Elliot Web Designs
A good brief explains the business problem, the people the website serves and what success should look like. Leave room for the designer to recommend how to get there.
Describe your business in ordinary language
Begin with what you sell, who buys it and why customers choose you. Avoid relying on a strapline. A designer needs the practical picture: the most important services, how work is commissioned and what an ideal enquiry looks like.
Include anything a newcomer might misunderstand. If you serve commercial clients but receive mostly domestic enquiries, explain that. If a specialist service requires a conversation before pricing is possible, say so. These details influence page structure more than a list of favourite colours.
Give the website a clear purpose
Write down the three problems you most want to solve. “Make the website more modern” can be developed into something useful: make the services easier to understand, show recent projects and improve the mobile enquiry journey.
Describe how you will judge the result. Some goals can be checked at launch, such as whether every main service has a complete page. Others need observation after launch, such as the relevance of enquiries. Separate those so the proposal can address both without promising an outcome before evidence exists.
Show what you already have
Share the current website address, available brand files and a description of your content. Mention photography, testimonials, project summaries, brochures and articles that could carry into the redesign. A rough inventory is enough for an initial conversation.
Explain who can approve these materials and where gaps remain. If your technical team must check service descriptions, include that in the plan. If images come from a supplier, establish whether they can be reused before building the visual direction around them.
Explain the work behind the screen
List the systems the website touches: email, booking software, payments, stock management or a customer database. Describe the intended flow in plain language. For example, “a booking should appear in the calendar used by our office” is a useful starting requirement.
Also describe editing. Who will change prices? Who publishes articles? How often do products change? These answers help a designer recommend the platform and content workflow. Choosing a platform before discussing these needs can make the project harder than it needs to be.
Use references with a reason
A list of websites becomes much more useful when you explain what you like about each one. You might admire the project photography on one site, the navigation on another and the tone of writing on a third. The reasons help distinguish your preferences from a request to imitate a competitor.
Mention dislikes in the same specific way. “The moving text makes it difficult to read” tells the designer something actionable. A successful direction should fit your business and audience while still giving you the character you want.
Make the project practical to deliver
Include a budget range if you have one, the decision makers and any genuine launch deadline. Explain what drives the date: an event, a new service or a wider brand launch. This helps the designer propose a sensible scope and sequence.
Finish with the questions you want the proposal to answer. Ask about deliverables, content responsibilities, review stages, ownership and life after launch. Your brief does not need to predict every detail. It should make the first conversation more focused and give both sides a shared place to start.
