A template to copy
WEBSITE BRIEF
1. The company in two sentences
What do you do and what sets you apart?
2. The goal of the site
What should change after it launches? (more enquiries, fewer calls with the same questions, recruitment...)
3. Audience
Who visits the site? What are they looking for? What problem brings them?
4. The visitor's main action
What should they do? (call, fill in a form, book an appointment, buy)
5. Pages
A list, e.g.: home, services (how many?), work, about, contact, blog
6. Features
Forms, bookings, payments, language versions, integrations (with what?)
7. Content
Who writes the text? Are there photos? Are we moving anything from the old site?
8. Examples
2-3 sites you like (and what exactly), 1-2 you don't
9. The current site
Address, what works, what doesn't, is there Google traffic we don't want to lose
10. Budget and timeline
Budget range, a date something depends on (a trade fair, the start of the season)
11. After launch
Who will change the content? Is maintenance needed?Fill in the template in bullet points, without worrying about style. The developer will ask about the rest, and you'll see what you don't yet know about your own website.
Why each question is there
- The goal of the site
Everything else depends on the goal: a site meant to bring enquiries looks different from one meant to take pressure off the phone.
- The main action
Every page should lead to one action. If you don't know what it is, the site will look nice but won't work.
- Examples
“Modern and clean” means something different to everyone. A link to a specific site and a sentence on what you like about it saves weeks of revisions.
- The current site
If the old site has Google traffic, the new one must take over its addresses with redirects. Otherwise a drop in visibility is almost certain.
- Budget
For a similar amount you can build a simple site with good content or a large one with generic content. A range makes it possible to suggest a sensible scope.
The most common mistakes in briefs
- A feature list without a goal: “we want a blog, chat and a newsletter”, but it's unclear why.
- No information about content. Text is usually the longest part of the project.
- Leaving out the current site and its position in Google.
- A budget “to be agreed”: the developer will guess it anyway, just worse.
- Too many decision-makers without saying who has the final word.
Terms from this guide
- Brief
A short document in which the client describes the project's goal, audience, scope, content, budget and timeline.
Questions and answers
How long should a brief be?
Bullet-point answers on one or two pages are enough. It matters more that it's specific than that it's long.
Do I need to know what technology the site should use?
No. A brief describes the company, its goals and clients. The developer chooses the technology for your needs, for example for who will change the content.
What if I don't know which pages are needed?
Describe what you want to tell clients and what they should do. The page structure can be worked out from that together with the developer.