How do you test your website operations BEFORE going Live?

[Bob Thibodeau]

QUESTION: How do YOU test your websites before going Live? And the autoresponder? (I have a 30 day email campaign – with an email due to be sent out each day…do you just test one or two days and then “go for it?”)

I am at “that point” of testing everything (probably by this weekend).
I don’t want to launch and then find out something is not working like it should.

I know about testing the PayPal links and make sure the download pages are actually going to be sent out…but what else? Especially about the autoresponder series…?

Thanks for the help on this!

Bob

[Don Sturgill]

You can put your website behind an “Under Construction” wall and ask search engines not to index it while you’re getting it ready, Bob. You’ll still be able to log in and see the site as it will be when you drop the wall. Be sure to allow indexing as soon as content is ready.

For your autoresponder, each has its own particulars… but you can fill out your own opt-in forms and test each part of the system with them all. Ask support for instructions.

[Trevor Dumbleton]

If you’re close to being ready, just go for it. Google take a few days to crawl round most of the time nowadays (Bing are in teenager “later” mode) and then even longer before you start showing in results. If you’re not as close then do as Don suggests or discourage robots but if you do that, remember to set it back when you’re ready.

Autoresponder: there may be a test option for the whole series, that will depend on who you’re using. Or just sign up to your list yourself and check the emails as they arrive – you’ll be ahead of anyone else so there’ll be a chance to correct things.

Ready, fire, aim works well on the web.

[Bob Thibodeau]

Thanks, Don and Trevor. I am using “GetResponse” for the autoresponder…I’ll have to check with their support whether or not I can do an “accelerated” test of the “drip”. I’m already signed up to receive the daily content…I just was wondering if there was a way where I would not have to wait the entire 30 days to make sure everything was working as it is supposed to (that links, etc. were coming in via email as well). All of the testing I have done thus far has worked (for the most part – I had to “fix” a couple of things).

I’m going to push through and launch – hopefully by the end of the month, maybe sooner if all is working as it supposed to.

Have any of you used “sandbox” or whatever it is called on PayPal? I’ve tried that on a few other websites and had problems with it. I ended up “buying” my own product just to see if the site’s were working. But from what I understand, PayPal Sandbox was supposed to avoid that…any ideas or experiences there? Thanks again for your input!

Bob

[Trevor Dumbleton]

Ages since I’ve used Paypal sandbox and don’t have fond memories of it.

Currently I tend to use Warrior+ for most of my products – not ideal as people end up on their mailing list as well. Or for some products I create a Paypal button and just make sure I copy & paste the code correctly.

I don’t know how many products you’ve got but if it’s not far into double digits then I’d suggest just going with the Paypal buttons and making sure that the cancel link is added as well as the paid link (which I tend to set up Sean style as a “please confirm your details” autoresponder signup)

Aweber has a “send a test” link below each email in the follow-up series. I’d have thought Get Response should have something similar. Not as easy as one click to send the whole series but do-able unless the follow ups are too numerous.

[Bob Thibodeau]

Thanks Trevor!

[Julia Stueber]

I completely failed with Paypal sandbox, that’s why I tested my Paypal button with $0.01, then put the right price in and just checked if it was the right price. It only costs a few cents this way.

[Bob Thibodeau]

Thanks Julia! I never thought about pricing it at a penny just to test! That’s a great idea!

[Sean Mize]

Folks, I don’t test much.

Paypal always works if you use their button.

If the site doesn’t work, you’ll know it first, you probably aren’t running a 10,000 visitor campaign the first day.

Just enroll in the autoresponder campaign and you’ll get them as fast as anyone else, cause most folks won’t enroll the very first day anyhow.

keep it easy, I do almost everything live, I can always revert to a saved version of something if it doesn’t work, and I lose a few minutes

Sean

[Cynthia Leighton]

Bob,

I’m just trusting that PayPal works and that I can handle problems and and when or if they happen.

I am enrolled in each of my lists (my subscriber list and my now-two buyer lists) and plan to do that as I create each buyer list.

blessings,
Cynthia

[Bob Thibodeau]

Thank You, Cynthia! I appreciate the info!

[Sean Mize]

here’s my thought . . . unless you have a million buyers – who cares if you are live for a day before it’s perfect

unless you are driving traffic to a site or an offer no one will ever see it

I NEVER use a sandbox or test sites

I simply open things up, live

they work or they don’t

I make changes.

THEN I send traffic

and since I’m sending traffic from my list who trusts me and wants to help – people tell me if things don’t work

I fix them

all live

Sean

[Bob Thibodeau]

Thanks Sean!

I Rick Smith said the same thing, except he sets the price at a penny to test it all the way through. I did the same for $1 and it worked perfect!

Everyone here offers such great advice!

I’m blessed to be part of the group – for sure!

[Rick Smith]

Bob –

Correct. I tried the sandbox years ago and I don’t remember it working very well. The testing I’ve done with you has been “live.”

[Author]

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