Prepare for your public launch

A local shop is your rehearsal

This lesson gives you a public-launch plan. The current local sample does not include a supported live payment provider, production email, persistent uploads, or a validated public deployment. These are implementation requirements, not a switch from “test” to “live.” Use the supported launch instructions in your delivered release, or the agreed Launch Assist scope.

Do not use a private sample’s settings or development passwords on a public server.

1. Agree on one supported path

Before buying hosting or implementation help, name the release, hosting setup, payment provider, email provider, selling region, and currency. Confirm your business is eligible for those providers. A different provider or multi-market setup may require custom work.

Your storefront can be deployed in your account while someone helps with setup. Keep ownership of the domain, hosting, billing, and account recovery methods.

2. Use a launch sheet

Add an owner, a result, and a date to each row. An unchecked row stays open.

Area	What you need to see before launch
Domain and HTTPS	The intended domain loads securely on a phone and desktop; redirects work.
Accounts	Admin access is protected; production credentials are distinct and privately stored.
Products	Variants, prices, stock, images, and claims have been checked.
Payments	Success, decline, repeated notifications, and refund tested against provider and Admin records.
Email	The correct receipt and support messages arrive in a real test inbox.
Shipping and tax	Supported destinations and totals match your documented merchant rules.
Policies	Contact, delivery, returns, privacy, and merchant information are visible.
Media	Images and uploads survive a restart or deployment.
Recovery	A recent backup restores into an isolated environment; an owner knows the recovery steps.
Operations	Health checks, incident contact, billing alerts, and access handoff are documented.

A payment test belongs to the merchant’s approved process. Start in provider test mode. Any real transaction should be deliberate, permitted by the provider, and reconciled; it is not something AI should create in the background.

3. Ask AI for a read-only launch review

Review my delivered starter's supported launch documentation and this
launch sheet. For every item, say verified, missing evidence, or not
supported by this release. Cite the configuration or test receipt you
used without including credentials or customer data.
Do not deploy, register a domain, change DNS, change payment mode,
send customer messages, charge/refund money, or claim a test is live.
Return the smallest ordered list of remaining work with an owner.

4. Know what private server practice means

The local sample can be run privately on a Linux server with Docker Compose and viewed through an SSH tunnel. That keeps it accessible to you without making it a public shop. The command reference describes the tunnel; no specific cloud configuration has been validated here.

If you choose Launch Assist

We first check that your release and requirements fit the supported service. The scope covers one store, server, and domain, prepared product data, agreed provider configuration, launch checks, and handoff. See the fixed price and exact scope.

You provide approved accounts, product assets, and business policies. The start date and launch window depend on those being ready; payment-provider approval is outside the service’s control.

Ready when

Every required row has evidence and an owner, and the supported deployment has been tested. Reading this lesson or finishing the local sample does not make a live store ready. Keep the launch sheet with the version you deploy.