What to give your web designer before they start (a brief you can copy)

Many website projects lose their first two weeks to email. The designer asks what the business does. Then who it is for. Then where the texts are and who has the login to the domain, and every answer raises another question.

A brief settles all of that before the first call. It fits on one page and takes an evening to fill in, and you can hardly hand a web designer anything more useful. Below you'll find what goes in it, why each part matters and a plain-text version to copy.

Quick answer

A designer needs facts only you have: what you sell, to whom, and what a visitor should do on the site.
Texts and photos are the part that delays launches most often. Say which ones exist and which don't.
Send your logo as an SVG with the colour codes, not as a screenshot.
Three example sites with one reason each say more than twenty links.
Name one person who decides, and make sure someone can log in to the domain.

The brief, part by part

1. What the business does, and for whom

Start with one sentence a stranger would understand, then add one about your customers. "We repair bicycles in the old town, mostly for commuters who need the bike back the same day" tells a designer more than a paragraph about passion and quality.

Everything on the site gets chosen to fit that sentence, from the words on the home page to the photos.

2. What a visitor should do

Every page asks the visitor to do something. Call, book, buy, ask for a quote, drop by the shop. Pick the one that matters most to the business and write it down.

Be strict about it. A site that asks for five things with equal weight usually gets none of them, and the designer can't make that choice for you.

3. Pages, and who writes them

List the pages you expect, maybe with a page for each service. Next to each one, note whether the text and photos already exist.

That little column is where projects stall. The design is finished in two weeks and then waits a month for texts. If you'd like the designer's team to write them, say so here, because it changes the whole plan.

4. Brand files

Send the logo as an SVG, a vector file that stays sharp at any size. Add a version for dark backgrounds if you have one, plus the colour codes in HEX and the names of your typefaces. A JPG screenshot forces the designer to redraw the logo or guess the colours. If you're unsure which files you have, our guide to logo file formats explains what each one is for.

No logo yet, or only a rough one? You can see your business name in a few logo styles on our homepage and download the SVG and the colour codes for free, so the designer at least has real files to start from.

5. Features

A contact form is quick to add. Online booking, a shop with payments or a second language each change the time and the tools a site needs, so list them now, including the ones marked "maybe later".

A feature mentioned at the start can be planned for. One that first comes up in week three usually means rework.

6. Sites you like, and why

Send three links and give each one a reason. "The menu stays visible when you scroll." "Big photos, short text." "Booking takes two clicks."

The reason is the useful part. Twenty links without reasons only tell the designer that you like websites.

7. Practical details

Give the launch date and what it depends on, such as a shop opening or a trade fair. Name the one person who signs off on decisions, and write down who can log in to the domain and the hosting.

Then add a budget range. With a range, the designer can propose what fits, instead of a plan you later have to cut down.

Who brings what

Some things only you can supply. The facts about your business are one, the texts and photos another, and so are the decisions. The designer turns them into a working site. Most of the first meeting goes to the middle column, where you settle together which pages exist, what each asks for and when the site goes live.

Mistakes that cost the most time

"We'll write the texts later." The design waits, or it gets built around placeholder text and has to be adjusted when the real words arrive.
Several people giving feedback separately. One person collects comments and sends one answer per round.
Nobody has the domain login. It is often in the name of a former employee or the agency that registered it years ago. Find it before the project starts, not on launch day.
Photos from a phone in poor light. They can work on a small site, but plan a few good photos of the place, the team and the work if the site is meant to sell.
A logo that only exists as a picture. Ask whoever designed it for the vector files, or have it redrawn before the site is built around it.

The brief as text you can copy

WEBSITE BRIEF

1. What we do, for whom (one sentence each):

2. The main thing a visitor should do:

3. Pages (mark: text ready / photos ready / missing):
   - Home
   -
   -

4. Brand files we can send (logo SVG, dark version, colour codes, typefaces, photos):

5. Features (forms, booking, shop, languages, other):

6. Three sites we like, and one reason for each:
   -
   -
   -

7. Practical details
   Launch date, and what it depends on:
   Who decides:
   Who can log in to the domain and hosting:
   Budget range:

Send it before the first call. Then the call can be about the site.

When it is ready, send it to us: we design and build the website around your brand, and we reply to every brief with a free quote. If the logo is the part that is missing, our designers can draw it first, so the site starts from finished brand files.

Before you send it

The first sentence says what you do and for whom
One main action for visitors is chosen
Every page has a note: text and photos ready or missing
The logo is attached as SVG, with the colour codes
Three example sites, each with a reason
One person decides, and someone can log in to the domain