Straight answers
What should a website handover include? The 9 assets you must receive
Many businesses only discover the domain is not in their name when they try to change web agencies. Spend 30 minutes checking the 9 items below before you sign the handover record.
Written for businesses operating in Vietnam; laws and prices cited are Vietnamese.
Why check carefully at handover?
A website is a business asset, but its "keys" (the domain, hosting and admin accounts) are often registered on your behalf by the web agency. If those accounts are not in your name, then when you want to switch agencies or the old one closes down, you may not be able to recover the domain, you may have no data and you can lose your entire history on Google.
The rule is simple: everything must be in your name, and you must be able to log in to each item yourself. The web agency should only be given access to do its work.
The 9 assets to receive at handover
| Asset | What you should receive | How to check it yourself |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Domain | The management account at the registrar; the registrant is you or your company | Log in to the domain management account and check the registrant/owner and expiry date |
| 2. Hosting / server | A hosting admin account registered with your email; invoices in your name | Log in to the hosting control panel yourself and check the plan and expiry date |
| 3. Source code + database | A complete backup (all files + database) | Download the backup to your own computer and keep it somewhere independent of the host |
| 4. Website admin account | The top-level admin account in your name | Log in and open Users; the web agency uses its own separate account |
| 5. Google Analytics 4 | Administrator rights on the account/property | Go to Admin → Access management and see your email listed as Administrator |
| 6. Google Search Console | Verified Owner rights | Go to Settings → Users and permissions and see yourself as Owner |
| 7. Domain email | The email admin account (if you use email on your domain) | Create or delete a mailbox yourself |
| 8. Paid plugin and theme licences | Licences in your name, with expiry dates | Have the invoice or the licence account; no "nulled" copies |
| 9. Lead channels | Forms, call button, Zalo and request emails all reach the right person | Send a test request from your phone and see it arrive |
Download the Digital Asset Register template (.csv, Vietnamese, opens in Excel)
What should the handover record include?
- The list of assets as in the table above, with where each is registered, its expiry date and renewal cost.
- The list of features signed off (pages, forms, payment, tracking…).
- Admin guides or videos recorded on your own website.
- The warranty period, how to request support and the response time.
- Confirmation that you changed the passwords of the important accounts after receiving them.
- Signatures and dates of both parties.
Warning signs
- The domain is registered with the web agency's details "for convenience".
- You only get a content editor account, without admin rights.
- The contract says "the source code belongs to the designer" or does not mention the source code at all.
- No backup is handed over, or the backup only exists on their hosting.
- You must pay in full before you can log in and check the website.
How does Weme hand over?
For every website Weme builds, the domain, hosting, Google Analytics and Search Console are registered with the client's details. At handover you receive a Digital Asset Register covering the 9 items above. If you later move to another provider, Weme hands over the source code, data, backups and admin access within 5 working days, free of charge. See Weme's 8 commitments.
Frequently asked questions
What does a website handover include?
At least 9 things: domain, hosting, source code and database, website admin account, Google Analytics, Google Search Console, domain email, paid plugin/theme licences and lead channels (forms, Zalo, email). Each must be in your name and you must be able to log in yourself.
Should I change the passwords after handover?
Yes. After receiving everything, change the passwords of the important accounts (domain, hosting, website admin) and give your support provider its own account instead of a shared one.
What if the domain is registered to the web agency?
Ask the agency to transfer the domain registrant to you through the registrar. Prepare your web design contract and invoices as proof. The exact procedure is set by the registrar.
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Not sure whose name your website is in?
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