This guide is written for business owners and teams planning a real website, software or SEO workflow. It focuses on decisions that can be verified rather than promising a guaranteed ranking or project outcome.
Start with the business problem
A requirement document should begin with the current problem, not a list of technologies. Describe what customers or staff do today, where time is lost, what errors occur and what outcome the organisation wants after launch.
A goal such as “build an app” is too broad. A stronger goal is “allow customers to select an available appointment slot, pay online and receive confirmation while staff manage availability from an admin panel”.
Identify users, roles and permissions
List every user type: public visitor, customer, staff member, manager, administrator or external partner. For each role, record what they can view, create, edit, approve, export or delete. Permission gaps often become security and support problems later.
Include exceptional cases such as a cancelled payment, duplicate account, unavailable slot, refunded order or staff member leaving the organisation.
Describe workflows before screens
Document the sequence from trigger to completion. For an ecommerce order this may include product selection, stock check, address, shipping, payment, order creation, notification, fulfilment and return. Screen designs become easier after the workflow and decision rules are clear.
Record data and integrations
State what data is collected, where it comes from, how long it is retained and who owns it. List payment gateways, email, WhatsApp, accounting, maps, courier, analytics or external APIs. External platforms can introduce fees, approval steps, rate limits and failure conditions.
Define acceptance and ownership
Write how the business will confirm completion. Acceptance criteria can cover responsive layouts, supported browsers, user roles, payment states, reports, backup restoration, source access and deployment. Clarify who owns domains, hosting, source code, credentials and third-party accounts.
Plan launch and support
Include content migration, training, live-data preparation, deployment, monitoring and support. Separate defects from new features and agree how change requests are reviewed. A clear handover should include access, environment details, backups and operational instructions.
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Open the free tool →Frequently asked questions
Use enough detail to remove ambiguity. A small website may need a few pages; a custom platform may require user stories, workflows, data fields and acceptance criteria.
The technology should follow the confirmed users, workflow, scale, integrations, security and maintenance needs.
No. It helps prepare the conversation, but stakeholders and the delivery team should review assumptions together.