A business website should answer three questions quickly: what you offer, why a customer should trust you, and how to contact or buy from you. Use this checklist before choosing hosting or moving an existing site.
1. Keep control of your domain
Register the domain in an account your business controls. Record who can renew it, when it expires, and where its DNS is managed. If an agency handles the setup, keep your own access to the registrar and hosting accounts.
2. Match hosting to the website
A small company website and a busy online store have different needs. Ask how much storage, memory and processing capacity the plan includes; whether backups are included; what support covers; and how you can upgrade. For WordPress, also check the supported PHP version, SSL certificate, and a safe way to test changes.
- Company site or landing page: focus on reliable hosting, backups, SSL and easy updates.
- Online store: check capacity for traffic spikes, secure checkout, backup frequency and recovery.
- Custom application: ask whether shared hosting is suitable or a VPS is needed for its software and resource requirements.
3. Prepare the pages customers need
Start with a clear homepage, service or product pages, an about page, contact details, and relevant policies. Write a distinct page title and description for each important page. Use real photos or screenshots when they explain your work; avoid placeholder claims and copied descriptions.
4. Set up DNS, HTTPS and business email
Point the domain to the website using the records supplied by your host. Check that both the preferred www or non-www address and HTTPS work consistently. If the domain also handles email, preserve its mail records when changing DNS. Ask your email provider for the exact MX, SPF, DKIM and DMARC records for your account.
5. Test before announcing the launch
- Open the site on a phone and a desktop. Check text size, menus, buttons and forms.
- Submit a test enquiry and confirm it reaches the correct team.
- Check every navigation link and the main call to action.
- Confirm that a backup can be restored, not only that one exists.
- Connect Google Search Console, submit the sitemap, and inspect the important URLs.
- Measure visits and enquiries separately so you can improve pages based on real results.
Moving an existing website?
Before changing DNS, keep a complete copy of the current site and database, list every mailbox on the domain, and note the current DNS records. Test the replacement site first. After the move, check forms, images, redirects, email delivery and Search Console for errors.
Need help choosing a setup? See Speed Host website hosting or tell us about your website. We can discuss the site type, current provider and move before recommending a plan.