prose.

The first steps of any project require an understanding that conceptual thinking and design theory are one thing, but honing the brief and structure is fundamental to the inception of a succesful project. Unlocking the potential is the key.

What is the brief? what is your brief?. Certainly some companies issue a tight brief, having already commissioned adequate research. But for those who don’t know where to start, a designer will always need to understand the following:

Who are the target audience?

What are the core achievements required?

What type of content do the audience expect/require?

Where is the company positioned?

What are the technical requirements?

Who are the competition?

What is the budget?

Content & Functionality
You need to work out the functionality before you work out the look and feel. For this you need at least the type of content, the appropriation of said content, and how that content applies to the site map. Then you can look at initial I.A. This can be rough sketches, or wireframes. For me the brief is all these things together, the gameplan and the rules, along with any constraints, both economic and technological.