Most website projects fail the same way.
Not dramatically. Not at launch. They fail slowly, through a series of small decisions made in the wrong order. Design starts before content is ready. Development starts before design is approved. The client sees the site for the first time a week before go-live. Redirects are an afterthought. The CMS gets set up without anyone asking how the marketing team will actually use it.
Each of these is a fixable problem on its own. Together they create the kind of project that takes twice as long, costs more than expected, and produces a site that needs rebuilding in two years.
We built the Essential Launch Framework to prevent that.
What the framework is
The Essential Launch Framework, ELF for short, is the process we use on every migration and new build. Six phases, three client decision points, and a clear sequence designed around one principle: the right work happens in the right order.
It is not a rigid methodology we follow because it sounds professional. It is a system we developed through real projects, real mistakes, and real clients asking why something went wrong. Every phase exists because skipping it creates problems downstream.
The three decision points
Before getting into the phases, it helps to understand how client involvement works.
Most agencies either involve clients too much, with constant check-ins and meetings that slow everything down, or too little, with the client seeing the site for the first time at the end. Neither works well.
ELF has three formal decision gates. At each gate, the client reviews a specific deliverable, gives feedback, and approves before the next phase begins. Nothing moves forward without that approval.
Gate 1: Strategy approval. The client approves the sitemap, migration plan, and redirect strategy before any design or development begins.
Gate 2: Design approval. The client approves the key page designs and component system before development begins.
Gate 3: Launch approval. The client approves demo pages built with real content before full content migration and go-live.
Between gates, we handle execution. The client gets a short weekly status update. No unnecessary meetings.
The six phases
Phase 1: Discovery and Migration Strategy
Every project starts here, and this phase exists for one reason: you cannot plan a migration without understanding what you are migrating from.
We crawl the existing site, document every page type, assess the tech stack, identify SEO risks, and map out every integration the site depends on. We figure out what content moves as-is, what needs rewriting, and what gets dropped entirely.
The output is a migration strategy document, a sitemap of the new site, and a redirect mapping plan that accounts for every URL with traffic or backlinks.
Nothing about this phase is glamorous. But skipping it is how you lose rankings, break integrations, and discover halfway through a build that the old CMS stores content in a format that cannot be exported cleanly.
This phase ends at Gate 1. The client reviews and approves the sitemap, migration strategy, and redirect plan before anything else starts.
Phase 2: Content Architecture
Once the strategy is approved, we define the building blocks of every page type before design starts.
This is the phase most agencies skip, and it is the main reason designs have to be redone. If you do not know what content lives on each page, in what structure, with what relationships, you cannot design it properly. You end up designing around placeholder text, and everything changes when real content arrives.
We break every page type into sections, identify patterns across page types, and reduce complexity by merging similar sections into reusable components. The output is a component inventory: a list of every distinct section that needs to be designed and built.
This phase does not involve the client directly. It is internal work between David and Oliver, our designer. But it is the foundation that makes every subsequent phase faster and more predictable.
Phase 3: Content and Copy
Design cannot start until there is real content direction to design around.
This phase ensures every page has what it needs before design begins. Depending on the project, that means Essential Code writes the copy, the client provides it based on our brief, or an external copywriter works from our content architecture.
Regardless of who writes, we produce a content brief for every page type, align on key messaging, headlines, and calls to action, and establish a content delivery schedule so nothing blocks design.
This phase overlaps with early design exploration. The designer may begin mood boards or type studies while content is being finalized. But key page designs do not start until content direction is confirmed.
The reason this phase exists is simple: designing around placeholder text always creates rework. Pages designed for two-line headlines fall apart when the real headline is four lines. Getting content direction locked first saves everyone time and money.
Phase 4: Design
With content architecture defined and real content direction confirmed, the designer creates key page templates.
The focus is on two to three representative pages, not every page. A homepage, a main service or product page, and a content page. These cover the range of layouts and components the site needs. Everything else follows the same system.
The design system covers typography, spacing, color, component patterns, and responsive behavior. Every section is designed as a reusable component, because a design that only works with specific content is not a reusable component.
This phase ends at Gate 2. The client reviews the designed pages and component system, gives one round of feedback, and approves before development begins. After approval, design is locked.
Phase 5: Technical Setup and Build
This is where the site gets built.
We set up the CMS, create content models for every component in the inventory, configure roles and permissions to match the client’s team structure, and implement every section as a frontend component connected to the CMS.
The frontend runs on Next.js or Astro depending on the project. Hosting, CI/CD, and any integrations (search, analytics, forms, CRM, ERP) are set up and connected.
Performance is not an afterthought. We target a Lighthouse score of 90 or above from the start, not as a final optimization pass but as a baseline throughout the build.
This phase overlaps with Phase 4. Technical setup begins while design is in progress, and component implementation starts as soon as designs are approved.
Phase 6: Assembly, Content, and Go-Live
The final phase proves the system works before committing to full content migration.
We build one or two demo pages using real content and the implemented components. The client sees the system working with actual content, not a design mockup or a staging environment full of placeholder text.
This phase includes Gate 3. The client confirms the approach works and approves moving to full content migration. After that approval, content is migrated, remaining pages are reviewed, redirects are implemented and tested, and the site goes live.
After go-live, we monitor the site for 48 hours and handle any issues that surface. The project then transitions to ongoing technical ownership, which is optional but available for clients who want continued accountability after launch.
Why the order matters
The sequence is not arbitrary. Each phase feeds the next.
Content architecture before design means designs do not have to be redone when real content arrives. Design before development means developers are not building components that will change. Real content in demo pages before full migration means surprises surface before go-live, not after.
The three decision gates mean clients are never surprised by the direction the project is taking, and the team is never blocked by unclear approvals.
The result is a project that moves predictably, lands on time, and produces a site that holds up after launch.
What ELF does not fix
A framework is not a guarantee that everything goes smoothly. Content delays from the client side are the most common reason projects take longer than planned. Scope changes after gate approvals create rework. Integrations with third-party systems sometimes surface surprises that nobody could have anticipated from the outside.
What ELF does is make sure that when things get complicated, the project has enough structure to absorb it. The phases are clear, the decisions are documented, and both sides know exactly where things stand at any given point.
That is what a framework is for.
If you want to understand how ELF would apply to your specific situation, the best starting point is a headless audit. We review your current setup and map out the migration approach before you commit to anything larger.