Handbook · Chapter 13

Master Build Checklist

A single actionable pre-launch and ongoing checklist for a new content-heavy Next.js or Astro SEO site: foundation and rendering, crawling and indexing, Core Web Vitals, content quality, structured data, architecture, media, accessibility, AI search, and post-launch monitoring.

A single actionable list for a new content-heavy Next.js/Astro SEO site. Chapter references in brackets.

A. Foundation & rendering [Ch 3, 4, 9]

[ ] SSR or SSG output so headings, landmarks, body copy, <title>, meta, and canonical exist in initial HTML (won/lost here — matters extra for Bing's weak JS render).
[ ] Content fingerprinting on JS/CSS assets (main.[hash].js) — never rely on cache headers alone.
[ ] No primary content behind scroll/click/interaction; loading="lazy" only on non-critical images; hero image priority/fetchpriority="high".
[ ] Real <a href> links for all navigation (History API routing, never hash fragments).
[ ] Never ship noindex in HTML for pages you want indexed (JS can't reliably remove it).
[ ] Clean, valid HTML only — no parallel Markdown mirrors / llms.txt as an SEO tactic (validate: malformed HTML silently breaks hreflang/canonical).

B. Crawling & indexing [Ch 2]

[ ] robots.txt at host root, returns 200 (not 404/5xx), ≤500 KiB, only user-agent/allow/disallow/sitemap; do NOT block JS/CSS; declare Sitemap:.
[ ] XML sitemap ≤50k URLs / ≤50 MB, accurate <lastmod>, submitted in Search Console (no ping endpoint).
[ ] Self-referencing canonical on every page (absolute URL, live 200); paginated pages self-canonical (never → page 1).
[ ] Faceted/param URLs controlled via robots.txt; empty filter combos return 404, not redirect-to-home (soft 404).
[ ] Correct status codes: 404/410 for gone, 301/308 for permanent moves, 503 for maintenance; redirect chains ≤10.
[ ] Deindex path if needed = crawlable + noindex (never robots-block + noindex together).

C. Page experience / Core Web Vitals [Ch 4]

[ ] LCP ≤ 2.5s, INP ≤ 200ms, CLS ≤ 0.1 (75th percentile field/CrUX). Reserve image/ad space (aspect-ratio); minimize hydration/main-thread JS (islands / RSC).
[ ] HTTPS everywhere, valid cert, HSTS, 301 HTTP→HTTPS, no mixed content.
[ ] Responsive design; mobile content parity (same content/headings/structured-data/robots-meta as desktop).
[ ] No intrusive interstitials; reasonable ad density.

D. Content quality & E-E-A-T [Ch 5, 10]

[ ] Every page has a clear beneficial purpose and a descriptive, accurate, non-clickbait title.
[ ] MC shows effort + originality + talent/skill; informational/YMYL content is accurate and matches expert consensus.
[ ] Clear ownership + About/Contact; stores/YMYL/data-handling sites have comprehensive contact + payment/return policies.
[ ] Real bylines/author info (no fake or AI-generated author bios); build topical E-E-A-T; cultivate independent reputation (reviews, citations, PR).
[ ] Helpful MC prominent near the top; no filler/ads pushing it down.
[ ] AI-assisted content is edited, original, people-first — never scaled to manipulate; disclose Who/How/Why when a reader would wonder. No AI tells ("As an AI language model").
[ ] Avoid all spam triggers: cloaking, doorways, hidden text, keyword stuffing, scraped/spun content, expired-domain abuse, parasite SEO, link schemes; qualify paid/UGC links (sponsored/ugc/nofollow).

E. Structured data [Ch 6]

[ ] JSON-LD in <head>, most-specific types, describing visible content, on crawlable pages.
[ ] Ship Article/BlogPosting + BreadcrumbList + Organization + WebSite everywhere applicable; Product/Review/Video/Recipe/Event/LocalBusiness where they earn visual rich results.
[ ] Do NOT invest in FAQPage / HowTo / Practice Problem / Sitelinks Searchbox (deprecated — harmless to leave, no SERP gain).
[ ] No self-serving review markup; price always has priceCurrency; validate with Rich Results Test + Schema validator.

F. Architecture, internal linking & international [Ch 7]

[ ] Flat hierarchy; every important page has ≥1 crawlable internal link; descriptive anchor text (no "click here"); breadcrumbs.
[ ] Descriptive lowercase hyphenated URLs; no session/tracking params in indexable URLs.
[ ] hreflang (if multilingual): bidirectional, self-referential, absolute URLs, valid ISO codes, x-default; no IP-based auto-redirect.
[ ] Unique <title> + meta description per page/route (Bing weights these more).

G. Media [Ch 8]

[ ] <img src> with descriptive alt (not stuffed); descriptive filenames; responsive srcset with fallback src; no CSS-background for indexable images.
[ ] Video = main content, standard embed, stable non-expiring file+thumbnail URLs, distinct watch/player/file URLs; VideoObject + video sitemap; unique title/description.

H. Accessibility (= SEO structure) [Ch 9]

[ ] Exactly one <h1>, no skipped levels; semantic landmarks (one <main>, <nav aria-label>); skip link; DOM order = reading order.
[ ] <html lang>; <label for> on inputs; contrast ≥4.5:1 (3:1 large/UI); visible :focus-visible; keyboard-operable, no traps; targets ≥24×24px (aim 44×44 mobile); no horizontal scroll at 320px / usable at 200% zoom.
[ ] Captions (WebVTT) + transcripts for media; native HTML over ARIA; ARIA states update in JS; async status via aria-live.
[ ] Test: axe/Lighthouse (A11y + SEO), keyboard-only, screen reader.

I. AI search / GEO [Ch 11]

[ ] Answer-first 40–60 word capsule at the top of each page and each major H2.
[ ] Load in original statistics, direct quotations, inline citations to authorities; write definitively (cut hedging).
[ ] Match format to intent: numbered "Top-N" listicles for commercial/comparison, long-form for informational, clean product pages for transactional. Don't pad word count.
[ ] robots.txt allows OAI-SearchBot / Claude-SearchBot / PerplexityBot (citations); optionally block training bots — never confuse the two. Use WAF/CDN for non-compliant bots (Bytespider, Perplexity stealth); watch Cloudflare Sept 15 2026 deadline.
[ ] Don't block AI features by default (GSC toggle forfeits impressions with no ranking benefit). Skip llms.txt unless shipping dev-product docs.

J. Post-launch / ongoing [Ch 2, 10, 12]

[ ] Verify Search Console (+ Bing Webmaster Tools + IndexNow for non-Google reach); submit sitemaps.
[ ] Monitor Page Indexing, Core Web Vitals, Manual Actions, Security Issues monthly and after major changes; enable email alerts.
[ ] Turn on the GSC generative-AI report (when available) + GA4 "AI Assistant" channel to track AI visibility.
[ ] IndexNow-ping only on real create/update/delete (debounce).
[ ] On a core-update hit: expect slow recovery — improve genuine quality/E-E-A-T and wait for a later update; don't chase single factors.
[ ] Diversify traffic (branded/transactional/direct/newsletter) against the ~68% zero-click baseline.

Sources

Technical SEO Audit Checklist: 40+ Checks for 2026 Core Web Vitals: LCP, INP and CLS Explained (2026) Schema Markup Guide 2026: Types, JSON-LD & Testing Robots.txt for SEO: Syntax, Rules & Common Mistakes content.thin

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