A website brief: what to send a developer

A brief is not a specification. It is a page that tells a developer what the business does, who the website is for, what it must do and what you can supply. The guide to what to prepare covers the content you gather; this note covers the questions you answer first. It takes about twenty minutes, and it is the cheapest way to get comparable quotes.

The template

Copy this into a message or a document and fill it in. Write “not sure” where you are not.

1. Business
   Name:
   What you sell or do, in two sentences:
   Where you operate, and who you serve:

2. Why a website now
   (Replacing an old site / first site / more enquiries / look more credible / other)

3. Customers
   Who are they, and what do they usually ask before buying?

4. The main action
   What should a visitor do? (Call / WhatsApp / request a quote / visit / other)

5. Pages
   List the pages you think you need, or "not sure".
   Rough number of products or services:

6. Content
   What you already have: text, photographs, logo, product data, documents.
   What you need written or photographed:

7. Features
   Anything beyond pages and enquiry links? (Online payments, accounts, booking, other)

8. Examples
   Two or three websites you like, and what you like about each.
   One you do not like, and why.

9. Current website (if any)
   Address:
   What works, what does not:
   Who holds the domain and hosting:

10. Budget and dates
    A figure or range, if you have one:
    Any date the site must be ready for, and why:

11. Who decides
    Who approves the design, and how fast can you reply?

Why each section matters

Business and customers. A developer who cannot describe your buyer cannot design for them.
The main action. It decides the layout. A phone-call site and a quote-form site are laid out differently.
Pages and content. These drive the size and timeline of the project. Late content is the most common cause of delay.
Features. Say early if you want payments, accounts or booking. They are different kinds of work, and the right provider may not be a website developer.
Examples. What you like helps more than adjectives. “Clean” means different things to different people.
Current website and ownership. Needed for any redesign, and to avoid surprises about who holds the domain.
Who decides. Many delays come from approvals, not from building.

A filled sample

This is a made-up business for illustration.

1. Business: Sharma Packaging, Ludhiana. We make printed corrugated boxes for
   local manufacturers. We serve Punjab and Haryana.
2. Why now: our site is five years old and does not work on phones.
3. Customers: purchase managers. They ask for box sizes, printing options and
   minimum order.
4. Main action: request a quote by WhatsApp or phone.
5. Pages: about 18 (home, about, 8 box types, printing, how to order,
   contact). Not sure about a blog.
6. Content: have photographs of 8 box types. Need text written for the rest.
7. Features: none. We do not want online ordering.
8. Examples: two supplier sites I like for their clear tables.
9. Current site: an old five-page site. The domain is held by a former employee:
   not sure how to get it back.
10. Budget: around the Growth package. Need it ready before an exhibition in
    March.
11. Decider: owner. I can reply within a day.

The sample shows the point: the useful parts are the specific facts, such as who the buyers are, which pages are planned, what is missing and the problem with the domain. A developer reading it can quote with confidence, and can see right away that the domain needs sorting out first.

What happens next

Send the brief to two or three providers. Compare the replies: a provider who asks sensible follow-up questions is already working with you. If you would like to send it to me, message or call Harman; a short call about it is where my process begins, and a written proposal follows.