Deciding to redesign your company’s website is a big decision, but it’s only the beginning of a process that is probably out of your daily routine.
Once you’ve gone through the excitement phase, with “We’ll finally have a site that works!” or “This will simplify our customer acquisition”, questions start to pop.
How to develop it? On which tool? Who will create the content? How to design it? And above all, how much will it cost?
There are many web agencies in Switzerland. And it is often difficult to compare the offers of various agencies, which can be very different from one another.
While it may seem simple from the outside, it’s like trying to compare apples and pears.
And while staying within your budget is of course very important, here’s a first piece of advice: the price should not be your only focus!
The quality of the execution, the project management and the support are crucial elements. If the price is low, it might be likely that the development is done abroad, and could be far from our Swiss standards.
Or maybe the provider will simply change colors and insert your content in a ready-made template.
Or that the provider is the cousin of a friend’s son, who makes websites on the side… with the risk that he won’t have any time left for you to modify things once the website is delivered.
In order to receive a realistic and complete quote, any web agency or service provider will ask you for details about your project.
Establishing a brief, or a complete list of specifications for your website, will allow you to get a more precise quote mentioning the estimated time needed to create it. And this without bad surprises. It will also serve as a basis for discussion for the entire creative process.
There is no standard methodology for creating a website brief. However, it is necessary to include a certain number of essential points to best describe your needs.
You will then get a more accurate quote from the web agencies you will solicit. And at the end, you will be able to choose the web agency that suits you best, with complete peace of mind.
In order to make your life (and ours!) easier, we have listed 8 steps, divided into 30 points, to write the perfect specifications for your website.
Here goes!
Company and context
Tell us about yourself.
We need to understand the context in which you evolve to be able to imagine adequate solutions to your daily problems!
And don’t skimp on the most important thing: your audience!
1. Can you provide a brief description of:
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- your company
- your values and mission
- your products and services
- your market differentiator (USP, Unique Selling Proposition)
2. How would you describe your business in one sentence (80 characters maximum)?
3. Who is your typical audience? Or rather, who do you sell your products or services to?
4. Do you have any personas to share with us?
Project goals
What will your new website be used for? Is it a marketing tool to generate leads, or an e-commerce tool to generate sales?
Understanding your needs in detail will allow us to design custom features.
5. What is the purpose of creating or redesigning your website?
For example, is it a visual refresh to bring it up to date, is it based on a technological or cybersecurity constraint, or on a lack of clarity of your offer by your prospects?
6. What is the main goal of the website?
For example: to acquire new prospects, to inform your future customers, to develop customer loyalty, etc.)
7. Do you have a precise idea of the nature of your future website?
For example: showcase site, e-commerce, landing page, web platform, etc.
8. Do you already have a website? What’s the URL?
Competition
Avoid the answer “we don’t have any competitors”.
You must have some! Even if they don’t offer exactly the same service or product. For example, who else is trying to address the same audience you’re addressing?
This will allow us to understand in which environment you evolve, and how to best position your company with your website.
9. Who are your 3 main competitors, even indirect?
10. Is there anything you like/dislike about their website?
Design, Look & Feel
To understand what inspires you and the vision you have for your future website, it is important to convey what you have in mind to your web agency.
A little research will certainly be necessary, to review sites you like, then describe what you envision for your new site.
For example, do you want to focus more on illustrations or do you think large photos better represent your offer?
11. Can you name 3-5 sites that you particularly like (as sources of inspiration) and briefly explain what you particularly like and what you don’t like about them?
12. Do you have a style guide with specific guidelines to use (logo, font, icons, colors, etc.)?
Structure and content
Ah, the content.
Often neglected and yet so essential, it can become the number one blocking element that will delay the launch of your new website.
Texts, photos, videos, sorting and importing current content… Content is king, whatever the website!
Start thinking about it as soon as you’ve decided to redesign or create your website. Clearly designate internally who will be responsible for producing the content.
13. In order to determine the architecture of your future site (sitemap), can you list all the pages you expect to see on the site?
14. Do you already have the content you want to include on your new site (texts, images, videos, graphics, etc.)? How much of the existing content should be imported into the new site?
15. Do you need help with copywriting?
16. Is there content from other sources (ERP, CRM, specific applications, social networks) that will need to be dynamically displayed on the site?
17. What should be the default language of your site?
18. In how many languages should the website be presented?
Technical and features
Detailing the expected features is another important point in order to estimate at best the cost your new website.
19. Where is or should your domain be hosted?
Do you have a dedicated hosting provider (like Infomaniak) or do you have legal or economic constraints that require you to host your website in Switzerland, for example?
20. What are the specific functionalities to be implemented on your website?
For example:
- Team page
- News page, blog page, or both
- Events section or page
- Portfolios
- Dynamic feed displaying your posts from social networks
- Interactive maps
- Conditional forms
- Online appointment booking
- Online payment
- Online shopping (e-commerce)
- Search module
- Simulators, calculators
- Login, user management, user dashboard
21. Do you have a preference for a Content Management System (CMS) tool, such as Webflow, WordPress or other? Why or why not?
Search Engine Optimization (SEO) & Tracking
We include by default ideal title structures and meta descriptions for On-Page SEO. More information from you allows us to optimize these points.
22. What should your customers write on Google to find you, your service or your products?
23. Have you already done an audit of your SEO?
24. Would you like to track visits with Google Analytics, or with another tool?
Project Management
A successful web project requires an adequate follow-up as well as good project management during and after its realization.
It can also be useful to have a custom and regular support.
25. What internal resources do you have for the creation of this new website? (project manager, content writer, designer, developer)
26. What resources do you have in-house for the management of this new website? How often will you update the content?
27. What is the ideal launch date for the new site?
28. What is your budget? You may give a range.
29. From how many agencies did you request quotes?
30. What is your decision process for choosing an agency?
Et voilà! Once this preparatory work is done, you will be ready to request a quote for the realization of your website from the web agencies you have selected.
A piece of advice: you may ask 3 agencies, or even 5, but not more. As much as your time is precious, so is the time of web professionals.
Download the complete website brief
As we are nice people, we have even prepared a website brief document for you to download and fill in!
Would you like a quote from us for your new website? Fill it out and send it to us with our contact form. We’ll get back to you as soon as possible!
