e-Commerce launch checklist: 30 things to check before you sell

Most failed store launches are not design failures. They are missing delivery rules, an untested checkout, no tracking, or a legal page that nobody wrote. Work through this list before you announce anything.

Before launch

• Test the full checkout with a real card and a real refund
• Confirm delivery zones, costs and estimated times
• Check stock levels match reality across every channel
• Write the returns and refunds policy in plain language
• Publish terms, privacy and contact details
• Verify SSL is active on every page, not just the checkout
• Test on a real phone on mobile data, not office wifi
• Set up order confirmation and shipping notification emails
• Add product schema so listings can show price and availability
• Write unique descriptions for every product
• Compress every product image
• Configure GA4 and the Meta pixel with purchase events
• Decide who answers customer messages, and how fast
• Set up abandoned cart follow-up by email or SMS
• Confirm the hosting plan can handle launch-day traffic

Choosing the right hosting for a store

A store does more work per visit than a brochure site: sessions, carts, stock lookups and payment calls all hit the database. Private shared hosting with 2 guaranteed cores and 3 GB of RAM handles most stores comfortably at BD 8.5 a month. High-volume catalogues should start on the VPS at BD 11.5.

After launch

Watch three numbers weekly: checkout completion rate, average order value and the search terms bringing people in. The first tells you whether the store works, the second tells you whether merchandising works, and the third tells you what to build next.