A website development brief turns a general request into a project a team can evaluate. It explains what visitors need to do, what staff need to manage and how the website fits into the business. Brawn Media provides custom web development, including WordPress builds, custom functionality and third-party integrations. A clear brief gives those conversations a practical starting point.
Describe the users and their tasks
List the main audiences for the website and the tasks each needs to complete. A prospective customer might compare services, submit an inquiry or find contact information. An existing customer might need instructions or access to a separate system.
Describe a successful journey in plain language before naming a feature. "A visitor can request the appropriate service and provide the details our team needs" is easier to evaluate than a request for an unspecified form.
Explain the work behind each feature
For every important function, identify who uses it, what information it needs and what happens afterward. Consider the person receiving an inquiry as well as the person sending it. Note any systems the website must exchange information with.
Separate essential launch requirements from ideas that can be considered later. Brawn Media's custom website development services address functionality, CMS flexibility and integrations, making a prioritized requirements list useful when discussing the scope of a build.
Plan for everyday management
Decide which content your team will update and who will be responsible for it. Explain whether staff need to add services, change images, publish articles or maintain product information. Include any approval process that affects those updates.
Discuss the systems and accounts involved in the project, along with the people authorized to manage them. Planning these responsibilities early helps the development team understand the handover and support needs as well as the initial build.
A development brief checklist
- Business goals and the audiences the website serves.
- Important visitor journeys and the actions they support.
- Required features and the information each one handles.
- Existing systems and potential integration requirements.
- Content owners, editing needs and approval responsibilities.
- Launch priorities, dependencies and questions still to resolve.
Frequently asked questions
Do we need to choose the technology first?
Start with the requirements and any existing systems the website must support. Those details help a development team discuss suitable options. If a particular platform is already required, explain why and identify the capabilities the project needs from it.
How detailed should the feature list be?
Provide enough detail to explain the user, the task and the expected result. You do not need to design every technical component. Clear examples and unresolved questions are more useful than a long list of feature names without context.
What should we bring to the first conversation?
Bring the current website, a summary of its limitations, the main business goals and examples of important user journeys. Include the people who understand content management and any connected systems so their requirements can be considered early.
To discuss a website project and its requirements, contact Brawn Media.