March 22, 2026 · 6 min read
Landing Page Checklist: 15 Things to Check Before You Launch
I've launched enough landing pages to know that the stuff you forget is usually the stuff that kills your conversion rate. Not the big strategic decisions — those you agonize over. It's the small things. The missing meta description. The CTA that says "Submit." The form that doesn't work on Safari.
So I made myself a checklist. I run through it every time before I push a landing page live. It's saved me from embarrassing mistakes more times than I'd like to admit.
Copy & Messaging
1. Headline states one clear outcome
Your visitor should read the headline and immediately know what problem you solve. "The future of X" doesn't count. "Save 4 hours/week on invoicing" does. If you can't explain the value in under 10 words, your headline is too vague.
2. Subhead explains how, not just what
The headline says what you do. The subhead should say how or why it's different. "AI-powered invoice scanning that auto-categorizes expenses and syncs to QuickBooks" — now I get it.
3. CTA button text is specific
"Get Started" is lazy. "Start Free Trial" tells me what happens next. "Scan My Page Free" tells me what happens and that it costs nothing. The more specific your button text, the less anxiety about clicking it.
4. No jargon in the first screen
Everything above the fold should be readable by someone who's never heard of your product category. Save the technical terms for the features section below.
Design & UX
5. Primary CTA is visible without scrolling
On both desktop and mobile. I've seen pages where the CTA is above the fold on a 27-inch monitor but below it on a laptop. Test on a 13-inch screen or just check at 1366x768.
6. CTA button has enough contrast
Your call-to-action should be the most visually prominent thing on the page. If it blends into the background or matches other buttons, you're losing clicks. Squint test: blur your eyes and see if the CTA still pops.
7. Remove or minimize navigation
Every nav link is a potential exit. If this is a campaign landing page, strip the nav entirely. If it's your homepage doubling as a landing page, at least simplify it to 3-4 items max.
Trust & Social Proof
8. Social proof near the CTA
Testimonials, customer logos, or usage numbers should sit close to your signup form or buy button. That's where doubt kicks in — that's where proof needs to be.
9. Testimonials use real names and specifics
"Great product!" — Anonymous is worthless. "Cut our onboarding time from 3 days to 4 hours" — Sarah K., Head of Ops at Acme. That's the difference between decoration and persuasion.
Technical & SEO
10. Page loads in under 3 seconds
Run Lighthouse. Check your LCP (Largest Contentful Paint). If your hero image is a 4MB uncompressed PNG, you're losing visitors before they even see your headline. Compress, lazy-load, use WebP.
11. Meta title and description are set
Check how your page looks when shared on Google, Twitter, LinkedIn. If the preview is "Next.js App" or blank, you forgot to set your meta tags. Takes 2 minutes to fix, looks amateur if you don't.
12. OG image is set and looks good
When someone shares your link, the preview image matters. Make a custom OG image (1200x630px) that shows your value prop and looks professional. Default screenshots look terrible.
13. Works on mobile
Actually test it. On a real phone, not just Chrome DevTools. Check that forms work, buttons are tappable, text doesn't overflow, and nothing is hidden behind the notch.
Conversion Safety Net
14. Analytics is tracking
Before you drive any traffic: verify your analytics fires on page load and on key actions (signup, purchase, CTA click). I've run paid ads for 3 days before realizing my conversion tracking was broken. Don't be me.
15. Test the full flow yourself
Go through the entire journey as a user. Click the CTA. Fill in the form. Complete the purchase. Check the confirmation email. If any step feels clunky or breaks, fix it before you send traffic. The number of times I've found broken Stripe webhooks at this step is embarrassing.
The Meta-Tip
Checklists are good. But the fastest way to catch issues is to get a second pair of eyes on your page — even if that second pair is AI. I built PageScore because I kept missing the same stuff on my own pages. It catches things I overlook when I'm too close to the product.
Run your page through the checklist automatically
PageScore checks your landing page across 10 categories — copy, SEO, design, mobile, speed, trust signals, and more. Free scan in 30 seconds, no signup.
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