Four things to check for SEO when launching a new website

Launching a new website is a busy and exciting time for any business. There is so much to think about, and when the main goal is to get the site live as quickly as possible, it is easy for things to slip through the cracks.

One of the most commonly missed is SEO, search engine optimisation, the behind-the-scenes work that helps you rank on Google. There is a bit more to it than sprinkling in a few keywords. Here are the key technical things to check for SEO before you launch your new website, plus one critical check people forget far too often.

Contents

Before you launch, check… Why it matters
Analytics and Search Console Measure performance and catch errors
Redirects for old URLs Preserve traffic and rankings
Title and description tags Control how you appear in search
An XML sitemap Help Google find and index your pages
Your site is indexable Make sure Google can see it at all

Google Analytics and Search Console

Every website should have Google Analytics 4 (GA4) set up and integrated from day one, since it provides a wealth of valuable and informative data about your visitors: who they are, where they come from, and what they do on your site. That data is vital for measuring how well your website is performing, and it feeds future marketing and advertising campaigns by giving you a clearer picture of your customer demographics.

Alongside GA4, integrate Google Search Console, a free Google tool that helps site owners manage their search visibility. It reports your rankings and search performance, and flags site errors that can quietly harm your SEO if left unchecked. It is also where you will keep an eye on things like your backlinks once you are live. Google provides a simple setup guide for both, so they are quick to get in place before launch.

Redirect old page URLs

If the page structure and URLs on your new website have changed, it is well worth reviewing and redirecting your old URLs to their new counterparts. If an old URL is not redirected properly, anyone who finds that link in Google will most likely land on a 404 error page, and you will lose that potential traffic.

Redirect each old page to its most relevant new counterpart using a 301 (permanent) redirect. If there is no relevant equivalent on your new site, resist the temptation to send it to your homepage, Google frowns on mass redirects to the homepage and it can negatively affect your rankings. It is better to let irrelevant old pages return a 404 “not found” error, which tells Google the page is gone and to drop it from search results. This is also why a good custom 404 page matters, as we cover in must-have website pages.

Title and description meta tags

Page titles and meta descriptions are two of the most-used tags for SEO, and every page on your website should have them set. Your content needs to be readable and appealing in search results, and these tags let you control how your pages appear there, which affects whether people click.

Tag Ideal length Its job
Title tag Around 50 to 60 characters The clickable heading in search results
Meta description Up to around 160 characters The summary that encourages the click

You can set these directly in your page’s code, between the head tags:

<title>Your page title here</title>
<meta name="description" content="Your description here">

One thing worth knowing in 2026: Google often rewrites meta descriptions to better match the search query, so do not agonise over every word. They are still well worth setting as a strong starting point, and title tags especially still matter. If you are running a WordPress website, an SEO plugin like Yoast or Rank Math lets you edit your title and description easily while editing each page, with no code required. Writing them well is part of good website content, and a solid WordPress build makes all of this simple to manage.

Submit your sitemap

Submitting a sitemap to Google helps it understand how your pages and content are organised, and makes it easier for Google to find all of your pages so they can be indexed correctly. Sitemaps generally come in two forms: XML and HTML. XML sitemaps are built for search engines, while HTML sitemaps are built for users to aid navigation. For the best SEO results, make sure your site has an XML sitemap.

If you have Search Console integrated with your website, you can submit your sitemap right there. The good news is that most modern websites and SEO plugins generate and update an XML sitemap for you automatically, so it is usually just a case of finding it and submitting it.

Make sure Google can see your site

Here is the check people forget, and it is the most damaging one to miss. While a website is being built, it is usually hidden from search engines, often with a “noindex” tag or a setting that blocks crawlers. On WordPress, this is the “Discourage search engines from indexing this site” checkbox. If that block is not removed when you go live, your beautiful new site will be completely invisible to Google, no matter how good the rest of your SEO is.

So before you celebrate launching your new website, make absolutely sure search engines can actually see it. Confirm the staging block is switched off, check there is no stray “noindex” left in place, and make sure the site is mobile-friendly, since Google indexes mobile-first. It is also worth a quick speed check, as performance is part of how Google ranks you through Core Web Vitals. Getting these technical foundations right is the difference between a launch that builds organic visibility and one that quietly disappears, which is exactly what a considered website strategy is for.

Frequently asked questions

What SEO should I check before launching a website?
Before launch, set up Google Analytics 4 and Search Console, redirect any changed old URLs with 301 redirects, add title and meta description tags to every page, submit an XML sitemap, and, most importantly, make sure your site is not still blocking search engines from a staging “noindex” setting. These technical foundations set your new site up to rank.

Why is my new website not showing up on Google?
The most common reason is that the site is still blocking search engines, a leftover “noindex” tag or, on WordPress, the “discourage search engines” setting that should have been switched off at launch. Other causes include missing redirects, no submitted sitemap, or simply that Google has not crawled the new site yet, which can take days to weeks.

Do I need to redirect old URLs when launching a new site?
Yes, if your URLs or page structure have changed. Use 301 (permanent) redirects to send each old URL to its most relevant new page, which preserves your traffic and search rankings. If there is no relevant equivalent, let the old URL return a 404 rather than redirecting it to your homepage, which Google frowns upon.

What are title and meta description tags?
They control how your pages appear in search results. The title tag is the clickable heading (around 50 to 60 characters), and the meta description is the summary beneath it (up to around 160 characters). Every page should have both. Google sometimes rewrites descriptions, but setting them well still gives you a strong, click-worthy starting point.

Do I need to submit a sitemap to Google?
It is strongly recommended. An XML sitemap helps Google find and correctly index all your pages, especially on a new site. Most modern websites and SEO plugins generate one automatically, and you can submit it through Google Search Console in a couple of clicks. It is a simple step that helps your pages get discovered faster.

How long until my new website ranks on Google?
It varies. Google usually begins indexing a new site within days to a few weeks of launch, but building meaningful rankings takes longer, often several months, as Google assesses your content, authority and backlinks. Getting the technical SEO right at launch gives you the fastest possible start, but SEO is a long game, not an overnight win.

Read more: 7 tips to increase the SEO of your website