I found this list of useful tips on launching a WordPress site:
Don’t Launch a WordPress Site Before You Go Through This Checklist https://t.co/1jYcZV1yVH too late, already launched
— Panchenga (@nchenga) March 27, 2016
Things to watch out for are:
- fast hosting
- search-engine optimized theme
WordPress is working on a new codebase:
The new WordPress.com codebase, codenamed “Calypso,” moves WordPress.com away from MySQL and PHP. It’s built entirely in JavaScript, and communicates with WordPress.com only using our REST API.
I don’t know how this will play out for self-hosted sites. You can use Calypso functionality via Jetpack. The benefit, that I read most frequently, is that the Calypso editor is well designed for writers.
See also:
What is WordPress Calypso and what does it mean for self hosted sites?