditing a website. Each project is different, so this serves as a starting point.
🧱 Technical Foundation
- ✅ Fast, mobile-optimized theme (e.g. GeneratePress, Astro, etc.)
- ✅ Clean, semantic HTML structure
- ✅ SSL and basic HTTPS enforcement
- ✅ CDN integration (e.g. Cloudflare)
- ✅ Security headers configured
- ✅ Uptime monitoring and error logging
🔐 Security & Backups
- ✅ Daily offsite backups
- ✅ Malware scanning & firewall (e.g. Wordfence or equivalent)
- ✅ Strong login protection (2FA, limit login attempts)
- ✅ Auto plugin/theme update strategy
⚡ Speed & Performance
- ✅ Caching setup (object, page, Cloudflare-level)
- ✅ Optimized images and lazy loading
- ✅ Minimal JS/CSS bloat
- ✅ Core Web Vitals performance score (LCP, CLS, etc.)
📈 SEO & Discoverability
- ✅ Clean URL structure (no broken links, proper slugs)
- ✅ Sitemap & robots.txt configured
- ✅ Schema.org structured data
- ✅ Meta titles & descriptions per page
- ✅ Local SEO elements (where applicable)
🧠 UX & Strategy
- ✅ Clear call-to-actions (CTAs)
- ✅ Navigation structure tailored to audience
- ✅ Legal pages (Privacy Policy, T&Cs, Cookie Notice)
- ✅ Contact forms with spam protection
- ✅ Analytics & conversion tracking installed
📬 Integrations & Automation
- ✅ Newsletter/email API integration (Mailerlite, Mailchimp, etc.)
- ✅ CRM or lead capture integrations
- ✅ Booking systems, payment forms, etc. as needed
- ✅ Custom workflows or automations where useful
⚙️ Developer-Friendly Setup (Optional for advanced sites)
- ✅ Git-based deployment (e.g. WP Pusher or CI/CD)
- ✅ Staging environment
- ✅ Version control for theme/custom code
- ✅ Easily portable and documented
🧭 Every Site is Unique
Your business goals, audience, and resources will shape the best setup for you. This checklist is not a one-size-fits-all recipe, but a framework to guide a professional, context-driven approach.
💬 Need an audit or custom plan? Complete the contact me at the bottom of the site and send your current site link.