Describe who the site serves, what they need to do and what must be ready for launch. References help explain taste; requirements explain the job.
Start with one customer task
Write a sentence beginning “A visitor should be able to…” and complete it with an action. Compare available cars. Understand an accounting service and request a meeting. Find a food product and ask where to buy it. A clear task makes design decisions easier to discuss.
Then describe the visitor. A procurement officer may need specifications and company details. A customer visiting from a social post may need a price, availability and a quick way to contact you. If those groups need different information, give them different routes rather than placing every message in the hero.
Give every page a purpose
Make a page list with three columns: the page, the question it answers and the next action. This exposes pages that have no purpose and questions that have no page.
| Page | Visitor question | Next action |
|---|---|---|
| Service | Can you solve my problem? | Send an enquiry with the relevant service selected. |
| Work | Have you built something comparable? | Read a project and explore the matching service. |
| Contact | How do I start? | Call, message or prepare a useful brief. |
Avoid copying the same introduction into the homepage, About and each service page. Give each one its own responsibility. The homepage introduces the offer; a service page explains scope; About helps a visitor understand who will do the work.
Assign the content before the build
List the text, photographs, logos, product information and translations needed for each page. Name who supplies them and who approves them. “We will send the content later” can leave a finished layout waiting for weeks.
- Send the original logo files, not a screenshot of the logo.
- Choose photographs you have permission to publish.
- Confirm the business name, email, telephone number and opening details.
- Provide service boundaries and prices only where you want them public.
- For several languages, identify who checks each translation.
- Choose one person to collect feedback and approve the final pages.
A reference website is most useful when you explain the part you like: its navigation, spacing, product photography or enquiry process. You can borrow a direction without asking for another company’s design or copy.
Describe features as short scenarios
“We need a portal” is a starting point. A more useful requirement is: “A client signs in, uploads a document, sees whether it was received and cannot access another client’s documents.” That tells the developer about accounts, access controls, confirmation and administration.
For payments, describe success, failure and a delayed response. For a booking form, describe availability and cancellations. For an assistant, identify the approved information and where a conversation goes when it needs a person. These scenarios help reveal the work hidden behind a small button.
Copy this short brief
Our business: What we do and where we serve customers.
Our visitors: Who will use the site and the information they need.
The main action: What a successful visit should lead to.
Pages: The essential page list and languages.
Features: Required scenarios and optional additions.
Content: What is ready, what is missing and who approves it.
Existing site: The URL, access available and anything that must be retained.
Timing and budget: A real deadline, its reason and any budget limit.
After launch: Who edits the site and who handles updates and support.