Launching a new website? The SEO checklist we use on day one

Short answer: on launch day, submit a sitemap in Google Search Console, make sure nothing blocks search engines, add structured data, set up a Google Business Profile with the same name, address and phone as your site, and check page speed. Then be patient: a new domain usually takes days to a few weeks to appear fully in Google.

We just ran this checklist for our own site, neuhaze.com, so everything below comes from a real launch.

1. Let search engines in

• robots.txt allows crawling of your public pages and lists your sitemap.
• No "noindex" left over from the staging site. It's the most common reason a new site never appears.
• One address. Pick https and either www or the bare domain, and redirect everything else to it with a permanent (308 or 301) redirect.
• Canonical links on every page point to that one address.

2. Tell Google and Bing the site exists

1. Add the site to Google Search Console as a Domain property and verify it with a DNS TXT record.
2. Submit sitemap.xml. It lists every page you want found and updates automatically when you publish.
3. Use URL Inspection → Request indexing for your most important pages.
4. Import the site into Bing Webmaster Tools from Search Console. Bing also powers several other search engines.

3. Help search engines understand you

Structured data describes your business in a format search engines read directly: your name, logo, contact details, services and FAQs. It also helps AI assistants quote you correctly. Give every page a unique title and a clear description written for people, not keywords.

4. Set up local search

Create a free Google Business Profile. Use exactly the same business name, address and phone number as on your website, and keep them identical everywhere you're listed. Mismatches make Google less sure the listings belong to the same business. Then ask happy clients for reviews.

5. Make it fast

Run PageSpeed Insights on your main pages. Compress images, serve modern formats such as WebP, and avoid heavy scripts on every page. On launch, neuhaze.com scored 91 for performance and 100 for accessibility, best practices and SEO on mobile.

What to expect in the first weeks

• Days 1–3: Search Console may show zero indexed pages. That's normal; its reports lag behind reality.
• Week 1–2: your home page and key pages start appearing for your brand name. The favicon in results can take longer.
• Weeks 2–8: pages start ranking for real searches as Google sees steady, useful content.
• Publishing regularly helps. Each new post adds to your sitemap and gives Google a reason to come back.

Frequently asked questions

Should I wait for indexing before publishing blog posts?

No. Useful new posts help a young site get crawled more often. Just favor quality over volume.

Does requesting indexing again make it faster?

Once per page is enough. Requesting the same page repeatedly doesn't move you up the queue.

Can a website developer handle this for me?

Yes, and it's worth building in from the start. Every site we build ships with this setup; see our custom websites service.