I already wrote the dictionary version: domain, hosting, DNS, nameserver, SMTP. This post is the week after you paid for the name. The job is not to memorise acronyms. The job is: site opens, padlock shows, email still arrives.

Hand marking completed tasks on a paper checklist
Tick these in order. Skipping email until last is how inboxes vanish for a day.

Day 1–2: who owns what

  • Write down where the domain is registered (GoDaddy, Namecheap, Google, Hostinger…).
  • Write down where the site will live (the host).
  • Write down where email lives today. If you use Google Workspace or Microsoft 365, do not point nameservers until those MX records are copied. MX is the “mail goes here” instruction.
  • Two people should be able to log in. One person on holiday is not a plan.

Day 3–4: connect and lock

  1. Install WordPress (or Webflow publish) on the host.
  2. Point the domain as the host documents — usually nameservers or A records. Wait. DNS can take hours.
  3. Turn on SSL (the padlock). Most hosts have a one-click Let’s Encrypt button.
  4. Force https so the old http link redirects.
Notepad and pen for a short homepage clarity checklist
Test from a phone on mobile data, not only office Wi-Fi. Cached DNS lies.

Day 5: email and forms

Send a test to your own address from the contact form. If it lands in spam, you still need proper sending (SMTP or the host’s mail). Do not go live to ads until a human received that test.

Then: backup plugin on, two admin users, and the registrar lock so nobody can steal the name with a transfer.

Want a 15-minute go-live walkthrough?

Bring the registrar and host names. We will order the clicks so email does not drop.

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