Send three web designers a one-line email saying "we need a new website" and you'll get three quotes that can't be compared, because each of them has guessed at a different project.
A brief fixes that. It doesn't need to be long or formal. It needs to answer the questions every designer would otherwise have to guess at.
Here's what to put in one.
1. Who you are
A paragraph about the business: what you do, who for, roughly how big you are, and what makes you different from the competitors a customer would also look at. Include the address of your current site, if you have one.
2. What's wrong with what you have now
This is often the most useful paragraph in the whole brief. "It looks dated" is a start. "Customers ring us to ask questions the site should answer", "we can't update it without paying someone" or "it doesn't work on a phone" tell a designer what to actually fix.
3. What success looks like
One or two sentences you could check in six months. Not "a more professional look", but:
- "Twenty enquiries a month from trade customers."
- "Half the phone calls about delivery times answered by the site instead."
- "Customers can book without emailing us."
This shapes every decision after it, and it's what the finished site should be judged on.
4. Who it's for
Who are the people you want to visit the site, and what are they trying to do when they arrive? A trade buyer comparing specifications wants something very different from a homeowner looking for reassurance. If you have more than one audience, say so, and say which matters most.
5. What it has to do
This is the part that moves the price most, so be specific. Beyond pages of information and a contact form, does the site need to:
- take payments or sell products?
- take bookings or appointments?
- produce quotes or calculate prices?
- have a login area for customers, members or staff?
- connect to other systems, like your CRM, accounting software, stock system or email marketing?
A ten-page site with a quoting tool behind it can cost more than a fifty-page brochure site. The number of pages is rarely what drives the price.
6. Roughly how big it is
An approximate page count, or a list of the main sections. It doesn't need to be exact.
7. Content: who is writing it?
Who's writing the words, and do you have photography? Be honest. Content is one of the most common reasons website projects run late, and a designer who knows you need a copywriter can plan for it. We've written more about how long a website takes and why.
8. Budget
The section people most often leave out, and the one that most helps. You don't have to give a precise figure. A range is enough. Without one, designers can only guess, and you'll get proposals for very different projects that can't be compared.
A budget isn't a target to spend up to. A good agency will tell you if the job can be done for less, or if it can't be done well for the amount you have. Our guide to what a website costs gives you realistic ranges to start from.
9. Timing
When you'd like it live, and whether the date is driven by something real, like a launch, a trade show or a contract ending. A fixed date is fine if it's known at the start.
10. Who's involved
Who will make the final decisions, and who else needs to be consulted. Projects slow down most when nobody knows who has the last word.
11. Sites you like (and why)
A few websites you admire, from any industry, with a sentence on what you like about each. The "why" matters more than the link.
What to leave out
- Detailed design instructions. "Blue, with a big photo at the top" ties the designer's hands before they understand the problem. Describe the problem and let them solve it.
- A feature wishlist with no priorities. Mark what's essential and what's nice to have.
- Technical specifications, unless there's a real constraint, such as a system you already have that the site must use.
A one-page template
Copy this and fill it in:
About us: what we do, who for, and our current site The problem: what isn't working now Success looks like: something we could measure in six months Audience: who visits, and what they're trying to do Must do: payments / bookings / quotes / logins / integrations Size: roughly how many pages Content: who's writing it, and what we have already Budget: a range Timing: when, and why then Decision-maker: who has the final say Sites we like: links, and why
If you'd like us to quote from it, send it over. We'll come back with questions before we come back with a number, which is usually the sign of a quote worth having.
