The verdict in three sentences
A well-built website redesign brief halves the spread between the quotes you receive and prevents change orders that inflate the bill by 20 to 35%. For an industrial subcontractor, the 2026 budget sits between 18,000 and 45,000 EUR excl. VAT for 40 to 80 pages, with a timeline of 10 to 16 weeks. The section with the biggest revenue impact is the RFQ form that can receive STEP files, not the homepage.
The 12 sections of the brief, annotated
The sales director writing the document does not need to write technical specifications. He needs to describe context, uses and constraints, then let agencies propose a solution. Here are the 12 sections we recommend, with the expected level of detail.
| No. | Section | Expected content | Common mistake |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Context and goals | Revenue, headcount, markets, 3 quantified goals (e.g. 40 qualified RFQs per month) | Vague goals like "modernise our image" |
| 2 | Audiences and journeys | Buyers, process engineers, quality managers, candidates | Forgetting recruitment, often 30% of traffic |
| 3 | Sitemap | 40 to 80 pages: capabilities, industries, equipment, quality, careers | Copying the old menu without analysing analytics |
| 4 | Machine capability sheets | Fleet (5-axis centres, lathes, grinders), travel, tolerances, materials | Sheets as non-indexable PDFs |
| 5 | RFQ form | STEP, IGES, PDF attachments up to 50 MB, quantities, target lead time | 2 MB upload limit, no confirmation |
| 6 | Content and migration | Text volume, shop-floor photos, EN/DE/FR translations | Underestimating content production |
| 7 | Design and brand | Existing guidelines, level of customisation | Asking for "a site like the competitor's" |
| 8 | Tech and hosting | CMS, EU hosting, backups, optional SSO | Imposing a technology without justification |
| 9 | SEO and redirects | 301 redirect plan, industry keywords | Losing 40% of traffic at launch |
| 10 | Compliance | GDPR, cookies, baseline accessibility | Non-compliant cookie banner |
| 11 | Schedule and budget | Budget range, launch date, milestones | Hiding the budget, which skews offers |
| 12 | Maintenance and support | Service levels, included hours, enhancements | Planning nothing after go-live |
Section 11 deserves a comment: stating a range (for example 25,000 to 35,000 EUR excl. VAT) does not push prices up. It lets agencies propose a fitting answer instead of three theoretical scenarios.
Budget and timeline: 2026 orders of magnitude
Price gaps are mainly driven by the number of page templates, the volume of content produced by the agency and the complexity of the RFQ. The figures below are 2026 orders of magnitude observed for mid-sized European agencies.
| Item | Essential version | Full version | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Scoping workshop and UX | 2,000 EUR | 5,000 EUR | 2 to 4 workshops, buyer personas |
| Design (templates) | 4,000 EUR | 9,000 EUR | 8 to 18 templates |
| Development and CMS | 7,000 EUR | 18,000 EUR | Filterable machine sheets included |
| RFQ with STEP files | 1,500 EUR | 4,500 EUR | Secure storage, CRM notification |
| Content and EN/DE translation | 2,000 EUR | 6,000 EUR | Shop-floor photos extra |
| SEO and migration | 1,500 EUR | 2,500 EUR | 301 plan for 300 to 900 URLs |
| Project total | 18,000 EUR | 45,000 EUR | 10 to 16 weeks |
| Monthly maintenance | 150 EUR | 400 EUR | Updates, backups, 1 to 3 h of changes |
The timeline depends less on the agency than on the company: mock-up approvals and copy delivery account on average for 3 to 5 weeks of delay on industrial projects. Naming a single approver on the client side saves 2 weeks.
The RFQ form: the section you should not improvise
A buyer consulting three subcontractors sends the same package the same day. The one who replies with an instant acknowledgement, a request number and an announced quoting time (48 or 72 h) gains the edge. The brief must specify accepted formats (STEP, IGES, DXF, PDF), maximum size (50 MB recommended), mandatory fields (material, quantity, surface treatment), routing to the right account manager and CRM integration. Budget 1,500 to 4,500 EUR depending on the level of automation.
Mini case study
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Thomas, sales director of a 210-employee precision engineering subcontractor in Berlin (45 M EUR revenue), currently receives about 12 quote requests per month through the website, often incomplete. He launches a 32,000 EUR redesign with a structured RFQ and indexed machine sheets. Six months after launch, the site generates 28 usable RFQs per month. With a 15% win rate and an average order of 9,000 EUR, that is 16 extra requests × 15% × 9,000 EUR = 21,600 EUR of additional revenue per month. The redesign pays for itself in under 2 months of gross margin on these new deals, including maintenance at 280 EUR per month.
FAQ
How many pages should an industrial B2B website have?
A mid-sized subcontractor needs 40 to 80 pages: 8 to 15 capability pages, 5 to 10 industry pages, one sheet per machine family, quality, careers and news. Beyond 80 pages, content production becomes the largest cost item.
Should the brief state the budget?
Yes, a range is enough, for example 25,000 to 35,000 EUR. Without a budget, quotes often differ by a factor of 3 and comparison becomes impossible.
How long does an industrial website redesign take?
Allow 10 to 16 weeks from kickoff to launch. Delays usually come from internal approvals and content, which add 3 to 5 weeks.
How much does industrial website maintenance cost?
Between 150 and 400 EUR per month for security updates, daily backups and 1 to 3 hours of changes. A contract with no included hours often ends up more expensive in the first year.
How do we avoid losing rankings during the redesign?
Require a 301 redirect plan covering 100% of URLs that receive traffic, plus 8 weeks of Search Console monitoring. Without it, a 30 to 40% drop in organic traffic is common.
Let's scope your project. Send us your current sitemap, machine list and budget range: we will price the redesign, the RFQ and maintenance, with a week-by-week schedule. Detailed quote within 48 h. WhatsApp +221 77 596 93 33.
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.
