Website development process checklist: what each stage must finish
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A website development process checklist lists what each stage of a build has to finish before the next stage starts. It's a set of exit checks: design isn't done until the client has signed it off, and the build isn't done until it's ready to test. Your team runs it at the end of each stage, so problems don't roll forward.
What's on a website development process checklist?
A website development process checklist holds one short list of "done when" checks for each stage of the build. The people doing the work tick them, and the next stage starts only when every box for the last one is ticked.
| Stage | Done when |
|---|---|
| Plan | The sitemap, the page list and the requirements are written and signed |
| Content | Every page's words and images are in, or a date is set for each missing piece |
| Design | Key pages are designed for computer and phone, and the client has approved them in writing |
| Build | Every page in the sitemap is built, forms send to the right inbox, and nothing is placeholder text |
| Content load | The approved words and images are on every page, and the old site's pages are carried over |
| Test | The test list has been run, and every failed test is fixed and run again |
| Launch | The domain points to the new site, the live site loads, and a backup is saved |
| After launch | The client has their logins, and the first update or check is on the calendar |
Change the stages to match how your team works, but keep each check something a person can see and confirm. "Looks good" isn't a check. "Client approved in writing on the date shown" is. For the project lead's own list of tasks, see the website project management checklist.
When a stage is done and the next one needs people on it, DeskTeam360's free template can help you share out the tasks, and it names website builds among its uses. You get it by entering your email.
How do you turn a website development plan into a checklist?
Turn a website development plan into a checklist by taking each stage in the plan and writing what has to be true when it's finished. Then copy it for every new client build.
- List the stages from your plan in order, from the first plan to after launch.
- Under each stage, write the "done when" lines that prove it's finished.
- Make each line something you can check: a file exists, a person approved it, a test passed.
- Add a line for any spot where you wait on the client, such as logins or content.
- Try it on your next build, and add a line each time something slips through.
Each stage on your checklist can match a stage in your written process. For the stages with one owner and one file each, see the web design process template.
A development checklist covers the work of each stage, not every test. For the technical checks before launch, see the website QA checklist.
To pass out the work behind each stage, DeskTeam360 offers a free task template that counts website builds as one of its uses. It's sent once you give your email.
More on Planning the build
- The website development process, from plan to launch
- Website development process flowchart: the build on one page
- Web design process template: the stages an agency repeats
- All guides
Sources
- DeskTeam360, Ultimate Task Delegation Template page, start.deskteam360.com/ultimate-task-delegation-template
- DeskTeam360, About page, deskteam360.com/about
What changed
- : Page first published.