The verdict in three sentences
A London wealth manager or family office that sends agencies a one-paragraph brief gets quotes that cannot be compared, often from £12,000 to £70,000 for what sounds like the same site. A written specification of two to four pages, covering audiences, page list, integrations listed one by one, a WCAG 2.2 AA target, form data rules, domain ownership, SEO migration and a compliance sign-off workflow with an approval log, usually narrows the spread to something you can actually decide on. Kolonell's fixed grid (£2,300, £3,900 or £6,900) maps directly onto that checklist, with portals and complex integrations on quote.
What should the specification contain?
Use the checklist below as the backbone of your document. Each line should end with a decision, not an intention.
| Checklist item | What to write down | Example for a Mayfair or St James's firm |
|---|---|---|
| Goals and audiences | Who the site must reassure, and what action they take | International families and entrepreneurs who book an introductory call |
| Page list and templates | Every page, grouped by template | Home, approach, services, team bios, insights, regulatory pages, contact |
| Content ownership | Who writes, who approves, who signs off | Partners draft, marketing edits, compliance approves every page |
| Languages | Primary language and any others | English first; other languages on Premium (the multilingual tier, languages set in the quote) |
| Integrations | Each one on its own line | Client portal link, custodian login link, CRM form capture, booking tool |
| Accessibility | Target standard and how it is tested | WCAG 2.2 AA, checked with automated and manual tests before launch |
| Forms and data | Fields, retention, where data goes | Name, email, phone, country of residence; no account numbers or asset details |
| Hosting and domain | Who owns accounts | Domain, hosting and analytics in the firm's name |
| SEO migration | Only if a site exists | URL inventory, 301 redirect map, Search Console handover |
| Acceptance criteria | What done means | All pages approved in the log, zero broken links, accessibility report |
| Timeline and budget | Window and range | Live before the next quarterly letter, budget £3,000 to £25,000 |
Two points deserve more space in a wealth brief. First, the regulatory pages: legal notices, regulatory status, complaints procedure, fee disclosures and privacy notice must be inventoried and stay reachable after go-live. Second, the insights archive: decide how many market commentaries move across, and that each one is re-read, because older commentary can read as a promotion today.
How does a vague brief change the quotes you receive?
The ranges below are a 2026 ballpark from typical agency quotes in London for professional and financial services sites. They are orders of magnitude, not a survey.
| Brief element | Vague version | Precise version | Effect on quotes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pages | Around 20 pages | 24 pages, 6 templates, listed | Spread narrows from about £12,000 to £70,000 towards £15,000 to £35,000 |
| Integrations | Portal integration | Link to existing portal; CRM form capture only | Removes portal rebuild guesses of £20,000 or more |
| Compliance | Compliance will review | Sign-off per page, approval log, 2 review rounds | Agencies stop padding 15 to 25% for uncertainty |
| Accessibility | Accessible site | WCAG 2.2 AA, test report at acceptance | Comparable line items |
| Content | Content to be discussed | Firm writes bios, agency writes 8 core pages | Copywriting priced openly |
| Migration | Keep our articles | 120 insights, 60 migrated, rest redirected | Clear migration effort |
How do you score three quotes fairly?
Fix your weights before you open the quotes. The example below uses five criteria and a 1 to 5 score.
| Criterion (weight) | Quote A: London agency, £32,000 | Quote B: freelancer, £9,000 | Quote C: fixed-grid studio, £6,900 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Scope coverage (30%) | 5 | 3 | 4 |
| Compliance workflow and approval log (20%) | 4 | 2 | 4 |
| SEO migration plan (15%) | 4 | 2 | 4 |
| Price (20%) | 2 | 4 | 5 |
| Timeline (15%) | 2 | 3 | 5 |
| Weighted total | 3.60 | 2.85 | 4.35 |
Quote A: 1.50 + 0.80 + 0.60 + 0.40 + 0.30 = 3.60. Quote B: 0.90 + 0.40 + 0.30 + 0.80 + 0.45 = 2.85. Quote C: 1.20 + 0.80 + 0.60 + 1.00 + 0.75 = 4.35. If your board values in-person workshops highly, add that criterion and re-weight; the ranking may change.
How does the Kolonell grid map to the checklist?
- Starter, £2,300: a compact single-language site with contact form and regulatory pages.
- Growth, £3,900: full page list, team bios, insights section with migration and 301 map.
- Premium, £6,900: the multilingual tier, languages set in the quote, for firms serving clients in several languages.
- On quote: client portal work, custodian integrations, CRM beyond form capture, ongoing SEO work.
Need a professional website?
Kolonell builds websites that attract clients, optimized for the Sénégalese market. Free quote in 2 minutes.
All tiers include a project manager reachable in UK hours, native English copywriting, delivery in 3 to 4 weeks once content is ready, and 3 months of support. For a professional services reference, Kolonell built the website of TR Signing Group (trsigninggroup.com), a signing services company in New Jersey. See the international offer.
What does the compliance workflow look like in practice?
The firm, not the agency, approves financial promotions. Your specification should require an approval log: one row per page with version, reviewer, date and status. In the UK, the FCA's financial promotion rules and the Consumer Duty frame how firms communicate; describe them in your brief as a requirement for sign-off, and let your compliance function apply the detail. Data protection runs under UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018, supervised by the ICO, with PECR covering cookies and marketing email. The Equality Act 2010 supports aiming for WCAG 2.2 AA. This is not legal advice.
Never promise returns, publish performance figures or quote testimonials in the brief's sample copy unless your compliance team has confirmed what is permitted.
Mini case study
Illustrative example: Priya Shah is COO of a hypothetical cross-border wealth adviser in St James's serving clients resident in both the UK and the US. Her first brief, one paragraph long, drew three quotes: £14,000, £38,000 and £62,000, a spread of £48,000.
After a three-page specification, the quotes came back at £22,000, £27,000 and £6,900 (a fixed-grid Premium tier with English and one other language set in the quote). The spread fell to £20,100.
Compliance time was planned up front: 25 pages at about 20 minutes each is roughly 8.3 hours, plus 60 migrated insights at 10 minutes each, 10 hours. About 18 hours, spread over two weeks before go-live and recorded in the approval log.
FAQ
How long should a wealth management website specification be? Two to four pages are usually enough. The aim is a decision on each of the 11 checklist items, not a long narrative.
Should the client portal be in the website quote? List it separately. Linking to an existing portal is simple, while building or integrating one is on quote and can exceed £20,000 on its own.
What accessibility standard should we require? WCAG 2.2 AA is a sensible target for a UK firm. Ask for a test report as an acceptance criterion, not a promise.
What should our contact form collect? Name, email, phone and country of residence are usually enough, four or five fields. Never ask for account numbers or asset details in a public form.
How much does Kolonell charge against this checklist? £2,300 for Starter, £3,900 for Growth and £6,900 for Premium, the multilingual tier. Portals, custodian integrations and SEO work are on quote.
Let's scope your project. Send us your specification, even in draft, and we will map it to a tier, a budget and a 3 to 4 week delivery window. See the international offer or request a free quote: detailed reply within 48 hours.
Mohamed Bah
Fondateur, Kolonell
Passionate about digital and entrepreneurship in Africa, Mohamed has been helping Sénégalese businesses with their digital transformation since 2020. Founder of Kolonell, he believes every SME deserves a professional and accessible online présence.
