The difference between a website you love and one you have to redo six months later usually comes down to one thing: how well you communicated what you wanted upfront.
A clear brief saves time, money, and a lot of frustration — for you and for whoever is building your site. Whether you're filling out an online form or briefing an agency directly, here's exactly what to include.
Start with the purpose, not the design
Most people lead with aesthetics: "I want it to look clean and modern." That's fine, but it's secondary. The most important question to answer first is: what do you want the website to do?
Common goals include:
- Generate phone calls or enquiries from local customers
- Establish credibility so people trust you before they contact you
- Sell products online
- Give existing customers somewhere to find information
- Recruit staff or attract business partners
Pick your primary goal and state it clearly. Everything else in the brief flows from there.
Describe your business in plain English
Don't assume your web designer knows your industry. Explain:
- What you do and who your customers are
- How customers typically find you now (word of mouth, Google, referrals?)
- What makes you different from competitors
- The geographic area you service, if relevant
The more your designer understands your business, the better they can build something that actually converts visitors into customers.
Specify the pages you need
Even a rough list helps. Think about what a customer needs to see before they contact you:
- Home — your first impression and primary CTA
- Services — what you do and how much it costs
- About — who you are and why customers should trust you
- Contact — how to reach you
You don't always need every page. A single-page website often converts better than a sprawling five-pager because it keeps visitors focused.
Share examples — good and bad
Words like clean, professional, and modern mean different things to different people. URLs are much clearer.
Find two or three websites you like the look of — they don't have to be in your industry — and explain what you like about each. Do the same for sites you don't like. This gives your designer a concrete reference point to work from.
Talk about your brand
If you already have a logo, colours, or fonts, share them. If you don't, describe the vibe you're going for:
- Colours — specific preferences, or colours you absolutely want to avoid
- Tone — professional, friendly, bold, minimalist, technical?
- Feeling — should the site feel trustworthy, premium, approachable, urgent?
Mention your audience's expectations
A website targeting 65-year-old retirees needs to be designed very differently from one targeting 25-year-old fitness enthusiasts. Think about who is actually going to land on your site:
- How tech-savvy are they?
- Are they browsing on a phone or a desktop?
- Are they in a hurry or do they want to read?
- What objection do they need overcome before they'll contact you?
Be honest about what you don't have
No photos yet? No logo? Not sure about your pricing? Say so. A good designer will work with what you have and flag what's missing. It's far better to be upfront than to hold up the project later because you can't find a decent photo of your team.
The short version
A great brief covers six things: purpose, business description, page list, visual examples, brand tone, and target audience. You don't need to write an essay — a clear 200-word description and a couple of reference URLs is often enough.
That's exactly how our ordering process works. You fill out a structured form, we handle everything else, and your design is ready in 3 business days.