How to Order a Website: Step-by-Step Guide and Client Brief

Step 1. Define the goal of the website

Start not with design but with one question: what should a visitor do? Submit a request, call, buy, book, download a price list. That determines the format: landing page, business website or online store.

Agree right away on how you will measure results: leads per month, cost per lead from ads, number of orders. Without this, six months later you will not be able to tell whether the site paid off.

• One service and Google Ads — a landing page is usually enough
• Several services and a focus on search — you need a website with separate service pages
• Selling products with online payment — an online store
• Customer accounts, employee roles, record-keeping — a web system or CRM

Step 2. Fill out a brief

A brief is a short document that helps the developer understand the task. It does not have to be long, but it should answer the key questions:

• What the company does and what exactly you sell through the site
• Who your customers are: age, city or country, what problem brings them to you
• Main competitors and websites you like or dislike, and why
• What sets you apart: price, speed, guarantee, experience, service
• Which pages and sections you need
• Features: request form, online booking, payments, calculator, multiple languages
• Integrations: CRM, Telegram, Google Analytics, shipping services
• Whether you have a logo, brand colors, copy and photos
• Desired launch date and budget

If you do not have answers to some questions yet, that is fine. A good developer will help you work them out in the first call.

Step 3. Choose a developer and compare proposals

Send the same brief to several developers so the proposals can be compared. Check whether they spell out the scope of work, timelines per stage, number of revision rounds and what support includes. A proposal that just says "website — $X" without details almost always means unpleasant surprises later.

• Can you see live websites from the portfolio, not just screenshots?
• Who exactly will work on the project, and who answers your questions?
• What is included in the price, and what is paid separately: copy, photos, hosting, licenses?
• How will you change prices, text and photos yourself after launch?
• What happens if a bug is found after launch?

The cheapest offer is not always the best value: extra work that was "not in the contract" can easily outweigh the price difference.

Step 4. Put the essentials in the contract

• List of pages and features included in the price
• Fixed price and payment schedule by stage
• Deadlines for each stage and what happens if either side is late
• Number of design revision rounds
• Transfer of rights to the code, design and all access credentials after payment
• Who registers the domain and hosting (ideally, you)
• Terms and duration of post-launch support

A contract protects both sides: it guarantees you the result and deadlines, and gives the developer a clear scope of work. If new wishes come up during development, put them in a separate addendum with a price and deadline rather than adding them "by the way" — that keeps the project from dragging on for months.

Step 5. Mockup and revisions

The structure and design of the main pages are approved first. Changes are cheap at this stage and expensive after development. So review the mockup carefully on both phone and desktop, and collect feedback in a single list rather than one message at a time. Judge not only whether you like it, but whether a customer will understand what you offer and how to get in touch.

We show the first mockup in 2 days, so you quickly see the direction and can adjust it before the main work begins.

Step 6. Content, testing and launch

Before going live, run through a short checklist:

• All forms work, and leads arrive in Telegram, email or your CRM
• The site looks right on a smartphone and loads fast
• Page titles and descriptions are filled in, there is a sitemap, and the site is open for indexing
• Google Analytics and conversion tracking are connected
• There is a privacy policy, contact details and company information
• No placeholder text or dummy content left

Treat the first 2–4 weeks after launch as an observation period: see where visitors come from, whether leads arrive and which pages people read most. Fix small issues right away, while you are still in close contact with the developer and support is active.

What the client should prepare in advance

• Logo in vector format and brand colors
• Photos of your team, products and work — your own are always more convincing than stock
• Copy, or at least key points about services, prices and benefits
• Answers to customers' frequently asked questions
• Access to the domain, if you already have one

Ready to start?

Send us a few sentences about your business and goal, or take the package quiz on our site. We work remotely with clients worldwide and will help with the brief, suggest a format and give you an estimate: landing page from $100, website up to 10 pages from $600. Price and timeline are fixed in the contract.