Two companies each ask three vendors for "a brochure website." They receive six quotes, ranging from 1,500 to 15,000 TND. Nobody is lying: each vendor simply priced a different website. The requirements document exists so that everyone is talking about the same project.
A website requirements document is not an administrative formality. First and foremost, it is a decision-making tool. It sets out what the website must deliver, for whom, with what resources and by when. It then makes it possible to compare quotes on a common basis. Finally, it protects both the client and the vendor in the event of a disagreement. This article reviews the 12 items that truly drive the budget, and above all the number of inbound inquiries.
In short. Here are three guidelines before you write your requirements document:
- Price follows scope: in the Tunisian market, a brochure website is often priced between 800 and 3,000 TND, while a custom project can exceed 20,000 TND.
- Leads are decided before design: goals, user journeys, forms and conversion tracking matter more than the choice of colors.
- The real cost is annual: hosting, maintenance and content add to the build price every year.
Why the Website Requirements Document Determines the Outcome
As early as 1995, the Standish Group's CHAOS Report listed incomplete requirements among the leading causes of IT project failure. Thirty years later, the same holds true for business websites. A vague brief leads to a vague quote, then to change orders, then to delays.
The stakes also go beyond the budget. In Tunisia, DataReportal counted around 10.4 million internet users at the start of 2026, or more than 84% of the population. Your prospects therefore judge you online before they call. A poorly scoped website costs you twice: once when it is built, and again in lost leads.
In practice, a good website requirements document answers four questions. Why this website? For whom? With what features? And how will its success be measured? The 12 items below break these questions down.
The 12 Items in a Website Requirements Document
1. Goals and Success Metrics
Every website requirements document starts here. A website meant to generate quote requests is not designed the same way as one meant to reassure investors. So set one primary goal and two or three quantified metrics: leads per month, conversion rate, calls generated.
This item costs little, but it shapes all the others. Without it, the vendor optimizes for looks. With it, the vendor optimizes for business results.
2. Target Audiences and User Journeys
Next, describe your typical visitors in the website requirements document: an industrial buyer, a busy individual customer, an overseas distributor. For each one, specify what they are looking for and the action you expect them to take. This allows the vendor to design short paths to conversion.
This work also avoids a common trap: organizing the website around the company's org chart rather than around the customer's questions.
3. Site Structure and Page Count
The number of pages remains one of the main price drivers. Five pages and fifty pages require neither the same design time nor the same development work. So attach a site structure, even a rough one, to your website requirements document.
For lead generation, however, every major offering deserves its own page. One page per service makes it possible to target a specific Google search and match a clear search intent.
4. Content: Copy, Photos and Videos
This is the most underestimated item. Who writes the copy? Who provides the photos? Is a photo shoot or a company video needed? In practice, a website delivered without high-quality content will not convert, however good its design.
Your website requirements document should therefore specify what you will provide and what you will outsource. SEO copywriting, professional photography and video are separate budget lines. For video, our guide to the cost of a corporate video in Tunisia will help you estimate it.
5. Design: Customized Theme or Custom Design
First, a customized off-the-shelf theme costs significantly less than a mockup designed from scratch. It works for many projects. However, a brand that needs to stand out strongly will require a custom design consistent with its brand guidelines.
Also state whether your visual identity already exists. If not, the logo and brand guidelines become a preliminary project with their own budget.
6. Website Languages
In Tunisia, the question almost always comes up: French only, or French, Arabic and English? Each language adds translations, testing and pages to optimize for search. Arabic also requires a right-to-left layout, which must be planned from the design stage.
This item can therefore increase the budget by 20 to 50%, depending on the volume of content. Yet it opens up entire markets, especially in the Maghreb, the Gulf and Sub-Saharan Africa.
7. Conversion Features
This is where leads are directly won or lost. So list every expected feature in your website requirements document: contact form, quote request, appointment booking, WhatsApp button, click-to-call, price calculator, brochure download.
Each of these features has a cost, often a modest one. Its absence, however, is expensive. Also specify where inquiries will land: an email inbox, a CRM or a shared spreadsheet. A lead sitting in an inbox nobody checks is a lost lead.
8. E-commerce and Online Payment
Selling online changes the very nature of the project. You then need to manage a catalog, inventory, shipping fees and returns. Online payment also requires integration with a local payment gateway, such as ClicToPay, Konnect or Flouci, not to mention cash on delivery, which is still very common in Tunisia.
So specify the number of products, the payment and delivery methods, and any connections to your business management software. These factors account for most of the gap between a brochure website and an online store.
9. Technology and Integrations
WordPress, Shopify or custom development? The choice depends on your needs, not on the vendor's preferences. A widely used CMS makes maintenance easier and gives your team more autonomy. Custom development, on the other hand, is justified for highly specific business features.
Integrations also carry significant weight: CRM, ERP, email marketing tool, booking platform. Each connection should therefore be described precisely in the website requirements document.
10. SEO from the Design Stage
SEO cannot be bolted on afterward. URL structure, tags, page speed and page organization are all decided during the design phase. If you are redesigning an existing website, also insist on a 301 redirect plan to preserve your traffic.
This item costs relatively little upfront. But forgetting it becomes very expensive later. To understand the basics, read our beginner's guide to SEO. And if your current website remains invisible, our article why your website doesn't show up on Google will help you pinpoint what is holding it back.
11. Performance, Hosting and Security
According to a study published by Google in 2016, 53% of mobile visits are abandoned when a page takes more than three seconds to load. Speed is therefore a business criterion. Specify a mobile performance target and the expected hosting level.
