MadRaven Lab / Field Notes
How to Write a Website Redesign Brief With Checkable Deliverables
Direct Answer
A redesign brief should describe what a customer must be able to do, then define the pages, functionality, content responsibilities and checks needed to support that task. Visual references help establish a direction. They do not explain what happens to old URLs, who maintains Chinese copy, where enquiries go or how the project will be accepted.
Start With Three Real Journeys
For a service business, example journeys are checking whether a service fits, examining an inspectable project example and providing enough information to arrange a consultation. These are illustrative requirements, not claims about MadRaven client results. Record the entry page, customer question, information needed, next action and failure condition. For a shop, use its actual product selection, delivery and checkout journeys instead.
A Brief You Can Fill In
| Requirement | Record | Acceptance Check |
|---|---|---|
| Business purpose | Customer type and action they should complete | Walk through one concrete customer scenario |
| Page scope | Existing URLs, retained/new/migrated pages and EN/ZH pairs | Check every agreed page against the inventory |
| Content ownership | Copywriter, translator, asset supplier and factual reviewer | Keep an approved version and owner for each page |
| Functionality | Form fields, uploads, booking, payments or CRM needs | Submit a sample and verify the receiving system |
| Migration | URL mapping, redirects, canonical URLs and sitemap | Fetch old URLs and check their agreed destinations |
| Maintenance | Editing access, backups, dependency updates and support | Ask the business to complete an edit after handover |
Clarify the Terms That Change a Quote
“Bilingual” needs a definition. Do both languages cover every page? Who translates and checks facts? Does the language switch open the corresponding article? What happens when the business adds another page? Without these answers, one supplier might quote a complete Chinese site while another quotes a translation widget.
“SEO included” also needs a scope. Technical configuration, URL migration, content editing, demand research and continuing operations are different work. Specify which are included, what the supplier delivers and who checks completion. Google's migration guidance recommends preparing URL mappings and testing redirects; it does not promise unchanged rankings.Google site move guidance
Run Five Acceptance Scenarios
- On a phone, find the appropriate service, inspect supporting material and send an enquiry.
- Switch from a Chinese article to its matching English version and back.
- Check required-field errors, submit a valid form and verify receipt in the destination system.
- Open old URLs and compare their responses with the approved migration mapping.
- Use the handover account to edit content and publish an update.
Attach the actual results to acceptance records. A success message alone does not prove an email or CRM record arrived. A passing build does not prove the production page is correct.
Resolve Missing Inputs Before Seeking a Fixed Quote
An unknown page inventory, unassigned translation review or undefined integration leaves suppliers pricing assumptions. Gather those inputs first. If the budget is still being explored, ask for essential scope, optional scope and recurring costs separately. This makes tradeoffs visible without inventing a single all-inclusive price.
Bring These Inputs to a Project Discussion
Bring the current website, three user journeys, existing URL inventory, content owner, intended launch date and integrations that must survive. These inputs help scope a redesign discussion with MadRaven Lab. Any final service or price depends on the confirmed project agreement.
Sources: Google's site move guidance and localized versions documentation, checked 10 October 2026. The table is a procurement method, not a guarantee of rankings or enquiries.