Short answer: send every company the same written brief. When three companies quote on three different guesses about your project, the numbers cannot be compared. A one-page brief with your goal, pages, content, features, budget and deadline makes the quotes line up, speeds up the proposal and cuts surprises later. The template below is free to copy.
Why a brief changes the quotes you get
Without a brief, each company fills the gaps its own way. One assumes you will write the text, another prices content writing in. One quotes five pages, another twelve. The cheapest quote is often the one that assumed the least.
A brief fixes that in three ways:
- Same scope. Every quote prices the same pages and features, so you compare price and quality, not guesses.
- Faster answers. A company with a clear brief can send a written proposal quickly. At Saree3 it comes within one business day.
- Fewer extra costs. Most change requests come from things nobody wrote down at the start.
You do not need to know the technology. Write what the business needs in plain words. A good company will suggest the platform and explain why.
The template, section by section
Copy the sections below into an email, a document or a WhatsApp message. Answer what you can. "Not sure" is a useful answer too, because it tells the company where to ask.
1. About the business
- Business name, and what you sell in two sentences.
- Who your customers are: companies, consumers or both, and in which cities or countries.
- Your current website address, if you have one.
- The contact person for the project, with phone and email.
2. Goal of the website
- The one main thing a visitor should do: call, send a WhatsApp message, request a quote, book or buy.
- How you get customers today, and where the website fits in.
- How you will judge it after six months, for example quote requests per month.
3. Pages
- The pages you expect, such as home, about, each service, projects, blog and contact.
- Roughly how many services, products or projects need their own page.
- Which languages, and whether each one needs the full site or only some pages.
4. Content
- Who writes the text: you, the company or both.
- Whether you have photos of your products, work or projects, how many, and how good.
- Whether you have logo files and brand colours, or need a brand identity first.
5. Features
- Forms: contact, quote request, job applications.
- WhatsApp and call buttons.
- Booking or appointments.
- Customer accounts or a portal.
- Links to other systems: CRM, ERP, accounting, JoFotara, a delivery company.
- Who will edit content after launch, and how often.
6. Online store (skip if you do not sell online)
- Number of products, and whether they come in sizes, colours or other options.
- Whether you have a product list in Excel with names, prices, codes and photos.
- Payment methods: cash on delivery, card, CliQ.
- Delivery: your own drivers or a courier, and how the fee changes by area.
- Stock: managed on the site, or in another system the store should read from.
7. Examples
- Two or three websites you like, and what you like about each one.
- One or two you do not like, and why.
- Your main competitors' websites.
8. Technical details
- Whether you own a domain, and in whose name it is registered.
- Your current hosting and email provider, if any.
- For a redesign: the pages that bring visits today and must keep working.
9. Budget and deadline
- A budget range. A range gets you a proposal that fits it, instead of a guess.
- A launch date, and whether it is fixed by an event or a campaign, or flexible.
- Who approves the design, and how quickly they can review.
10. After launch
- Whether you want a maintenance plan, or your team will handle edits.
- Whether you need help with Google: Search Console, your Google Business Profile or ad tracking.
Not sure what budget range to write? The website cost calculator and the pricing page show starting prices, and our guide to website costs in Jordan shows market ranges.
A filled example
This example is made up for this guide. It shows how short a useful brief can be.
- Business: A kitchen and wardrobe workshop in Amman. We design, make and install kitchens for homes and small buildings.
- Customers: Home owners and contractors in Amman and Zarqa.
- Current site: None. We use Instagram and WhatsApp.
- Main action: Request a quote, or send a WhatsApp message with photos of the space.
- After six months: 20 quote requests a month from the site and from Google.
- Pages: Home, about, kitchens, wardrobes, projects (about 15 to start), how we work, contact.
- Content: We will write the basic text and want help editing it. We have about 200 project photos taken on our phones.
- Brand: The logo exists as a PNG only. No colour guide.
- Features: A quote form with photo upload, a WhatsApp button, and a project gallery we can add to ourselves.
- Store: No.
- Examples: Two sites we like for their large project photos and short text, linked here.
- Domain: Not registered yet.
- Budget: 700 to 1,200 JOD.
- Deadline: Within six weeks, flexible by two.
- Approvals: The owner, within two days of each review.
- After launch: We will add projects ourselves. We may want a small care plan.
With this, a company can tell you the platform, the page count, what it will write and what you will, the schedule and a fixed price. Without it, you get a wide range and a list of questions.
What to send with it
- Your logo in its original file (AI, SVG or PDF) if you have one, not only a screenshot.
- Any brand colours or fonts you already use.
- Ten to twenty of your strongest photos, so the company sees the real quality.
- For a store, the product list in Excel, even if it is incomplete.
- For a redesign, a screenshot of your top pages from Google Analytics or Search Console.
- Any printed material: company profile, catalogue or price list.
Do not send passwords with the brief. Share access only after you have signed with a company, and add them as a user rather than giving out your own login.
What to expect back
A good proposal answers the brief point by point: the pages and features, what is included and what is not, the schedule, the payment stages, the yearly costs after launch and who owns what. If a reply ignores half your brief, that tells you something too.
Read how to choose a web design company in Jordan for what to check, and company, freelancer or website builder if you are still deciding who to ask. When the brief is ready, send it through the contact page or on WhatsApp. Saree3 replies with a written proposal and a fixed price within one business day.