Writing a website brief can be a difficult task, especially if you’ve got no idea where to start. Well, our team of web developers that have been receiving web briefs back for years. Naturally, they know what makes a good one and what makes a bad one.

How do you write a website brief?
The main things to include are as follows:
Your current website:
What do you think is wrong with it at the moment? What are your main pain points? What can you tell us about your target audience and how they interact with the site? If you use tools such as Hotjar, data from this could be really useful to have.
The future:
What do you envision for the future? What would a perfect new website be like? There must be a reason you think you need a new site. Include all that information in your project overview, alongside the anticipated user experience, and how the site will meet your target audience’s needs. Do note, the way you think your users will use your site isn’t necessarily how they will use it. This podcast episode tells you all about that.
Your budget:
How much do you want to spend? An accurate budget is needed to get a detailed proposal back from the digital agency. Even if it’s a rough guide, you’ll be wasting your own time and the agency’s time if you don’t give them an idea of your budget.
Your brand:
Are you happy with your current brand, or do you need to revisit your branding and positioning?
Your competition:
What do your competitors look and feel like? Is there a brand you particularly admire? Why?
Free Interactive PDF: Website brief template
Download free template
Your current website
Start with your pain points. Why do you need a new website? What do you really dislike about your current site? The best solutions often come from frustrations within the user journeys or functionality requirements that haven’t been met yet.
Questions such as, “What type of website do you currently have?” should be answered. For example, is it a brochure or an e-commerce site with online payment options? If you’re selling products or services through the website, it’s the latter. If it’s an e-commerce site, let the agency know what payment systems you currently use, and whether that is likely to change.
Outline essential components such as the content management system you use, accessibility standards you want to make sure you meet, and any functionality requirements you need. If you’re an insurance company, do you need some kind of calculator on the site? Do you want to incorporate AI elements? Do you need AR features like the tools flooring companies use to show people what their room will look like? What kind of content strategy do you currently have in terms of blog or video content on the website, and is it reaching your target audience? A new website is the perfect time to do a content audit of what you have, and what you could maybe lose.
What is the current performance? Use GTMetrix to find out how your site is performing. This is useful for you, too, so you can compare before and after. Additionally, understanding the current market positioning of your site will provide insight for improvements. A good digital agency will go over things like this with you, especially if you opt to revisit the overall brand at the same time. Not sure if you need to? Get one of our Brand Reviews and we’ll let you know what we think.

The future
Tell the web developers what you envision for the future. What new functionality requirements or components are essential to meet your target audience’s needs?
User experience is key, so highlight any plans to improve user journeys, including how you want users to navigate the site. If you have multiple customer personas, think about whether you’re meeting all of their needs. People come to the website for different things, so getting them to where they want to be and giving them all the information they need is your top priority.
Got all your branding guidelines in place? Think logos, colours, brand positioning. Is it all written down? Keeping things consistent across every platform is key, and your website should always be part of that. Send your guidelines as part of the brief to give the agency some context.
What is your content strategy for photography, video, and other assets? Does your content management system have all of these in there already, or will the agency need to incorporate this as part of the development project? Detail any new functionality requirements, such as a pension calculator or custom features. These all impact the project budget and detailed proposal. The more complex the website, the more expensive it may be.
Download template here
Your budget
This needs to be answered. If you don’t provide a project budget, the developers can’t tell you whether they can do everything you have outlined within the budget you envision. If you don’t have a specific number, give a range. For example:
Under £3,000
£3,000 – £5,000
£5,000 – £10,000
£10,000 – 20,000
£20,000 – £30,000
£50,000 – £100,000
An accurate budget helps avoid mismatched expectations and ensures the agency provides a detailed proposal that fits your budget.
Download free template

Your brand
You’re here because you need a new website, not necessarily a new brand. However, your website must reflect your brand accurately. You need brand values, branding guidelines, icons, motion guidelines, and the rest for a developer to build a coherent digital experience. If you don’t have these assets or need a refresh, you might want to start with a brand workshop to clarify these elements before the website design project begins.
Tick one of the following boxes:
- We are happy with our brand exactly as it is and have everything you will need to create the new website.
- We are happy with our brand but may need additional iconography, photography, and more to slightly develop the brand before you make the website.
- We would like you to give us suggestions on our brand and would consider a brand workshop if you feel necessary.
- We need to revisit the branding before we start on the website and would like to undergo a brand workshop.
As a digital agency, we do a lot of both brand and digital projects, so we can carry out a branding workshop to understand your target audience, refine your overall market positioning, and make sure your branding is consistent across all platforms.
Download free template

Your competition
We hear it a lot. “We want to look and feel different from our competitors”. Which is ultimately the goal – no one wants to be unrecognisable from another company in their market. To achieve this, provide your developers with URLs of competitors’ sites to ensure that your new site doesn’t overlap in language or any elements in your branding guidelines, even if your customer personas may be the same.
Additionally, share examples of websites you admire outside your industry. This helps developers understand your desired design process and market positioning better. We’ll go over brand positioning in the workshop if you decide to revisit the overall brand, but if you’re happy with your current positioning, letting us know what kind of things you aim to achieve is helpful.
Download free template

Essential components to cover
To save on endless email back-and-forths, make sure to include:
Project timeline:
How long do you expect the project to take? Do you have a tight or flexible deadline?
Project overview:
Ensure your web brief includes a clear project overview so everyone understands the goals from the outset.
Content strategy:
Are you planning to refresh your content across the site?
Ongoing maintenance:
Is there a need for ongoing maintenance or future updates? If so, highlight these so agencies can address this in the detailed proposal.
Next steps:
If there are any other elements of your brand you’re looking to develop, such as your email marketing, we will need to discuss how these can be integrated to the website, either through bespoke APIs or plugins. As a brand-led design agency, we like to consider this kind of thing at the beginning of the process.
Final points
Ok, you’ve got most of it down. Include the number of people needed to approve the project, as well as any contact details for easy communication. Also, let the developers know if you require the proposal by a certain date.
If you’re new to working with design agencies or a digital agency, it can be helpful to check out some resources on what to expect. For instance, our article “What You Need to Know About Working with a Design Agency” will tell you all about the design process and managing a development project.
