How to write a website design brief

From an agency’s perspective, there is certain information you will need to provide?an agency with and certain questions you will need to be able to answer to ensure you end up with a website that not only looks great but will help you achieve your marketing objectives.

What is the main function of the website?

Maybe you are looking to sell a product or a service, or accept bookings, or simply provide information.?Or maybe the website is crucial to the day to day running of your business??Perhaps the site isn’t for a business – It could even be a blog, or a site to simply promote an event.?It is important that you define what the main purpose of the website will be.

What do are you looking to achieve with your website?

What are your main objectives of having a website??For example, the initial question above may have revealed that you are looking to sell a product via your website.?Your objective could be that you are looking to increase sales on that product.

What does success look like to you?

By having measurable goals from the outset, you will be able to determine whether or not the website has been a success.?Although you may have many goals you would like to achieve, having one clear goal will make your design choices more effective.?If ultimately you are looking to increase sales, by how much and by what date??Be Smart!

How will they find you?

You will still need to combine both online and offline marketing in order to drive and direct visitors to your website.?The only way you will achieve your objectives is by obtaining visitors, so you will need to consider how you are going to do this and where these new visitors will come from.

What is your budget? (website / domain / hosting / promotion)

Like all bespoke projects, costs can be dependent upon requirements and specification which can determine the direction you take your website, so it is best to have a figure in mind from the outset.?it will need to be hosted online and will need a domain name.?If you have a website currently, you may already have these things, but if you don’t, there will be costs associated.?Also, bear in mind that once your website is complete, there could be costs involved in promoting your website, which will ultimately help you increase the number of visitors you get.

If you’re redesigning your website, why are you changing it?

Maybe you feel that your site is out of date for whatever reason so you are looking for something new.?Was your old website unable to sell products? Or unable to respond to mobile devices? Or maybe the site just doesn’t function in other ways that you would like it to??There are many reasons why you may want to redesign your website, which is fine because websites are constantly changing and adapting to give users the best experience and companies the best chance of achieving their goals.

Who is your audience?

Have a think about the type of people who will visit your website.?By having a good understanding of the demographic that are most likely to visit, you will be able to make better decisions with regards to the content you choose to display, the design choices made, and the tone of voice.

What is your audience looking to do on your website?

Having a good idea about the needs of your audience will allow you to deliver accordingly in terms of content, function and design.?If you have an existing business and website, then you may already know the answer to this question or have the data to find out.?If not, you could conduct surveys or communicate via online media with your potential customers to find out.

Apart from your own products and services, what other engaging content could you include?

Finding other useful and interesting content relating to your business can help keep your audience engaged.?For example, if you sell mountain bikes, you could include a review of a bike park in the form of a blog, or even a video giving advice on how to maintain your bike.

Which websites are you a fan of yourself?

By having an idea of which existing websites you like in terms of design and functionality, you can give you web designer a good idea about your aspirations for your own website.

So if you are looking to get a new website, whatever the purpose, considering and answering the questions above should give you the best possible start.

Remember – having a new website designed, while challenging, should be a fun and exciting experience that you can get creative with.