Website Launch Guide: Step by Step

About 2 minutes

Before you start

Get these ready. Tick each one when you have it.

A laptop or desktop computer. A phone won't work for setup, because you'll drag a folder from your computer.
Your website file: the .zip file I sent you.
An email address you check every day. Messages from your website will go there.
Your web address. If you already own one (like yourbusiness.com), have the login for the company you bought it from. Can't remember which company? Search your email for your web address and the word "renewal" or "receipt". If you don't have one yet, have a debit or credit card ready to buy one in Step 4.

Good to know: Cloudflare, the free website host you'll use, sometimes changes how its buttons look. If a button in this guide looks a little different, click the closest match. On Cloudflare, your website is called a project, and your web address is called a domain.

About 2 minutes

Unzip your website

Find the .zip file I sent you. It's usually in your Downloads folder.
Unzip it. On a Mac: double-click it. On Windows: right-click it, choose Extract All, then click Extract.
Open the new folder and look inside. You should see a file called index.html, plus folders like images. This is your website folder. Remember where it is.

Only see one more folder inside? Open that one. Your website folder is the one with index.html directly inside it.

About 5 minutes

Make a free Cloudflare account

Cloudflare is the company that keeps your website online, day and night. Its free plan is plenty for a small business website, with no ads or badges on your site.

Go to dash.cloudflare.com/sign-up.
Sign up with your business email and a password. Write your password down somewhere safe.
Open the email Cloudflare sends you and click the link inside to confirm your account.
If Cloudflare asks what you want to do or offers a plan, pick the Free option or skip the question. If it asks you to connect GitHub, skip that too. You don't need it.

About 3 minutes

Upload and name your website

In Cloudflare, click Workers & Pages in the menu on the left (it may be inside Compute), then click Create.
On the "Make something new" page, don't pick "Upload your static files". Instead, click the small link at the bottom that says Continue to Pages (next to "Need to use the legacy Pages workflow?"). Then choose Upload assets (it may say Drag and drop your files).
Project name: type your business name with no spaces, like yourbusiness. If it's taken, add your city, like yourbusiness-atl. Pick carefully: this name can't be changed later. Click Create project.
Drag your website folder from Step 1 onto the upload box, and let go. When it finishes, click Deploy site.
Wait about a minute. Cloudflare shows a link that ends in .pages.dev, like yourbusiness.pages.dev. Click it. That's your new website, live on the internet. Write the link down.
Open the same link on your phone and tap around to make sure everything looks right.

Don't worry: customers can't find this link yet. Your website gets your own web address in Step 4.

About 15 minutes, then waiting

Connect your web address

Your web address (also called a domain) is what people type to find you, like yourbusiness.com. Do you already own one?

No, I need oneBuy it right inside Cloudflare. This is the easiest way, and usually the cheapest. Go to 4A. Yes, I have oneMove the address you already own over to Cloudflare. Go to 4B.

If you need a web address

Buy one through Cloudflare

In Cloudflare, click Domain Registration in the menu on the left, then Register Domains (it may say Buy a domain).
Type the address you want, like yourbusiness.com. Cloudflare tells you if it's available and shows the yearly price before you pay (a .com is usually about $10 to $11 a year). Get a .com if you can.
Follow the steps to buy it with your card. Keep auto-renew on so you never lose your address.
Go back to Workers & Pages, click your website, then Custom domains, then Set up a custom domain. Type your address, like yourbusiness.com, click Continue, then Activate domain.
Do the same again for the www version, like www.yourbusiness.com, so both work.
That's it. Cloudflare connects everything for you. Within about an hour, your address shows your new website with a padlock next to it (that means it's secure). Go on to Step 5.

If you already have a web address

Move it over to Cloudflare

You'll keep your address and keep paying the same company for it. You're only telling it to let Cloudflare handle where your address points.

Already bought your address from Cloudflare? Skip to Part 3.

Part 1: Add your address to Cloudflare

In Cloudflare, go to your Account home and click Add a domain (it may say Onboard a domain).
Type your address without the www, like yourbusiness.com. Keep Quick scan for DNS records selected and click Continue.
Pick the Free plan and continue.
Cloudflare shows a list of settings it copied from your current company. If your address has email (like you@yourbusiness.com), make sure you see rows marked MX. Don't delete anything here. Click Continue.
Cloudflare now shows you two nameservers. They look like anna.ns.cloudflare.com and bob.ns.cloudflare.com (yours will have different names). Copy both down exactly. Leave this page open.

Part 2: Where you bought your address

Log in to the company you bought your address from and find its Nameservers setting. Find your company in the list below to see exactly where to click.
Choose the option to use custom nameservers (it may say "I'll use my own nameservers"). Remove the ones that are there, paste in Cloudflare's two, and save.
Go back to Cloudflare and click Continue (or Check nameservers now). Then wait. It can take a few minutes or up to 24 hours. Cloudflare emails you when your address is active. You can do Step 7 while you wait.

Important: don't cancel your web address, and don't delete rows marked MX or TXT; they keep your business email working. If your old website was on Squarespace, Wix or GoDaddy, keep the address and only cancel the old website plan after your new website shows up.

