Write a website commissioning brief

Give each agency the same brief and ask for a price against each deliverable. Start with one task that must work. If a candidate finds a vacancy on a phone, which details do they need, how do they apply and who should receive the completed application?

Download the blank website commissioning brief (.txt).

Describe the people and the job

Merebridge Recruitment, the fictional agency in these guides, has two audiences. A candidate wants to read shift times and apply. An employer wants a named team to receive a vacancy enquiry. During the build, the agency will test both journeys using a phone and a keyboard. Record which colleagues will test them and who can approve the result.

Say who supplies and checks each piece of content. For Merebridge, the recruitment team owns live vacancy text and the managing director signs off service descriptions. The project estimate needs to include time to migrate existing material and chase approvals as well as time to design the pages.

Put a boundary around the quote

Give agencies an inventory of current addresses, downloads and forms. For each old URL that has visitors or links, specify a retained page, equivalent replacement or agreed retirement. Ask for sample checks as part of the quote. If one agency excludes redirects and another includes them, a discount in the headline price may simply move the work onto your team.

Write an acceptance test you can repeat

“Make the site easy to use” leaves both parties guessing at sign-off. For the candidate journey, start on one vacancy page with a phone, read the shift hours, submit a fictional application and look for an on-screen confirmation. The recruiter checks the received message against the input and replies to the controlled test address. Repeat with a missing required field and with a keyboard. Record the device, date, expected result and observed result.

Agree how the supplier will test accessibility throughout the work, including manual checks and tests with people who use the service. Identify who fixes defects, how serious issues block launch and which minor items can be accepted with dates.

Agree who holds the keys

List the registrar, DNS service, hosting account, source repository, content exports, third-party licences and renewal payments. Ask the supplier to identify any item that cannot transfer and give its replacement cost before award. Name a person at your organisation who will practise access and recovery. Make the domain and website handover checklist part of the agreed delivery.