A good website brief describes the business and its customers, what the site must achieve, the pages and features needed, examples of sites you like and dislike, the content you already have, and any fixed constraints. It makes quotes comparable and projects faster.
Why the brief matters more than the budget
A developer quoting from a vague description is guessing, and guesses are either padded or wrong. A developer quoting from a clear brief can scope accurately, which gets you a realistic price, a realistic timeline and a site that does what you needed rather than what they assumed. The brief does not need to be long. It needs to be specific.
What to include
- The business. What you do, where, for how long, and what makes it different.
- The customers. Who they are, how they find you now, what they need to know before contacting you.
- The goal. Enquiries, bookings, sales, credibility, recruitment. Name the one that matters most.
- The pages. A list, even a rough one. Home, services, about, contact, plus whatever else the business needs.
- Features. Booking, payments, a shop, a blog, a gallery, maps, multiple languages, member areas. Say what you know you need and what you are unsure about.
- Examples. Two or three sites you like and why, and one or two you dislike and why. Direction, not a template to copy.
- Content status. Whether you have copy, photography, a logo in a usable format, product data. This is the biggest driver of timeline.
- Existing assets. A current site, a domain, hosting, social accounts, brand guidelines.
- Constraints. A launch date, a budget range, platforms you must or must not use, compliance requirements.
Say what you do not know
A brief that says "I am not sure whether I need online booking" is more useful than one that guesses. Part of a developer's job is recommending; give them the question rather than a wrong answer. The same applies to platform: unless you have a firm reason, describe the need and let the recommendation follow. Our guide to choosing an ecommerce platform shows the kind of trade-off a developer should walk you through.
Send the same brief to everyone
If you are comparing providers, give each the identical brief. Quotes then differ because of approach and value, not because each provider understood something different. Compare what is included, not only the total — our guide to what a business website costs covers how to read a quote.
What a good response looks like
A developer who has read the brief asks questions about it. They query the goal, probe the features you were unsure about, ask about content readiness and flag anything that will take time. A response that ignores the brief and sends a price list has not engaged with your project.
Where to send it
Our enquiry form is structured around exactly these points, so filling it in is writing the brief. The budget range field is there to understand scale rather than to price you; every website development quote is prepared individually from what you tell us, whether you are in the UK or anywhere in the world.
Frequently asked questions
What should a website brief include?
The business and its customers, the main goal, a page list, the features needed, examples of sites you like and dislike, what content you already have, existing assets such as a domain or current site, and constraints such as a launch date or budget range.
How long should a website brief be?
As long as it needs to be specific, which is usually a page or two. Length matters less than clarity: a short brief that names the goal, pages, features and content status is more useful than a long one that describes ambitions in general terms.
What if I do not know which features I need?
Say so. "I am not sure whether I need online booking" is more useful than a guess, because recommending is part of a developer’s job. Describe the need and let the recommendation follow.
Should I send the same brief to several developers?
Yes, identical. Quotes then differ because of approach and value rather than because each provider understood something different, and you can compare what is included rather than only the total.
Planning a Website?
Tell us about your business and what the website needs to achieve. We review every enquiry personally and reply with a scope and a customised quotation — UK and international projects welcome.