How to Brief a Web Designer So You Get What You Actually Asked For

Many business owners have lived through the same disappointment. They hire a web designer, describe what they want in a short chat, wait weeks, and receive a website that looks nothing like what they imagined. The designer is not always at fault. More often, the brief was too vague for anyone to get right.

A brief is not a formal document full of technical language. It is a clear set of answers that lets a designer understand your business, your customers, and what success looks like. The better your answers, the fewer revisions, delays, and misunderstandings you will face.

This post covers exactly what to put in your brief. It is about the information you hand over, not the full planning process around a project. If you want the wider planning picture, read our guide on how to plan a website project. This post is the practical checklist to complete before design starts.

Why vague briefs produce disappointing websites

Designers cannot read minds. When a brief says "I want a modern website," one designer imagines a minimal corporate site, another imagines a colourful creative site, and the business owner imagined something else entirely. All three can be modern, and all three can be wrong for that business.

Common vague instructions include:

• "Make it fine" or "just do something nice"
• "Copy that other website" without explaining what you liked about it
• "I will send the content later" when content never arrives
• No clear goal, so the designer guesses whether the site should sell, inform, or collect enquiries

A good brief removes the guessing. It tells the designer who the site is for, what it must do, what content exists, and how decisions will be made. That clarity protects both sides and usually shortens the project.

Start with the goal, in one sentence

Every brief should open with a single sentence describing what the website must achieve. Examples include:

• "The website should bring enquiries from homeowners in Lagos who need cleaning services."
• "The website should let customers view our menu and place orders for delivery."
• "The website should convince parents to book a school tour."

That sentence guides every later decision, from the headline to the buttons. If a proposed feature does not serve the goal, it can wait. Share this sentence first, before discussing colours, layouts, or features, so the designer designs towards an outcome rather than a look.

Describe your customers, not just your business

Designers need to know who will use the site. Describe your typical customer in plain terms: what they need, what worries them, and how they usually find you. For example, a customer might be a busy parent searching on a phone, a bride comparing vendors on Instagram, or a facilities manager looking for a reliable supplier.

Also note what your customers need to believe before they contact you. A new clinic needs to show credibility and safety. A fashion brand needs to show real products and clear ordering steps. A school needs to show its environment, fees process, and admission steps. When the designer understands the customer's worries, the site can answer them directly.

List your services and pages clearly

Write out the pages you need, in plain language, before design begins. A typical service business site includes a homepage, an about page, a page for each main service, a contact page, and possibly a gallery or testimonials section. Listing them early prevents the common surprise of discovering halfway through that an important page was never planned.

For each service, write two or three sentences about what it includes and who it is for. You do not need polished marketing copy at the brief stage, but the designer needs the raw facts. If you do not yet have that content, say so honestly and agree who will write it and by when. Content delays are the most common reason website projects stall, so this agreement matters more than most people realise.

Show examples, and explain what you like

Examples help enormously, but only when you explain them. Send two or three websites you admire and note exactly what you like about each one. It might be the clear headline on one, the simple booking form on another, or the colour style of a third. Also mention anything you dislike, so the designer does not copy the wrong parts.

Avoid saying "copy this site." Apart from the obvious problem of copying someone else's work, the copied site was built for a different business with different customers. Use examples as direction, not as a template to clone.

Cover the practical decisions early

Several practical questions cause delays when they are left until the end. Answer these in your brief:

• Domain and hosting: do you already own a domain, and who manages your hosting?
• Content: who writes the text, and who supplies photos, logos, and videos?
• Features: do you need a contact form, WhatsApp button, booking form, online store, or blog?
• Contact method: should visitors call, chat on WhatsApp, or fill in a form first?
• Decision maker: who approves the design, and how quickly can they give feedback?
• Timeline: is there a real deadline, such as a launch, event, or season?

You do not need to know the technical answers. You need to give the designer the facts and constraints, so they can recommend the right approach instead of guessing.

Talk about budget honestly

Sharing a realistic budget range with your designer helps enormously. A designer who knows the range can recommend what fits within it and what would need a later phase, instead of proposing something far beyond what you can afford.

If you are unsure what websites cost, ask for a breakdown of what is included: design, content help, images, setup, training, and ongoing support. Comparing quotes becomes much easier when you compare what each one actually includes, rather than just the final figure.

Agree how revisions and feedback will work

Feedback is where many projects slow down. Agree at the start how many rounds of revisions are included, how feedback should be given, and how long each side has to respond. Give feedback that is specific and tied to your goal. Instead of "I don't like it," explain what is wrong: "The headline doesn't say we deliver in Lagos," or "The booking button is hard to find on my phone." Specific feedback gets fixed quickly. Vague feedback starts another round of guessing.

A brief checklist you can copy

Use this checklist when preparing your brief:

• One-sentence goal for the website
• Description of your typical customer and their main worry
• List of pages needed, with a short description of each service
• Notes on who provides text, photos, and logo files, and by when
• Two or three example websites, with notes on what you like
• Required features, such as forms, WhatsApp, booking, or a store
• Domain and hosting situation
• Preferred contact method for visitors
• Budget range and what should be included
• Decision maker and expected feedback speed
• Any real deadline

Send that to your designer, and you have already done more preparation than most clients. The result will show in the first design you receive.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need to write all my website content before briefing a designer?

No, but you need to agree who will write it and when. A designer can start with structure and draft text, but final content should come from you or someone who knows your business well, because only you can describe your services accurately.

What if I do not know what I want the site to look like?

That is normal. Your brief does not need to describe a visual design. It needs to describe your goal, customers, services, and examples you like. A good designer turns those answers into a visual direction for you to react to.

Should I mention websites I dislike?

Yes. Knowing what to avoid is just as useful as knowing what you like. If you dislike busy layouts, dark colours, or long sliders, say so early so the designer does not spend time on a direction you will reject.

How long should a brief be?

Long enough to answer the checklist above, usually one or two pages. A brief that is too short leaves too much guessing, while a very long brief often buries the important answers. Clear and complete beats long and vague.

Brief well, and the website follows

A website project rarely fails because of design talent alone. It fails because the designer and the business owner pictured different results. A clear brief closes that gap before work starts, saving revisions, time, and frustration on both sides.

Explore our services to see how Joetech guides clients through briefing and design, or contact us to start your website project with a clear brief.