Website maintenance checklist for small-business owners

Check who controls the domain, DNS, hosting, content system, analytics and business mailboxes before changing software or suppliers. Use named business-controlled accounts and keep recovery routes current. Date the confirm ownership before maintenance review. Record the ownership next action. Record confirm ownership before maintenance beside ownership: domain, dns, host, cms and mailbox account holders confirmed. Compare ownership evidence with confirm ownership before maintenance; give each confirm ownership before maintenance disagreement to the ledger custodian for ownership. Publish confirm ownership before maintenance after defining its ownership boundary. Date the confirm ownership before maintenance review. Record the ownership next action.

Open the site on a phone and desktop, follow navigation, submit a controlled test enquiry and confirm where it arrives. Check acknowledgement wording and whether a real person can recognise the test. Date the test the customer journey review. Record the backups next action. Record test the customer journey beside backups: latest successful backup and restoration route checked. Compare backups evidence with test the customer journey; give each test the customer journey disagreement to the ledger custodian for backups. Publish test the customer journey after defining its backups boundary. Date the test the customer journey review. Record the backups next action.

Check services, prices or price qualifiers, opening arrangements, coverage, team details and required policy information against current operations. Ask the responsible person to approve changes before publishing. Date the review facts and policies review. Record the enquiry path next action. Record review facts and policies beside enquiry path: controlled form, phone and email checks completed. Compare enquiry path evidence with review facts and policies; give each review facts and policies disagreement to the ledger custodian for enquiry path. Publish review facts and policies after defining its enquiry path boundary. Date the review facts and policies review. Record the enquiry path next action.

Check certificate status, backups, software updates, broken links and visible errors through the tools supplied by the host or website platform. Take a fresh backup before updates and know how restoration is requested. Date the inspect technical essentials review. Record the public facts next action. Record inspect technical essentials beside public facts: services, hours, coverage and people reviewed. Compare public facts evidence with inspect technical essentials; give each inspect technical essentials disagreement to the ledger custodian for public facts. Publish inspect technical essentials after defining its public facts boundary. Date the inspect technical essentials review. Record the public facts next action.

Match review frequency to how often the business, platform and content change rather than following an arbitrary maintenance package. Give urgent contact failures a faster route than routine copy improvements. Date the set a calm review rhythm review. Record the updates next action. Record set a calm review rhythm beside updates: platform changes applied one at a time with checks. Compare updates evidence with set a calm review rhythm; give each set a calm review rhythm disagreement to the ledger custodian for updates. Publish set a calm review rhythm after defining its updates boundary. Date the set a calm review rhythm review. Record the updates next action.