This ecommerce website checklist helps you prepare a build brief before you launch an online store: products, delivery rules, payments, integrations, content and handover.
A useful ecommerce website launch brief describes what you sell, how customers buy it and who runs the shop after launch. Start with the catalogue, delivery rules, product content and recurring costs. Then agree the design and the checks that will show whether the store is ready.
This guide is for business owners planning a first online shop or replacing an existing store. You do not need every detail finished before speaking to a designer, but the decisions below will help you compare proposals and avoid assumptions becoming extra work.
Key takeaways: scope the products before the pages; separate build costs from running costs; identify the people responsible for content and fulfilment; and define a safe launch test.
Describe the catalogue, including the awkward products
A product count is a starting point, but it does not explain the work. A shop selling ten simple products can have fewer configuration needs than a shop selling ten products with sizes, personalisation and different delivery rules. Describe the product types as well as the total.
Choose representative examples: a straightforward item, an item with options, an out-of-stock item and one that needs special handling. These are suggested briefing examples, not a fixed testing standard. Explain what the customer needs to choose and what your team needs to receive with the order.
- Which products have variants, bundles or custom information?
- Where do stock levels come from, and who updates them?
- Are descriptions, images, dimensions and prices ready?
- Who uploads the initial catalogue, and what is the agreed limit?
For a migration, identify the current platform and the records you want to keep. Products, customer records, order history and app data should be discussed individually. Do not assume that everything transfers because the new platform also has a shop function.
Explain the buying journey before choosing a theme
Write down how a first-time customer should find the right product. They may browse by category, search by name or need help choosing a size. That route informs the navigation, collections, product content and filters. The homepage is only one possible entry point.
Use a concrete scenario. For example, a customer arriving on a product page needs to choose an option, understand delivery and add the right item to their basket. Ask the designer to explain how that journey will work on a phone, including what happens when the item is unavailable.
Identify the delivery areas and exceptions before configuration starts. Your store needs rules that reflect how the business operates. The owner supplies and approves those requirements; the designer should not have to guess shipping charges, product restrictions or tax treatment.
Separate build costs, running costs and account ownership
Compare proposals using the same list of deliverables. Design, product upload, migration, integrations and handover are separate areas of work. A headline price is difficult to assess if one quote includes catalogue preparation and another expects you to do it.
Ask for a separate list of recurring charges: platform or hosting, domain, paid themes, apps and agreed support. Shopify and WooCommerce also place different responsibilities on the business. Xeon’s Shopify website design page explains the store work we can scope, while the WordPress website design page covers the WordPress route.
Record who owns each account and who can administer it. Your brief should also name the people handling orders, product changes and support requests after handover. Access should follow those responsibilities.
Agree what an ecommerce website launch check will cover
Define representative buying journeys and who signs them off. Include product selection, basket behaviour, delivery availability and the information your team receives. Agree the payment provider’s supported test method before testing.
Shopify recommends test orders to review checkout, order handling, inventory, shipping and tax configuration. Its guidance also says payment test mode must be disabled before accepting customers’ real payments. Use the current Shopify launch guidance when planning that check.
Search readiness belongs in the brief too. Specify useful product descriptions, page titles, navigation links and any URL mapping needed for a migration. Google explains how product structured data and Merchant Center feeds can supply product information in its product-data documentation. These are implementation options to assess, not a guarantee that a store will receive a particular search appearance.
Ecommerce website checklist for your build brief
- Business and customers: what you sell and who buys it.
- Catalogue: product count, types, options and content readiness.
- Operations: stock source, delivery rules and order handling.
- Existing store: platform, data and URLs that may need migrating.
- Integrations: systems that must connect, with account ownership.
- Budget: build budget and acceptable ongoing costs.
- Launch: preferred date, dependencies and sign-off responsibilities.
- Handover: training, daily tasks and support requirements.
Questions before you commission the shop
Do I need all the product content ready first?
You can discuss the project before everything is ready. The proposal should still identify who supplies the content and when it is needed. Representative products help define the build; the final upload and launch depend on the agreed content being available.
Can I start small and add more products later?
A smaller launch can be sensible if the store structure supports the wider catalogue. Tell the designer about likely future categories and features now. Adding ordinary products and introducing a new subscription or integration are different types of change and may have different costs.
Turn the brief into an agreed scope
An ecommerce website launch becomes easier to manage when the proposal names the work, ownership and acceptance checks. See our ecommerce website design service for the store scope, or share the brief through Xeon’s contact page, along with your current store if you have one. We can then discuss the platform, design and operational requirements before quoting.