How to Brief a Web Designer (and Actually Get What You Want)

How to Brief a Web Designer (and Actually Get What You Want)

Most people who contact a web designer for the first time show up with something vague — "I need a website, not too flashy, something professional." That's not a brief. That's a starting point. And if that's all you give a designer, you'll end up going back and forth for weeks, or worse, signing off on something that doesn't actually represent your business.

A solid brief takes thirty minutes to put together and saves hours of revisions. Here's how to do it properly.

---

Step 1: Be Clear About What the Site Needs to Do

Before you think about colours or logos, answer one question: what do you want visitors to do when they land on your site?

For most tradespeople and small businesses, the honest answer is: call me, or fill in my contact form. That's a perfectly valid goal — but naming it clearly shapes everything. It tells the designer where to put buttons, how to structure the page, and what copy needs to do the heavy lifting.

Write down your primary goal in one sentence. "I want people who find me on Google to call me and book a quote." That's a brief, not a mood board request.

---

Step 2: Know Your Audience (Even Roughly)

You don't need to produce a marketing persona document. But you should be able to say who your ideal customer is. A gas engineer working mostly for landlords has a very different audience from a kitchen fitter targeting homeowners doing a full renovation.

Think about:

• ●Are they likely on a phone or a desktop when they search for you?
• ●Are they price-conscious or looking for quality and trust?
• ●What do they worry about before hiring someone in your trade?

This context tells a designer whether to lead with speed and ease of contact, or to spend more real estate building credibility through photos and reviews.

---

Step 3: List Every Page You Think You Need

This doesn't have to be perfect — the designer will likely adjust it. But having a rough list prevents the classic problem of launching a site and then realising you forgot to mention you also do emergency callouts, or that you cover three counties, not one.

A typical trades website might include:

• ●Home
• ●Services (one page or separate pages per service)
• ●About / Meet the team
• ●Areas covered
• ●Reviews or testimonials
• ●Contact / Get a quote

If you're unsure, look at two or three competitors' sites and note what pages they have. You don't need to copy them — but it's a useful prompt.

---

Step 4: Gather the Content You Already Have

This is where most briefs fall apart. A designer can build you a beautiful structure, but they can't invent accurate content about your business from scratch — and you wouldn't want them to.

Before your first call or form submission, try to collect:

• ●A short paragraph about your business and how long you've been trading
• ●A list of your services, with any important detail (e.g. "boiler installs — Worcester Bosch accredited")
• ●The areas you cover
• ●Any photos of your work — even phone shots are better than stock images
• ●Your logo file, if you have one (a PNG or vector file, not a screenshot)
• ●Any existing reviews from Google or Checkatrade you want to feature

At Aposlo Studios, when a new client fills in the onboarding form, this is roughly what gets asked — because having it upfront is what lets us get a site live in five days rather than five weeks.

---

Step 5: Show Examples of Sites You Like (and Say Why)

Pick two or three websites — they don't have to be in your industry — and note one specific thing you like about each. "I like how this one shows the phone number at the top of every page" is far more useful than "I want something clean and modern."

Likewise, if there's a style you actively dislike, say so. "I don't want it to look too corporate" or "I hate sites that autoplay video" are legitimate instructions.

---

Step 6: Set Out Your Practical Constraints

A designer needs to know:

• ●Do you have an existing domain name, or do you need one?
• ●Do you already pay for hosting somewhere?
• ●Is there a deadline (e.g. you're launching a new service in six weeks)?
• ●What's your rough budget or payment preference?

None of these are awkward questions. They just stop surprises later.

---

Step 7: Ask What Happens After Launch

A website is not a one-off purchase. It needs hosting, security updates, and occasional changes as your business evolves. Before you commit, ask:

• ●Who manages hosting?
• ●How do I request changes after the site goes live?
• ●Is SEO included, or is that separate?

This is especially worth asking if you're a sole trader or a small team without an in-house person to handle technical things. Some providers, including Aposlo Studios, handle all of this under a monthly fee — so you never have to think about it.

---

The Result of a Good Brief

When a designer receives a clear brief, they spend their time designing — not chasing you for basic information or making guesses about your business. You end up with a site that reflects what you actually do, targets the right customers, and goes live faster.

The brief doesn't need to be a formal document. A few bullet points under each of these headings is plenty.

---

If you're ready to get a site built and want to talk through what you need, get in touch with Aposlo Studios. The first step is just telling us about your business — we'll take it from there.