Part 3: Connect it to your website

Once Cloudflare says your address is Active, click your address, then DNS, then Records. Delete any rows with Type A, AAAA or CNAME whose Name is your address or www. Those point at your old website. Leave every other row alone.
Go to Workers & Pages, click your website, then Custom domains, then Set up a custom domain. Type your address, like yourbusiness.com, click Continue, then Activate domain.
Do the same again for the www version, like www.yourbusiness.com.
Within about an hour, your address shows your new website with a padlock next to it.

Where to change nameservers, company by company

GoDaddy

Sign in at godaddy.com, open your Domain Portfolio (or My Products), click your address, then DNS, then the Nameservers tab. Click Change Nameservers, choose I'll use my own nameservers, paste in Cloudflare's two and save. If GoDaddy warns you, that's normal; confirm.

Squarespace (and old Google Domains)

Sign in at account.squarespace.com, click Domains, click your address, then DNS, then Domain Nameservers. Choose Use custom nameservers, paste in Cloudflare's two and save.

Namecheap

Sign in, open your Domain List and click Manage next to your address. Under Nameservers, change the menu to Custom DNS, paste in Cloudflare's two, and click the green check mark to save.

Wix

Wix doesn't always let you change nameservers for an address bought through Wix. Open Wix's help chat and say: "Please change my domain's nameservers to" followed by Cloudflare's two. If they say they can't, email me and I'll help you move your address.

Somewhere else

Look for a setting called Nameservers, DNS servers or Custom DNS. Or open the company's help chat and say: "Please change my domain's nameservers to" followed by Cloudflare's two. They do this every day.

About 5 minutes

Get form messages by email

If your website has a contact, booking or request form, do this so messages from customers land in your inbox. Your form uses Web3Forms, a free service that emails you each message (up to 250 a month).

Go to web3forms.com and click Create your Form. Sign up with the email where you want customer messages to arrive.
Create a form and name it after your business. Web3Forms shows you an access key, a long code like a1b2c3d4-e5f6-7890-abcd-ef1234567890.
Email the access key to me. It's safe to share; it only lets your form send messages to you. I'll send back your updated website folder, usually within 1 business day.
Upload the updated folder the same way as any change (see Making changes later).
Test it: fill out the form on your website and send it. It should reach your email within a few minutes. The first time, check your spam folder and mark it "Not spam".

No form on your website? Then you can skip this step.

About 10 minutes

Test everything

Once your web address shows your new website, check these on your phone and your computer.

Your address (like yourbusiness.com) opens your new website, with a padlock next to it.
The www version (like www.yourbusiness.com) opens it too.
Every link in the menu opens the right page.
On your phone, tapping your phone number starts a call.
Your hours, address, prices and contact details are right.
Text yourself your web address. A preview picture shows up with the link.

About 10 minutes

Tell everyone

Put your new web address everywhere customers find you.

Google: sign in to the Google account that manages your business, search Google for your business name, click Edit profile and update your Website.
Social media: put the link in your Instagram, Facebook and TikTok bios.
Other listings: Yelp, Apple Maps and any booking or delivery apps you use.
Everything else: your email signature, flyers, menus and business cards.

You're live

After launch

Keep your logins safe. Save your Cloudflare, Web3Forms and web address logins somewhere safe. They're yours. You own your website.
Keep auto-renew on for your web address. If it expires, your website goes offline.

Making changes later

When I make changes for you, I'll send you an updated website folder. Unzip it like in Step 1. Then in Cloudflare, go to Workers & Pages, click your website, and click Create deployment (it may say Create new deployment). Drag the new folder onto the upload box and click Save and Deploy. It's live in about a minute.

Changes are $40 each, or get up to 4 a month with the Monthly Care Plan for $100 a month. See pricing.

About Cloudflare's free plan: a small business website stays well within its limits, and it never adds ads or badges to your site. If Cloudflare offers you a paid plan, you don't need it. Check with me before you pay for anything.

Just in case

If something goes wrong

What you see	What to do
"Page not found" on your .pages.dev link	You uploaded the folder that holds your website folder. Open folders until you see index.html, then upload that folder as a new deployment (see Making changes later).
Your old website still shows at your address	Wait. It can take up to 24 hours. Try a private (incognito) window, or check on your phone with Wi-Fi turned off.
Cloudflare still says your address is "Pending" after a day	Check the nameservers at your web address company for typos. Only Cloudflare's two should be listed.
Your custom domain says "Verifying" or shows an error	Make sure your address shows Active in Cloudflare first. Then check that no old `A`, `AAAA` or `CNAME` rows for your address or www are left (Step 4B, Part 3).
A "Not secure" warning	Wait for the padlock. It can take up to a day after your address switches over.
Your business email stopped working	An `MX` or `TXT` row is missing. In Cloudflare, open your address, then DNS, then Records, and compare with the email settings your email provider gives you. Your email provider's help chat can tell you exactly what to add.
Form messages aren't arriving	Check your spam folder. Sign in to web3forms.com and make sure the form's email is spelled right.
You're stuck on a Cloudflare or web address screen	Both have free help. Cloudflare's is at community.cloudflare.com, and your web address company has help chat or phone support.

Questions about your website itself? Email me at chattmanjohnsoniv@gmail.com.

Put your new website live, step by step.