Next, add the security requirements: SSL certificate, backups, updates. Finally, plan for compliance. In Tunisia, Organic Law No. 2004-63 governs the collection of personal data, under the oversight of the INPDP, the national data protection authority. If you target European customers, the GDPR also applies.
12. Tracking, Maintenance and Ownership
A website without tracking does not improve. So insist on the setup of Google Analytics 4 and Google Tag Manager, along with tracking for every conversion. This setup then shows you which pages and which channels generate your leads.
Also specify post-launch maintenance, training for your team and ownership of all assets. The domain name, hosting access and source files must belong to you. On this point, there is no room for ambiguity.
Summary: How Each Item Affects Budget and Leads
Not all items carry the same weight. The following table gives a rough overview of their impact:
| Item | Budget impact | Lead impact |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Goals and metrics | Low | Very high |
| 2. Audiences and user journeys | Low | High |
| 3. Site structure and pages | Medium to high | High |
| 4. Content | Medium to high | Very high |
| 5. Design | Medium to high | Medium |
| 6. Languages | Medium | Medium to high |
| 7. Conversion features | Low to medium | Very high |
| 8. E-commerce and payment | High | High |
| 9. Technology and integrations | Moyen à très fort | Medium |
| 10. SEO | Low to medium | Very high |
| 11. Performance and security | Medium | High |
| 12. Tracking and maintenance | Low to medium | High |
This table reveals a useful paradox. Several low-cost items, such as goals, forms and basic SEO, have the strongest effect on inbound inquiries. Yet they are often the first to be cut.
How Much Should You Budget for a Website in Tunisia?
Les tarifs varient fortement selon le périmètre et le prestataire. Les fourchettes suivantes, observées sur le marché tunisien en 2026, restent donc des repères indicatifs, et non des engagements :
| Website Type | Build cost range | Key cost drivers |
|---|---|---|
| Showcase Website | 800 to 3,000 TND | Pages, content, design, forms |
| E-commerce Website | 1,500 to 8,000 TND | Catalog, payment, delivery, integrations |
| Custom website | 2,000 to 25,000+ TND | Business features, languages, APIs |
| Hosting and domain | 150 to 400 TND per year | Performance level, backups |
| Maintenance | 10 to 25% of the initial cost per year | Updates, security, enhancements |
So think in terms of the three-year cost rather than the build price. A cheap website that generates no leads is still the most expensive option.
How to Structure Your Website Requirements Document
There is no need for a fifty-page requirements document. In practice, an effective website requirements document often fits in eight to fifteen pages, organized as follows:
- Company overview: business activity, markets, competitors, positioning.
- Background and goals: why this website, and which success metrics.
- Audiences and user journeys: visitor profiles and expected actions.
- Functional scope: site structure, features, languages, e-commerce.
- Technical requirements: CMS, integrations, hosting, security, SEO.
- Content and design: what you will provide, what you will outsource, design references.
- Budget, timeline and selection criteria: indicative budget range, deadlines, how to respond.
Budget, timeline and selection criteria: indicative budget range, deadlines, response guidelines.
Common Mistakes in a Requirements Document
In our day-to-day work, we keep running into the same pitfalls:
- Copying a competitor's website: their goals and customers are not yours.
- Describing solutions instead of needs: "a carousel on the homepage" says less than "show our three offerings within five seconds."
- Forgetting about content: a website that is technically ready but empty can stay stuck for months.
- Neglecting mobile: most of your visitors will arrive on a smartphone.
- Ignoring post-launch: without maintenance or tracking, the website deteriorates and loses visibility.
From Website to Lead Pipeline
A well-designed website is not always enough. You also need to bring qualified visitors to it. SEO works over the long term, while advertising generates leads quickly. To decide between the two, read our comparison SEO or Google Ads: Which Is Right for Your Business?
The website also needs to fit into an overall strategy. It then becomes the landing point for your social media, your campaigns and your PR. Our guide to building a successful digital communication strategy in 8 steps explains how it all fits together.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a website requirements document?
A website requirements document describes the goals, target audiences, features, technical constraints, budget and timeline of a website project. It serves as a common basis for obtaining and comparing quotes.
Who should write the website requirements document?
In principle, the client company should write it, since it knows its own goals and customers. However, an agency can help translate those needs into precise technical requirements.
How much does a website cost in Tunisia in 2026?
As a rough guide, a website in Tunisia costs about 800 to 3,000 TND for a brochure website, 1,500 to 8,000 TND for an e-commerce website, and more for a custom project. Hosting and maintenance are added every year.
Should you include your budget in the requirements document?
Yes, at least as a range. This allows vendors to propose suitable solutions instead of quotes that are impossible to compare.
How long does it take to build a website?
Building a brochure website usually takes a few weeks, while an e-commerce or custom website often takes two to six months. The timeline depends mainly on how quickly content is available and how fast approvals are given.
How does a website generate leads?
A website generates leads by combining three elements: qualified traffic, pages that precisely answer visitors' questions, and visible calls to action. Conversion tracking then makes it possible to improve what works.
At 5 Sens Advertising, we design websites as sales tools, not just online brochures. As an advertising agency in Tunisia, we help our clients put their requirements document into shape, then turn it into a high-performing website through our website design and development services. This is what we call scientific rigor in the service of creativity.
Planning to build or redesign your website? Request an assessment of your project or contact our team to talk it through.
