The 48-Hour AI Business Launch Checklist

Day 1 morning — foundation (3 hours)

1. DomainBuy or point a domain; verify DNS resolves (dig +short).
2. Brand basicsLogo, colours, one-line promise, support email.
3. Model accessOne gateway key (OpenRouter or direct) with a monthly spend cap set.
4. HostingDeploy the app; confirm HTTPS and the health route returns 200.
5. SecretsStore keys as secrets, never in the repo. Confirm the app boots with them.

Day 1 afternoon — the product (3 hours)

1. Telephony (voice)Claim a number; test inbound and outbound with a real call.
2. CalendarConnect the booking calendar; book, reschedule and cancel once each.
3. KnowledgeLoad services, hours and prices; ask 10 real questions and check answers.
4. EscalationDefine what transfers to a human and to which number.
5. NotificationsOwner SMS + email confirmation on every booking.

Day 2 morning — money (3 hours)

1. PaymentsConnect Stripe; create a test payment and a refund.
2. Live keySwap test → live key; register the live webhook for checkout.session.completed.
3. TaxEnable automatic tax or set the rates you owe.
4. ReceiptsConfirm the buyer receives a receipt and can download an invoice.
5. EntitlementsPaid order grants the download; verify /api/download returns the file.

Day 2 afternoon — go live (3 hours)

1. IntakePublish the intake form and submit it once end to end.
2. Transactional emailSend a real login code and a real order confirmation.
3. Mailing listConfirm a signup lands in the list (with the consent checkbox on).
4. AnalyticsFire one test event; see it in Realtime.
5. Rollback planKnow how to revert the domain in 30 seconds.

Acceptance tests before you announce

• A stranger can buy on their phone and reach their dashboard.
• The product answers its core job correctly, 10 times out of 10.
• The download works, and an unpaid account cannot download.
• Robots, sitemap and llms.txt resolve; no noindex on public pages.
• A test email arrives (not in spam) from your verified domain.

Ten things that break an install

• DNS not propagated — verify with dig before you promise a go-live.
• Model key missing a spend cap — one runaway loop can cost hundreds.
• Telephony number not forwarded from the old line — the agent never rings.
• Calendar permissions read-only — it can see slots but cannot book.
• Payments in test mode on a live site — buyers cannot pay.
• No HTTPS on the apex — browsers warn and conversions collapse.
• Secrets committed to the repo — rotate and store them in the platform.
• No escalation path — the agent guesses instead of handing over.
• Backups never tested — a restore you have not run is not a backup.
• No monitoring — you find out from the client, not the alert.

The first week after go-live

1. Day 1Watch 20 real conversations; note every wrong answer.
2. Day 2Add the missing knowledge and re-test the top 10 questions.
3. Day 3Tune escalation; confirm a human handover feels natural.
4. Day 5Send the client a short report: calls answered, jobs booked, issues fixed.
5. Day 7Ask for a testimonial while the result is fresh.

What to measure