Writing a website brief is the best first step before you ask for quotes. In a brief you put on paper what your website needs to do, for whom, with which pages and features, and within what budget and timeline. The clearer your brief, the better and fairer the quotes you get back.
Without a brief, every web developer works from their own assumptions. Then you get prices you can't compare. In this article you will read what belongs in a good brief, with a checklist you can use right away.
What is a website brief?
A website brief is a short document, often two to four pages, in which you describe your wishes for a new or redesigned website. It is not a technical design. You don't need to know any jargon. The point is that a developer understands what your business does, what you want to achieve and what has to happen at a minimum.
If you are building a web application or client portal with a lot of logic, you need more detail. That is called a functional design. Read how to put one together in functional design. For an ordinary business website, a brief is usually enough.
Why a good brief saves you time and money
- You get quotes that cover the same thing, so you can compare them fairly.
- You avoid extra work, because features don't suddenly appear halfway through.
- The project starts faster, because the developer has less to figure out.
- You force yourself to make choices: what is really needed and what can wait?
- Everyone in your business knows what is going to happen.
What belongs in a website brief?
Use these parts as a guide. Not everything needs to be long. A few clear sentences per part work better than pages of text.
- Your business. What do you do, for whom, and what makes you different from your competitors?
- The goal. What should the website deliver? For example quote requests, phone calls, bookings or online sales. Choose one main goal.
- The audience. Who are your customers, what are they looking for and what questions do they often ask?
- The current situation. Do you already have a website? What works well and what doesn't?
- Pages. A first list of the pages you expect, such as home, services, about us, prices and contact.
- Features. Forms, bookings, an online store, a client portal, multiple languages or integrations with other software.
- Content. Who writes the copy and who supplies the photos?
- Style. Do you have a house style? Which websites do you like, and why?
- Management. Do you want to be able to change text and photos yourself?
- Budget. A range you want to stay within.
- Timeline. When does the website need to go live, and is that a hard deadline?
- Contact person. Who decides and who gives feedback?
Feel free to add attachments: your logo and house style, a list of current pages, screenshots of sites you like and examples of questions customers often ask. That gives a developer a clear picture in a few minutes.
Goal and audience: the most important part of your brief
Many briefs start with the look: the colours, the photos, the feel. It is better to start with the goal and the audience. Everything else follows from those. A website for a plumber who wants emergency jobs looks different from that of a coach who needs to build trust.
Write down who your ideal customer is and what they want to do on your site. Think about their questions: what does it cost, how soon can you come, do you work in my town too? Not quite sure yet? Read defining your target audience first.
Website brief example: what it can look like
A short, made-up example for a cleaning company, so you can see how compact a brief can be:
- Business: office cleaning company in the region, fixed team, also works evenings.
- Goal: more quote requests from offices with 10 to 50 employees.
- Audience: office managers and owners who value reliability and regular cleaners.
- Pages: home, services (offices, window cleaning, end-of-build cleans), how we work, about us, request a quote, contact.
- Features: quote form with questions on floor area and frequency, reviews, editing copy ourselves.
- Content: we want the copy written for us; we have photos of our team.
- Budget and timeline: range given, live before the new quarter.
Common mistakes when writing a brief
- Not mentioning a budget. Then the developer doesn't know whether to propose a simple or an extensive solution.
- Making everything equally important. Put your wishes in order: must have, nice to have, later.
- Copying a competitor. Use examples as inspiration, but explain what you like about them.
- Forgetting content. Copy and photos are often the biggest cause of delay.
- Writing too technically. Describe what you want to achieve, not how it should be built.
- Not naming a decision-maker. Feedback from five people with no one in charge costs time.
After the brief: comparing quotes
Send the same brief to every party you approach. Ask them to refer to your wishes in their quote, so you can see what is and isn't included. A good developer will also ask questions back or make a counter-proposal. That is a good sign.
Also notice which questions a party asks. If someone digs into your goal, your customers and your budget, they are thinking along with you. If you get a standard price within an hour without any questions, chances are the quote doesn't really match your brief.
Then put the quotes side by side. Read what to look for in comparing web agency quotes.
Discussing your website brief with Violexa
At Violexa a custom website starts from €1,799 excl. VAT (€2,177 incl. VAT) per project. That includes design, build, a design that works on every screen, basic SEO and Google Analytics, a CMS connection and guidance. Larger projects get a fixed price upfront in writing, based on your brief. So you know exactly what you are getting.
If you already have a brief, we'd be happy to read it. If not, that's no problem either. In the free quickscan we go through the key questions together. The conversation takes 30 minutes, online or on location. Afterwards you get short written advice with a price indication, with no obligation.
Frequently asked questions
How do you write a website brief?
Describe in a few pages your business, the goal of the website, your audience, the pages and features you expect, who supplies the content, your budget and your timeline. Keep it short and concrete. Put your wishes in order of importance.
Should you put your budget in a brief?
Yes, a range helps. Then a developer can make a proposal that fits instead of guessing. Without a budget you often get quotes that are very far apart.
What is the difference between a brief and a quote?
You write the brief: it contains your wishes. The developer writes the quote: it says what they will deliver and at what price. A good brief leads to better quotes.
How long should a website brief be?
For an ordinary business website, two to four pages is usually enough. For a web application with lots of features you need more detail, such as a functional design.
