What a good website brief looks like (and what to skip)

You do not need a 20-page document

Most projects start with a few paragraphs in an email — and that is fine. What helps us (and any agency worth hiring) is clarity on outcomes, not polished prose.

If you can answer the sections below, we can usually suggest a sensible scope, timeline and starting budget within one conversation.

What to include

1. What the site needs to do

Are you generating enquiries, selling online, explaining a service, or replacing something that no longer fits? One or two sentences on the primary job is enough.

2. Who it is for

Your ideal customer, how they find you today, and what they need to understand before they get in touch. If you serve a local area, say so — that shapes structure and SEO.

3. Pages and content you know you need

Home, services, about, contact, pricing, case studies, blog — a rough list is fine. Flag anything you are unsure about; part of discovery is working that out together.

4. Examples you like (and why)

Two or three links to sites whose tone, layout or clarity you admire. "I like how clean this feels" or "I want something this direct" beats "make it look modern."

5. Integrations and must-haves

Booking, payments, CRM, live chat, member areas, multilingual — list anything non-negotiable early. Surprises here are what blow budgets.

6. Timeline and budget range

Even a rough window ("launch before Q4" or "£3–5k ballpark") helps us propose something realistic instead of over- or under-scoping.

What you can skip

• Pixel-perfect mockups before anyone has asked a question
• A complete sitemap with final copy for every page
• Technical stack preferences unless you have a strong reason (we will recommend what fits)
• Competitor teardowns longer than a few bullet points

What happens next

Send a short brief — even bullet points in an email work. We will reply with sensible next steps, not a hard sell.

If you want to see how we think about builds first, browse recent work or read about our services.