How to build a business case for a website redesign

Key takeaways

A website redesign business case fits on one page: the problem in pounds, three options with costs, the risks of each, and the single number that will show success. If you cannot put the problem in pounds, you do not yet have a case, you have a preference.

• 1 page: problem, options, costs, risks, success measure.
• Put the problem in pounds: lost enquiries × close rate × average job value.
• Always compare 3 options, including fixing in place.
• Name 1 success measure and the date you will check it.

What is a website redesign business case?

A website redesign business case is a short document that shows why a redesign is worth its cost, by stating the commercial problem the current site causes, the options for fixing it, what each costs and risks, and how success will be measured after launch.

Its job is to move the conversation from opinion to numbers. Partners and finance directors rarely object to spending; they object to spending without a way to tell whether it worked.

• Signs your business needs a new website

How do you put the problem in pounds?

Estimate the enquiries the site is losing and turn them into revenue. Use your own numbers: monthly visits, current enquiry rate, a realistic improved rate, your close rate and your average job value. Keep every assumption visible so others can challenge it.

• Monthly visits from the right audience: for example 1,500.
• Current enquiry rate: for example 1%, so 15 enquiries a month.
• Realistic improved rate: for example 2%, so 30 enquiries a month.
• Close rate and average job value: for example 25% and £2,000.
• Extra revenue: 15 more enquiries × 25% × £2,000 = £7,500 a month.

• Website redesign ROI: how to work it out before you spend
• Website conversion rate benchmarks for UK businesses

Which options should the case compare?

Always compare at least three: fix in place, redesign on the current platform, and rebuild. Including the cheapest option makes the case more credible, and sometimes it wins.

• Fix in place: typically £500 to £3,000 in the UK market; fastest, lowest risk.
• Redesign: typically £3,000 to £12,000; new structure and content, same platform.
• Rebuild: typically £5,000 to £20,000 or more; new platform plus SEO migration.

• Website redesign versus rebuild

What risks belong in the case?

Every option carries risk, and naming it builds trust with the people approving the spend. The biggest risks in a redesign are search traffic loss from changed URLs, time taken from the team, and launching late into a busy season.

• SEO risk: changed URLs without redirects can cut traffic for months.
• Time risk: owners typically spend 15 to 30 hours on reviews and content.
• Timing risk: a launch during your peak season puts enquiries at risk.
• Supplier risk: check who owns the domain, hosting and files at the end.

• Website migration SEO checklist
• How much of your time a website redesign needs

How should success be measured?

Pick one commercial number, such as qualified enquiries per month, set the baseline before the project starts, and agree the date you will check it, usually 90 days after launch. Supporting numbers such as traffic and engagement explain the result but do not define it.

• Measure your website before a redesign

When should you not write the case at all?

When the business is about to change direction. A rebrand, merger or new service line in the next six months will reshape the site, so a case written now will be out of date by launch. Fix the costly leaks, such as broken forms and missing tracking, and wait.

How detailed should the numbers be?

Detailed enough to be challenged, simple enough to explain in two minutes. Use round numbers from your own data, show every assumption on the page, and give a cautious and a hopeful case. Budget holders trust a modest case they can check more than an impressive one they cannot.

Avoid false precision. A case that forecasts 23.7 extra enquiries a month invites argument about the decimal point rather than the decision. Ranges such as 10 to 15 extra enquiries a month are more honest and easier to defend. If a number is a guess, label it as a guess and say how you will check it after launch.

• Use your own 12-month figures, rounded.
• Show every assumption beside the number it drives.
• Give a cautious and a hopeful case.
• Label guesses and say how they will be tested.

What does this look like in practice?

A pattern in UK professional services firms: one partner wants a new website, another sees it as a vanity project. A one-page case showing 12 months of flat enquiries, the lost revenue at a realistic enquiry rate, and a phased option starting at the lowest cost usually settles it.

The phased option is often what gets approved, because it lets the firm see results from the first phase before committing the full budget.

• Redesign your website in phases, not all at once
• Website Design & Development for UK businesses

Business case template

Use these headings, in this order, on one page.

• The problem: what the site costs the business today, in pounds.
• The evidence: 12 months of enquiries and the redesign scorecard result.
• The options: fix, redesign, rebuild, each with cost and timeline.
• The risks: SEO, time, timing and ownership, with mitigations.
• The recommendation and why.
• The success measure, the baseline and the review date.

Next step

If you need to take a redesign case to partners or a board, we will help you build the numbers in a 30-minute call, including the option to do less.