WebsiteDesignOutsource.com blog
Keep a Launch Day Command Log for an Outsourced Website
Coordinate launch decisions, verification, incidents, and rollback triggers in one timestamped operating record.
**Published: September 1, 2026**
Launch day involves decisions across content, DNS, hosting, analytics, forms, redirects, and support. A command log keeps the team aligned without turning chat history into the only record.
Set up the log before the window
Name the launch lead, technical operator, content approver, business approver, and communications owner. Preload the release identifier, planned sequence, checks, stop conditions, rollback criteria, contact paths, and time standard. Give one person authority to record decisions.
Capture facts as the launch proceeds
Manage risk and ownership
The log should not encourage unreviewed production changes. Keep secrets out, distinguish observations from decisions, and avoid declaring success before public verification is complete.
Define acceptance
Close the log with the deployed version, public checks, unresolved issues, monitoring owner, and retrospective date. Store it with the release record so future teams can reconstruct the event.
Further reading
Source
Frequently asked questions
Who should own this record?
A named client owner should approve business rules and access. The outsourced team maintains implementation detail and supplies repeatable evidence.
When should the team review it?
Review it before implementation, at acceptance, and whenever a related service, policy, account, or production component changes.
Does a template prove the work is complete?
No. The completed record must match the implemented website and be supported by checks that another reviewer can repeat.