Step 8 — Approvals & QA (Beginner-Friendly)

What “Approvals & QA” means in simple words

Approvals mean “the right people read the content and said yes.” QA means “quality assurance,” which is a careful walk‑through to see if anything is broken or unclear before the content goes live. In this step, you will follow a simple checklist that anyone can use. You will keep the language plain and the checks easy to repeat. You will save proof of your checks in a short table.

How Step 8 connects to Steps 1–7

Roadmap (small flow)

Move through these steps once without rushing. If you need to repeat, repeat only the part that failed.

Roles and handoffs (swimlane)

Approval levels (simple table)

QA checklist you can follow

Walk through the page top to bottom. Touch each item only once and mark it. If you find a problem, fix it and come back to the list. Keep this list in your project folder so you can reuse it.

Heatmap — coverage of checks (visual)

This tiny heatmap helps you see if some parts of the page still feel weak. The darker the square, the more confident you feel about that part.

Radial timeline — simple sign‑off order

You can change the order to fit your team. Keep the order short and clear so people know when it is their turn.

Issue board (light 3D look)

Do / Avoid — for calm approvals

Approval request message you can copy

Short approval log (keep in your folder)

Compliance and rights (plain rules)

Some topics need a short note or a special line to protect readers and your organization. Keep these notes short and visible. Do not copy long legal text into the main flow unless required. If you use photos or diagrams from someone else, make sure you have the right to use them and include a small credit when needed.

Analytics basics (so you can learn in Step 11)

You do not need complex setup. You only need to know whether people reached your action and used it. Add one event for the main action and keep the name short. Add UTM labels to your own links when you share this content later in Step 10. Test once in preview and once after publishing.

<a id="dl-checklist" href="/weekly-planning-checklist.pdf">Download the weekly planning checklist</a>
<script>
  document.getElementById('dl-checklist').addEventListener('click', function(){
    // Replace with your analytics function
    console.log('event: checklist_downloaded');
  });
</script>

Mini funnel — review to sign‑off

If the “Reviewed with notes” bar is very small, your request may not be clear. Try the short approval message above.

Practice lab — run a small QA on one section

Common problems and simple fixes

Everything in one view (summary table)

Your next step

You now have calm approvals and a clean page that works. You checked links, images, headings, mobile view, metadata, simple compliance notes, and one small analytics event. The approval log shows who said “yes” and when. You are ready for Step 9, where you will publish with the right settings and confirm the live URL.