How to Plan a Business Website

Define the customer and the next action

Write one sentence about who the website serves and what visitors should do. A clinic might want appointment enquiries; a restaurant might want menu views and reservation requests. Separate the main action from secondary goals so that every page does not compete for attention.

Prepare a realistic page and content list

• List the required pages and the person responsible for approving each one.
• Gather a logo, brand colors, product or project images and business contact details.
• Identify content you already own and content that still needs writing.
• Separate launch essentials from features that can wait for a later phase.

Describe features as user journeys

Instead of writing “booking system”, describe who chooses a slot, whether staff approve it and what happens after a cancellation. For an enquiry form, state who receives the message and what information is actually necessary. These details reveal integration and administration work that a page count alone misses.

Ask what the quote includes

Check whether design, development, copy, migration, testing, hosting setup and training are included. Website cost depends on page complexity, content readiness, administration features and integrations; separate one-time development from recurring domain, hosting and provider charges. Ask who owns the domain, source files and service accounts. Compare proposals using the same scope and responsibilities; a lower number may exclude work that another proposal includes.

Agree review, launch and support

Choose a reviewer who can collect feedback and approve changes. Confirm the staging process, launch access, recurring charges and support boundaries. Our delivered projects include one year of technical fixes; additions are separate, and support after that year is paid. A deadline should reflect content readiness and integration complexity.

Prepare your own project brief

Use this editable text template to document your requirements, responsibilities and acceptance checks before requesting a quotation. Complete it locally, then share only the information needed for your enquiry.

Please do not include passwords, OTPs or private customer records.

Turn your brief into a project discussion

Use this guide to prepare your questions and share a realistic first scope.

About this guide

This guide was prepared with AI-assisted drafting to organize practical project-planning questions. Examples are illustrative requirements, not published client case studies. Its purpose is to help business owners prepare a useful brief before discussing scope, responsibilities and a quotation.

Malak Ventures publishes this resource. Learn about the business and founder, review our project process, or send a correction or question. Final project requirements are agreed in the proposal.