Website Launch or Membership Site Launch – 5 Planning Tips To Avoid Panic and Stress

The amount of last minute website launches or membership site launches that we have been involved in is, quite frankly, silly. Normally seemingly organised business owners seem to forget or be oblivious to the fact that a website launch or membership site launch takes planning and time to do it well.

So, here are some tips to make sure you allow yourself plenty of time for your website launch or membership site launch to avoid panic and stress!

Set a Completion Date Before the Launch Date

If you have a website launch or membership site launch date in mind, perhaps there is an event it needs to be ready by, set yourself a date for the site to be completed a couple of weeks before that. This will allow you time to calmly and thoroughly check it over for any mistakes or bugs, make changes and perhaps put some “sneak peek” images out to your email list or on social media to build interest before you launch.

Consider Turning Days into Weeks

Now, that might not make much sense but this is what I mean. If you have got all of your content pretty much ready and you know it’ll only take two or three days to put it into your website, don’t just allow three days. It’s very unlikely you will get three uninterrupted days to do it. Plan for the unexpected and be realistic. Think that you will probably get a solid day a week to work on it, so allow three weeks in actual time to get it done.

Even if you are sure you have those three days set aside, your partner may surprise you with a couple of days away, which is genuinely what happened with one of our Ready Steady Websites® members. So turn those days, into weeks.

Put the Site Live a Few Days Before the Launch Date

It can take a couple of days for the internet to do its thing before a website is fully live. (I could start talking about DNS at this point but I don’t want you to leave, I still have some more great tips.) Sometimes it will go live straight away but other times it won’t, so don’t think that you can put it live on the day and it will definitely all be fine.

We have had people ask us to put their website live because, “Someone is doing a live presentation now and at the end it links to my website” or, “I’m about to hand out my new business cards with my new website on them so it needs to be live”. Firstly, don’t assume your web person is sitting at their desk just waiting to be at your beck and call and secondly, even if you are lucky enough to catch them when they have a bit of time, it’s not always that simple. Be organised and prepared.

Test, Test and Test Again

The biggest problem with rushing a website launch is that it hasn’t been tested properly. It’s probably actually better to hand out your business cards saying, “My new website is coming soon” than sending them to a broken website.

Make sure it looks good and works well on mobile, tablet and computer size screens and also check every link, every button, every form and every process on all devices. User experience is key. On a website you are making a first impression, don’t put off potential clients by making it a bad one. On a membership site, someone is paying to be there so show you value their custom and that it is worth paying for.

Don’t Try to Do Too Much

When it comes to a website launch or a membership site launch a lot of people feel they have to include everything on their site to show how wonderful they are but don’t put yourself under that pressure and also, don’t overwhelm your website visitors or members.

When it comes to your website, keep it clean and easy to navigate. Have a good amount of content to show you know your stuff but don’t feel you have to launch with numerous blog posts, three is a good place to start. Don’t try and cram a page full of testimonials, have three of four dotted around the website. A website should have new content added regularly so add something new at least once a month and your website will grow nicely with your business.

When it comes to a membership site, overwhelming members with too much content is one of the main reasons people leave a membership. So, launch with about four pieces of content – an easy amount to consume but enough to show they are going to find the membership valuable.

More Planning Tips

If you are looking for more help around planning a website, then check out The Website Blueprint. If you are looking to create a membership site then check out our templates here and you can book in a demo call if you have any questions.