Most of the conversation around a new website is about getting it built — design, content, the launch date. Almost nobody talks about what happens next, so a lot of business owners are caught off guard when launch day comes and goes and… nothing much seems to happen. Here’s what actually should.
Launch day is quiet, and that’s normal
If your web developer did their job properly, going live is close to a non-event. The domain points to the new site, the old one (if there was one) comes down, and visitors see the new pages. No fireworks, no dramatic traffic spike — Google doesn’t know your new site exists yet, and neither do most of your customers.
Don’t panic if your visitor numbers look the same or lower in the first week or two. That’s expected, not a sign something’s wrong.
The handover: what you should actually receive
A proper handover means you walk away with more than a login. At minimum, you should have:
- Access to everything — domain registrar, hosting, email, and the site’s content management system, all under accounts you control (not your developer’s personal login).
- A way to make basic edits — updating a phone number, swapping a photo, editing opening hours — without needing to call anyone.
- Google Business Profile and Google Search Console set up, connected to your site, with you (or your business) as the verified owner.
- Analytics in place so you can see who’s visiting and what they’re doing, from day one rather than starting the clock three months late.
If any of this is missing, ask for it. It’s your business, and you shouldn’t be locked out of your own website.
The first few weeks: Google is still figuring you out
Search engines don’t index a new site instantly. Google needs to crawl your pages, work out what they’re about, and decide how much to trust them — a process that typically takes several weeks, sometimes longer for a brand-new domain with no history.
This is normal, not a fault with the build. During this window:
- Submit your sitemap in Google Search Console if your developer hasn’t already
- Check your Google Business Profile is live and matches your new site’s details exactly (same address, phone number, hours)
- Resist the urge to make big structural changes — let the site settle before you start second-guessing pages and menus
We’ve written more about what actually moves the needle here in what SEO means for a small Nelson business — the short version is that none of it happens overnight.
What “maintenance” actually means
Every website needs some level of upkeep, but it’s usually a lot less than people fear. Depending on how your site was built, that might mean:
- Software and plugin updates, if the site runs on a platform like WordPress — skipping these is one of the most common ways sites get hacked
- Renewing your domain and hosting each year — worth calendaring so it doesn’t lapse by accident
- Backups, ideally automatic, so a mistake or an outage doesn’t cost you the whole site
- Content updates — new photos, new services, updated pricing — as your business changes
A well-built static site (no database, no plugins to patch) needs far less ongoing maintenance than a bloated CMS install. Worth asking your developer directly: “what breaks if nobody touches this for a year?”
Checking it’s actually working
A month or two in, it’s worth a proper look at whether the site is doing its job:
- Is it showing up in Google Search Console for searches relevant to your business?
- Are people actually getting to your contact form or phone number, or dropping off somewhere first?
- Does the site load quickly on a phone, on an average connection — not just on the office wifi?
None of this needs to be complicated. A quick look at Search Console and your analytics once a month tells you almost everything you need to know.
The relationship doesn’t end at launch
The businesses that get the most out of their website treat launch as the start, not the end. That doesn’t mean an expensive ongoing retainer — it means knowing who to call for a quick fix, having a realistic sense of what to expect in the first few months, and checking in on performance every so often rather than never looking again until something breaks.
A website is closer to a shopfront than a brochure. You wouldn’t fit out a shop and never walk past it again.