/wp-launch

WordPress Pre-Launch Checklist

You are the WordPress project orchestrator. Run the complete pre-launch checklist and generate a client handoff document.

Step 1 — Gather Launch Details

Ask the user (using AskUserQuestion):

• Site URL (production URL, with HTTPS)
• Client/site name
• Docker container name (if still on local — for final checks)
• Is this a client handoff or internal launch?
• Client admin email (for handoff docs)
• Support contact (your agency email or phone)

Step 2 — Pre-Launch Verification Checklist

Work through this checklist systematically. Mark each item as complete or note any issues found.

Content & Pages

# List all published pages
docker exec "$CONTAINER" wp post list --post_type=page --post_status=publish \
  --fields=ID,post_title,post_name --format=table --allow-root

• All required pages exist and are published
• No placeholder content ("Lorem ipsum", "Coming soon", "TBD")
• Home page is set as the static front page
• 404 (not found) page has useful content and navigation
• All internal links work (no broken links)
• No "sample page" or default WordPress content remains

SEO — Final Check

# Locate skills root (set WP_SKILLS_ROOT env var to override)
_f="${BASH_SOURCE[0]:-$0}"; [ -L "$_f" ] && _f="$(readlink -f "$_f")"
SKILLS_ROOT="${WP_SKILLS_ROOT:-$(cd "$(dirname "$_f")/.." && pwd)}"
python3 "$SKILLS_ROOT/skills/seo-optimizer/audit.py" \
  --base-url "$SITE_URL" 2>/dev/null

• Every published page has a focus keyword
• Every published page has a meta description (120–160 chars)
• Every published page has a featured image with ALT text
• XML sitemap is accessible at /sitemap.xml or /sitemap_index.xml
• Robots.txt is accessible and not blocking search engines
• Search engine visibility is enabled (Settings → Reading → uncheck "Discourage search engines")

Images & Media

• Site logo uploaded (Settings → Customize → Site Identity)
• Favicon (site icon) uploaded
• Social sharing / Open Graph images set per page
• All images are optimized (EWWW or similar active)
• No images with missing ALT text on public-facing pages

Performance

• Caching plugin active and configured (LiteSpeed Cache, W3 Total Cache, etc.)
• Image lazy loading enabled
• CSS/JS minification enabled
• PageSpeed Insights score ≥ 80 (mobile and desktop)

  # Quick PageSpeed check
  curl -s "https://www.googleapis.com/pagespeedonline/v5/runPagespeed?url=${SITE_URL}&strategy=mobile" \
    | python3 -c "import sys,json; d=json.load(sys.stdin); print('Mobile:', d['lighthouseResult']['categories']['performance']['score']*100)"
  

Forms & Email

• All contact/inquiry forms tested — submission works
• Email delivery verified (check spam folder)

  bash "$SKILLS_ROOT/skills/form-testing/scripts/test-mail.sh" "$CONTAINER" "$CLIENT_EMAIL"
  

• Thank-you / confirmation pages configured
• Form submissions going to the right email address

Security

# WordPress and plugin updates
docker exec "$CONTAINER" wp core check-update --allow-root
docker exec "$CONTAINER" wp plugin list --update=available --format=table --allow-root
docker exec "$CONTAINER" wp theme list --update=available --format=table --allow-root

• WordPress core is up to date
• All plugins up to date
• Active theme up to date
• Inactive themes and plugins deleted
• Default "admin" username not in use
• Custom login URL active (not /wp-login.php)
• XML-RPC disabled
• File editor disabled in admin (DISALLOW_FILE_EDIT in wp-config or via ASE)
• SSL certificate active (HTTPS, no mixed content)
• Automatic security updates enabled for minor core releases

Backups & Monitoring

• Backup plugin configured and tested (UpdraftPlus, Solid Backups, or host backup)
• Backup schedule set (daily or weekly minimum)
• Backup storage is offsite (S3, Google Drive, Dropbox)
• Uptime monitoring set up (UptimeRobot, Jetpack, or host monitoring)

Analytics & Tracking

• Google Analytics or equivalent installed and tracking
• Google Search Console verified (site ownership confirmed)
• Analytics events tested (form submissions, button clicks if applicable)

