Giving an effective website brief - part 1

The chances are, if you are reading this, that you have been given the unenviable task of creating a web site brief for your business. You may even be redeveloping an existing web site and its content. We can help you to focus on the areas that you will need to consider to deliver a comprehensive brief to your proposed web developer.

So, first of all let's break down the elements you will need to consider.

Introduction

The process of creating a web brief will also help you to source prospective web development companies who are suited to the type of development you will require. It cannot be stressed enough that this is vitally important when sourcing the company who will help deliver your vision.
It is crucial to understand that web development is made up of a number of specialist areas. Among these areas you may need to cover design, user interface programming, application development, specialist programming languages, optimisation and marketing skills. It is not necessary for you to know anything about the technical stuff but knowing what you need to achieve will make a vast difference to how best to deliver the right solutions and, therefore, results for you and your business.
Now, it may not be that you require a vastly complicated web site. If this is the case then there are a multitude of companies who offer basic web sites. However, as you write your brief it may become apparent that your choice of web companies who can fulfil your brief will narrow. It may also hightlight, that although initially your needs maybe simple, your on-going vision may need a phased approach to the development of your web presence. This again, may have a direct impact on your choice of developers.
To start your project, your web developers will need to know some background information about your company. Not only will this determine how the developers may need to approah the development of your web site, BUT most importantly it may also suggest to you that you need a design agency or design consultant to create the desired branding for the look and feel of the web site before handing it over to the developers.
Remember, flexibilty can be essential for you as well as giving you the peace of mind that you have selected the right people to deliver the key ingredients to the web site mix. Be sure to ensure that if you do select two, or more, different parties to deliver your web site that they are happy to work together.
Whatever your choice, good background information about what you and your business is about will give the professionals a feel for your brand and in turn will directly affect how they design and/or build your web site.

Introduce your company

Let’s begin. A good starting point would be to consider and list the following:

1. A couple of paragraphs about the company. Consider giving some information about your history, your current position and especially future plans and vision.
2. Information about the products you sell or service(s) you provide.
3. How big or small is your company? This should include e.g. the number of employees, a rough turnover figure. Providing a figure can greatly influence the look and feel of your web site. Think of the difference between how a large company presents itself and then how a small company does. this can directly influence hosting and marketing decisions.
4. Does your company trade internationally? If so, which countries? This may influence the need for languages on your web site or ability to use other currencies etc.
5. How long have you been established?
6. Have you got a vision statement or mission statement that describes your company’s goals and ambitions? Or how would you describe your company in five to ten words (e.g. young, vibrant, technology based etc.).

The existing web site

This may be obvious but we’ll say it anyway, you need to be objective and examine your current web offering and list your opinions about what you need to improve and those things that work just fine. So, consider the following:

1. Firstly, what is your URL! (the web address). Is it easy to remember?
2. What is good about the web site?
   • General look and feel
   • The usability (from user point of view)
   • The accessibility (does it allow for disabled access)
   • The performance (does it load quickly)
   • What value does it deliver back to the company (reporting or feed to your systems)
3. What is bad about the web site? (use same guides as point 2 above)
4. How long ago was it built and who built it?
5. Do you know what traffic the web site is currently receiving? If so, what are these levels?
6. How often do you get a genuine sales lead through the web site?
7. How is the current web site updated? Who is responsible for updating it?
8. Outline a fully as you can any other areas where you feel your web site is failing your business.
9. What other related web activities does your company currently use that may have bearing on your current development.

Remember, anything you feel may be relevant will help to get you the right solution for your business. Any agency or web development company worth their salt will consider all your views to deliver the best solution.
That's it for Part one. Hopefully this will give you enough to get started.
In part two and three we will consider your new web site in terms of design, maintenance, promotion and technical requirements.

 

>> Part Two - click here

>> Part Three - click here

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We hope you find this guide helpful, remember visit our web site www.jcward.co.uk