Planning for Websites, Post Launch

Post-launch is a critical stage of any website redesign, but one that often gets ignored.

Only after your new site goes live can you truly test your research and your assumptions in the real world. Even the smartest, most savvy organizations and web agencies can’t always predict how an audience will use a site, or what the most successful approach will be. What you can do, however, is test, observe and react.

But none of that can happen if you haven’t set aside the time and resources for post-launch site improvement.

Reasons organizations ignore this stage

• Budget is already spent. Whatever expenses were set aside for a new website are typically used up. Unless your web agency is cutting corners, they will use whatever resources an organization makes available to build the best site they can build. The thought of spending more money post-launch just isn’t an option for the rest of the budget year for many organizations.
• Staff time is spent. Organizations undergoing a site redesign need to dedicate staff towards the effort. But this is often considered temporary. Once the site is launched, staff need to get back to the day-to-day tasks in their original job description.
• Our internal team can take care of everything. Once trained on a new content management system (CMS), there’s a sense of ownership and empowerment. After all, a major selling point of any CMS is the ability to add or edit content with no coding required. An organization may decide that once the site is launched, they no longer need outside help.

At Electric Citizen, we want site owners to have the knowledge and tools to manage their sites. We want them to do as much as they can handle. But even the best CMS doesn’t solve every problem, or anticipate what’s needed in the future. 

After all, your site editors aren’t necessarily trained in writing content for the web, keeping up with the latest trends in technology, or up-to-date on changes to security, performance, or accessibility. Sometimes the most effective plan is asking for outside help.

Content management systems are powerful, amazing pieces of software. And like all software, you need to keep it up to date. No software is bug-free. Issues get uncovered and updates or patches are required. Think of how often your operating system or desktop software gets updated.

More critical than your desktop software, however, is software that is accessible across the Internet. Keeping your CMS system secure from hacks is critical. There’s user data to protect and your organization’s reputation to consider. Your audience may depend on the tools and content your site offers, and won't tolerate pages not loading or your site being down.

You may have internal developers within your organization who can be trained on maintaining the software for you. If not, you want to find a good team to do the updates for you.

When planning your next site redesign, be sure to talk to your web agency about post-launch capabilities. Find out if they offer ongoing support and maintenance, or what they recommend. Some agencies have well-defined plans and many options to choose from, while others may not offer anything, preferring that you find post-launch support elsewhere.

Some recommendations for planning ahead

1. Reallocate funds – your organization could set aside a portion of the redesign budget for post-launch, even as you’re only beginning the project. This could potentially get you through the first year, post-site-launch. It may mean scaling back a bit on the scope of that initial redesign, but the trade-off is giving your team the flexibility to make the necessary changes needed at a later date.
2. Future budgets – update your annual budget to include funds for post-launch site improvement. Your organization likely already has some money budgeted for web hosting and domain registration. Adding the additional funds for post-launch work can make planning easier, and avoid delays, red-tape or budget battles when you need the work done at a later date.

At Electric Citizen, we encourage all new clients to think about the post-launch phase, even as we are just doing our initial discovery and planning. Sites need continuous investment to be effective and reach their full potential. By planning far ahead, it can be easier to allocate the appropriate resources for the years to come after the launch of your next great website.