White Label (client sites)

• Custom login URL set
• Branda login page configured (client logo, brand colors)
• Admin bar does not show WordPress branding
• Dashboard is clean (no irrelevant widgets)
• Admin menu organized (only relevant items visible to client)

Visual QA — Final

python3 "$SKILLS_ROOT/skills/visual-qa/screenshot.py" \
  --all \
  --base-url "$SITE_URL" \
  --output /tmp/launch-screenshots-$(date +%Y%m%d)

• Desktop layout correct (1920, 1440, 1280)
• Tablet layout correct (1024, 768)
• Mobile layout correct (390, 375, 412)
• All animations working
• No horizontal scroll on any viewport
• No overlapping elements

DNS & Hosting (production deployment)

• Domain DNS pointing to correct hosting
• SSL certificate valid and auto-renewing
• WordPress Site URL and Home URL set to production URL

  docker exec "$CONTAINER" wp option get siteurl --allow-root
  docker exec "$CONTAINER" wp option get home --allow-root
  

• No references to local dev URL remain (search-replace if needed)

  # If migrating from local to production:
  docker exec "$CONTAINER" wp search-replace 'http://localhost:8080' 'https://yourdomain.com' --all-tables --allow-root
  

Step 3 — Generate Client Handoff Document

Create a HANDOFF.md in the project root:

# Website Handoff — [Client Name]

**Date**: [Today's Date]
**Site**: [Production URL]
**Prepared by**: [Your Name / Agency]

---

## Admin Access

| Item | Value |
|------|-------|
| Admin URL | [SITE_URL]/[custom-login-slug]/ |
| Username | (provided separately) |
| Password | (provided separately — please change after first login) |

> **Security note**: Bookmark the custom login URL. The default `/wp-login.php` is disabled.

---

## How to Edit Content

### Pages
1. Log in to the admin area
2. Click **Pages** in the left menu
3. Click the page you want to edit
4. Make your changes in the editor
5. Click **Update** to save

### Blog Posts
1. Click **Posts** → **Add New**
2. Enter title and content
3. Set a featured image (right sidebar → Featured image)
4. Add categories and tags
5. Click **Publish**

### Images
1. Click **Media** → **Add New**
2. Drag and drop images (they are automatically optimized)
3. Always fill in the **Alt Text** field for accessibility and SEO

---

## SEO Guidelines

- Every page needs a **Focus Keyword** (set in the Yoast/Rank Math panel below the editor)
- **Meta descriptions** should be 120–160 characters and include the focus keyword
- **Featured images** should have descriptive ALT text including the focus keyword
- The Yoast/Rank Math plugin will show a traffic light: aim for **green**

---

## What to Do When Things Break

1. **Site is down**: Contact your hosting provider — [Hosting name and support URL]
2. **Forgot login**: Go to `[SITE_URL]/wp-login.php?action=lostpassword` (temporary — login URL is normally locked)
3. **Plugin conflict**: Deactivate plugins one by one to isolate the cause
4. **Need help**: Contact us at [Support email] or [Phone]

---

## Plugin Summary

| Plugin | Purpose |
|--------|---------|
| Admin and Site Enhancements | Security, admin cleanup |
| Branda | Login page branding |
| Yoast SEO / Rank Math | Search engine optimization |
| LiteSpeed Cache | Site speed |
| EWWW Image Optimizer | Image compression |
| WP Mail SMTP | Email delivery |

---

## Backups

Your site is automatically backed up [daily/weekly] to [Dropbox/S3/Google Drive].
To restore a backup: Contact us or use [Backup plugin name] → Restore.

---

*Document generated by Claude Code using the wordpress-dev-skills plugin.*
*[https://github.com/salemaziel/wordpress-dev-skills](https://github.com/salemaziel/wordpress-dev-skills)*

Step 4 — Launch Summary

When all checklist items pass, tell the user:

• ✅ Pre-launch checklist complete
• List any items that need attention before going live
• Provide the HANDOFF.md location
• Remind them to:
  1. Change the admin password after first login
  2. Keep all plugins and WordPress core updated
  3. Check Google Search Console in 1–2 weeks for crawl status
  4. Schedule a monthly performance and security review (run /wp-audit)