Website content checklist for a new site

What goes on a website content checklist?

A website content checklist lists every page of the site, and under each page the words, images, links and details that have to be right. The person who owns that content signs off each line.

Add a row for every page on the sitemap, so no page gets skipped. Collecting the material happens earlier, before the build. For what the client supplies before the build, see the checklist of what your client supplies.

Which of the client's files and words does the content check cover?

The content check covers everything the client supplied that now sits on the site: their words, their photos and logos, their contact details and anything they asked you to copy over from the old site. It confirms each piece arrived whole and landed in the right place.

Common items to cover include:

• page words, checked against the final copy the client approved
• photos and logos, checked for the right version and a sharp size
• names, job titles and spelling of people and products
• phone numbers, addresses, email addresses and hours
• prices, offers or dates the client gave you, checked against their latest list
• reviews or quotes, each with the person's permission on file
• pages carried over from the old site, with nothing cut off

Technical checks, such as broken forms or slow pages, sit in a separate pass. For the technical checks, see the website QA checklist.

Once the content is right, the client's formal yes comes next. For getting the client's sign-off, see the client approval process.

How do you review website content before launch?

Review website content before launch by going through the site one page at a time, reading every line, and marking each item as approved or needing a fix. Then send the fixes in one batch, recheck them, and get a final sign-off.

1. Open the sitemap, and list every page in your checklist.
2. Read each page out loud, top to bottom, on a phone and on a computer.
3. Compare the words against the copy the client approved.
4. Check each name, number and address against the client's source.
5. Test every link on the page, including email and phone links.
6. Mark each item as approved or needing a fix, with a note.
7. Send all the fixes at once, recheck them, and ask the owner of each item to sign off.

A second reader who didn't load the content can catch what the first reader skimmed past, so swap pages if you can.

Should a website content checklist be a PDF?

A website content checklist can be a PDF when you want a fixed record of what the client signed, but a shared spreadsheet can be easier to work in while the review is going on. One option is to use both: the sheet during the review, and a PDF of the final version for the records.

Points to weigh:

• A shared sheet lets several people mark items at once and leave notes.
• A PDF can't change once it's sent, which makes it a clean record of the sign-off.
• Either one works only if everyone uses the same latest version.

Keep the final, signed version with the project files, so you can show what was approved and when.