Quick Answer
Before paid traffic starts, verify the store's measurement, product data, product page, cart and checkout, mobile path, policies, speed, and privacy setup. Mark every check pass, fail, or needs proof. Do not treat a checkbox as evidence: save the test order, screenshot, diagnostic, policy URL, or platform status that supports the decision.
The printable 15-point checklist
- Primary purchase event: complete a test order and retain the order ID plus the platform event record.
- GA4 ecommerce measurement: verify product view, add to cart, checkout, and purchase events with item and value data.
- Advertising pixels and server-side signals: verify only the channels being used and record duplicate-event controls.
- Attribution decision: document which system is the commercial source of truth and how platform reporting will be reconciled.
- Consent and privacy: confirm the live consent behavior, privacy policy, and regional requirements with the responsible legal owner.
- Merchant feed: check product identifiers, titles, price, availability, shipping, returns, landing URLs, and disapprovals.
- Product-page decision: verify variant selection, price, images, delivery facts, returns, proof, and add-to-cart behavior.
- Cart: test quantity changes, discounts, shipping expectations, errors, and the path back to the product.
- Checkout: complete the path on supported devices and retain proof of payment, tax, shipping, and confirmation behavior.
- Contact capture: verify any email or SMS capture, consent language, confirmation, and suppression behavior.
- Mobile parity: repeat the product, cart, checkout, and post-purchase tests on a real mobile viewport.
- Payment methods: confirm every displayed method is available to the intended market and works through completion.
- Shipping and returns: make cost, timing, geography, exceptions, and return terms visible before checkout.
- Performance: use current field and lab evidence to identify material loading or interaction failures on the paid landing path.
- Launch record: name the owner, test date, evidence link, open defect, stop condition, and first post-launch review for every item.
Worked example: what a real pass looks like
Check 1 - primary purchase event: pass only after a test order reaches the Shopify order record, the confirmation page, GA4, and the active ad platform without duplicate purchase events. Record the order ID, timestamp, transaction value, screenshots or debug output, and the person who verified it. If one system is delayed or missing, mark the item needs proof or fail; do not launch from memory.
Primary documentation to check
Common Questions
On record.
Which item is most often missed?
The evidence record. A tag may appear installed while purchase values, duplicate controls, consent behavior, or the final checkout event are still wrong. Retain proof from a completed test.
How long should pre-launch verification take?
Half a day if the store is built. Multi-day if the store is new and needs the setup.
Can I launch paid traffic with 13 of 15 items complete?
It depends on the two open items and the named risk owner. A broken purchase event, checkout, payment method, policy, or consent path is a stop condition. A lower-risk cosmetic defect can be documented with an owner and deadline.
Does this apply to Shopify re-launches after a major change?
Yes. Re-run the checklist on any redesign, replatform, or significant policy change.
When is a Conversion Marketing Plan warranted at launch?
If any item is unclear or the store has complex variant logic, multi-market structure, or custom checkout.
The Engagement Format
Begin with the business problem. Then scope the work.
Share the business problem and the relevant account, page, or store. Scope and price are confirmed after intake.
Have us run it