The most expensive e-commerce launch mistakes are the ones you only discover after going live. A customer tries to check out and the payment fails. A shipping rate is missing. The return policy link is broken. Your confirmation email lands in spam.
Every one of these problems could have been caught before launch with a thorough checklist. Here are 40 things to verify before you take your first real order.
1. Products & Catalog
Verify each of the following:
✓All product names are final and consistently formatted
✓Product descriptions are complete, compelling, and free of placeholder text
✓Prices are correct , including sale prices and compare-at prices
✓All product variants (size, color, style) are set up correctly
✓Stock quantities are entered and inventory tracking is enabled
✓Product images are high quality, consistent dimensions, and optimized for web
✓Products are organized into the correct categories and collections
✓Out-of-stock behavior is configured (hide, show as sold out, or allow backorders)
2. Design & User Experience
Check on both desktop and mobile:
✓Homepage clearly communicates what you sell and who it's for
✓Navigation makes it easy to find product categories
✓Search works and returns relevant results
✓Product pages load quickly and images zoom correctly on tap
✓Mobile checkout is easy to complete with one hand
✓404 page is branded and links back to the homepage or a collection
3. Checkout & Payments
Test every payment path end-to-end:
✓Guest checkout works without requiring account creation
✓Account checkout works and sends a confirmation email
✓Credit and debit card payments process correctly (use a test card number)
✓PayPal checkout completes successfully
✓Apple Pay or Google Pay work on supported devices
✓Discount codes and gift cards apply correctly and reduce the total
✓Failed payment shows a clear, helpful error message
✓Order confirmation page appears after successful checkout
→ Building a checkout experience that converts requires more than just enabling a payment plugin. CentroSpot builds e-commerce stores with optimized mobile checkout, tested payment flows, and the performance your customers expect from day one.
See our e-commerce development service →4. Shipping & Fulfillment
✓Shipping rates are configured for all regions you ship to
✓Free shipping threshold (if any) calculates correctly
✓Order confirmation email includes tracking information placeholder
✓Shipping policy is written, accurate, and linked from checkout
✓Returns and refund policy is clear and linked from the footer
5. Legal & Compliance
✓Privacy policy is published and linked from the footer
✓Terms and conditions are published and linked from checkout
✓Refund and return policy is accurate and easy to find
✓Cookie consent banner is displayed to EU and California visitors
✓Sales tax is configured correctly for all applicable jurisdictions
6. SEO & Discoverability
✓Homepage title tag and meta description are written (not auto-generated)
✓Each product page has a unique title and description
✓Product image file names are descriptive (not IMG_4523.jpg)
✓All product images have alt text
✓XML sitemap is generated and submitted to Google Search Console
✓Google Business Profile is updated with your store link
7. Analytics & Marketing
✓Google Analytics 4 is installed and tracking page views
✓Purchase conversion event fires correctly after checkout
✓Meta Pixel (or TikTok Pixel) is installed if you plan to run ads
✓Email marketing integration is connected and a welcome email is set up
✓Social media accounts are linked from the storefront
✓Open Graph images are set so links look good when shared on social
8. Pre-Launch Testing
Do these final checks before going live:
✓Place a real test order with a real card and then immediately refund it
✓Test your store on at least 3 different devices (iPhone, Android, desktop)
✓Ask someone who didn't build the store to try to buy something , watch them do it
✓Confirm all automated emails (order confirmation, shipping notification) look correct
✓Make sure your domain is pointing to your store and HTTPS is enabled
→ Soft launch tip: Before announcing to the world, share your store link with 5–10 trusted contacts and ask for honest feedback. Real users will find things you and your team are too close to see.
9. Speed & Performance
Check performance before launch:
✓Run Google PageSpeed Insights on your homepage and a product page
✓Mobile performance score is above 70 (above 85 is excellent)
✓Largest Contentful Paint is under 2.5 seconds on mobile
✓Hero images are WebP format and under 200KB
✓No unused third-party scripts are loading on every page
✓Lazy loading is enabled for product images below the fold
A slow store is a leaky store. Every 100ms of extra load time reduces conversion rates measurably. Performance optimization is not optional for a competitive e-commerce launch in 2026.
10. Customer Communication
Set up all customer-facing emails before launch:
✓Order confirmation email includes product details, estimated delivery, and a support email
✓Shipping confirmation email includes a real tracking link (or a placeholder workflow)
✓Welcome email is set up for new account registrations
✓Abandoned cart email sequence is configured if your platform supports it
✓All customer emails are coming from a branded domain (not noreply@gmail.com)
✓Customer support email or chat is visible on every page
Most e-commerce disputes and chargebacks happen because customers couldn't reach the seller. Clear, proactive communication solves most problems before they escalate. Setting up an abandoned cart email alone typically recovers 5 to 15 percent of carts that would otherwise be lost.
After Launch
Going live is not the finish line , it's the starting gun. Plan to monitor your Google Analytics daily for the first two weeks, respond to every customer inquiry within 24 hours, and actively ask your first buyers for reviews. The first 30 days of feedback will tell you more about what your store needs than months of planning.
💡 Tip: Set up a simple post-purchase survey asking one question: 'Was there anything that almost stopped you from buying?' The answers will show you what to fix next.