Product page in an online store – what should it include?

Last updated: 2026-09-16

The starting point shouldn't be a color, a font or an expected style. First you need to describe the brand's situation and the change the project should help achieve. Simply stating “we need a new logo” specifies an item to be delivered, but doesn't explain why the work is starting.^[1][2]

How is a project goal different from a request for a new logo?

A request for a new logo tells the designer what should be created. The goal, on the other hand, describes why the company is starting the project and what its result should serve. It can refer to a change being introduced, the brand's current situation or the way the brand should be perceived by a specific group.

Instead of starting with the sentence “we want a modern logo”, it's better to first answer: what is changing in the company, what problem the current identity revealed and what result the new project should support. A brief prepared this way becomes the starting point for the process of creating a functional logo, not an attempt to design the solution yourself.

How to write down the problem and the expected result?

A short description can consist of the starting situation, the obstacle and the expected change. It doesn't require specialist language. However, it should make it possible to distinguish the project goal from the personal preferences of the people involved in evaluating it.

1. Describe the situation. Write down what the company does, what it offers and why the project is needed right now.^[3]
2. Name the problem. Point out what can't be clearly communicated or applied with the current solution.
3. Define the expected result. Explain what change the project should support, without deciding its visual form.
4. Separate requirements from preferences. Mark which conditions are mandatory and which are only aesthetic hints.
5. Add the scope and evaluation method. Only after defining the goal, list the project elements, applications and acceptance criteria.

The designer needs a short description of the company, the offer, the current situation and the reason for starting the project.^[1][3] It's not about an extensive company history, but about the information needed to understand the task.

What to write about the company and the offer?

In the brief you can answer a few simple questions: what the company offers, what problem it solves for the audience, what stage of development it's at and what triggered the need for change. If the project concerns an existing brand, you should also describe what should be kept from the current identity and what needs to be redeveloped.

The information should be related to the project. A long description of the company's history doesn't help if it doesn't explain its current situation, the nature of the offer or the expected direction of change.

How to describe the audience without empty demographics?

The audience description shouldn't end with age, gender or place of residence. It's useful to indicate who will see the brand, what they need and in what situation they make a decision.^[8] However, there's no single mandatory model for describing a target group, so you don't need to build an extensive persona without the right data.

• Who is the audience in the context of the offer?
• In what situation do they come into contact with the brand?
• What information or certainty do they need before making a decision?
• Where will they most often see the mark and the other identity elements?

How to present competitors and desired associations?

Present competitors as context, not as a collection of patterns to copy. Point to the brands the company is compared with and explain in what respect they're relevant to the project. Separately, write down the desired associations and those the brand wants to avoid.

Instead of the imprecise “we want to look better than the competition”, you can describe how the audience should understand the character of the offer and what category of brands it shouldn't be confused with. Such a note gives context without imposing a ready-made visual solution.

Inspiration is useful when each example comes with a comment explaining its role. An image alone can be interpreted in several ways. It's not clear whether the author of the brief means the color, layout, typography, simplicity or the overall impression.

Add examples of what you like and what you want to avoid, but write down the reason for each.^[4][5] The meaning of inspiration remains partly interpretive and depends on the quality of the explanation. Reference material shouldn't be treated as a pattern to reproduce.

How to turn “it should be modern” into a useful hint?

The difference lies in placing the adjective in the context of the decision. “Modern” can mean something different to every person. Information about the expected impression, the audience and the usage situation narrows the field of interpretation, but still leaves the designer room to develop a solution.

How to comment on inspiration and anti-inspiration?

For each example, add one sentence: what exactly matters in it and how it connects with the project goal. For anti-inspiration, explain whether the problem is a certain association, too much similarity to competitors, the nature of the communication or the way a specific element is used.

• Label the materials as inspiration or anti-inspiration.
• Point to the element the comment refers to.
• Explain the example's connection with the brand or audience.
• Don't present inspiration as a solution that has to be repeated.

In the brief, list separately the elements that are to be created and those that remain out of scope.^[1][5][6] A logo, a visual identity, a key visual and a brand book don't mean the same result. Service names can also cover different elements at different providers, so the scope has to be named and confirmed in the proposal or contract.

Logo, identity, key visual and brand book — what to separate in the brief?

First determine whether the order covers only the mark and its variants, or also a wider set of visual elements and the rules for applying them. A separate list of needs is helpful, as it lets you compare the scope of logo guidelines and a brand book with the materials the brand actually needs.

Where will the design be used?

List the places of use, such as the website, social media, print, packaging or presentations, because they affect the scope of delivery.^[4][6] Industry sources describe design practice here, but they don't establish a uniform file standard for every contract.

It's not enough to write that the logo will be used “everywhere”. It's better to create a list of real applications and mark those needed right away. The final set of variants and materials should follow from these applications and the arrangements with the provider.

How to describe the expected final materials?

For each area, write down what result is to be delivered and what it will be used for. If you don't know the names of formats, describe the application instead of guessing the technical specification. The designer can then relate it to the agreed scope.

• List the elements that are to be created.
• Link each element to its planned application.
• Mark the materials needed for the first rollout.
• Separate ready-to-use designs from the documentation of rules.
• Point out the elements excluded from the current order.

Read the document as a provider who doesn't know the company would. Check whether it lets you establish what is to be created, for whom, where it will be used and how a good result will be recognized.^[6][8] This is a practical editorial procedure, not a formally validated quality test or a guarantee of the project's success.

The acceptance criteria should relate to the goal, audience, scope and applications, not just to personal taste. It's also worth agreeing who makes the final decision and how the comments of several people will be gathered before they're passed on to the designer.

The brief can later serve as a point of reference when discussing proposals and preparing documentation. After the project is completed, the rules for using logo guidelines become a separate task, if such documentation was included in the scope.

A design brief doesn't confirm whether the name or logo is available for protection as a trademark. If the company plans to protect the sign, it should separately plan a verification of similar marks and the correct classification of goods and services.^[7]

Designing an identity and assessing whether a sign can be protected are separate tasks. The brief alone doesn't determine whether a specific mark can be registered, and the scope and method of protection require a separate assessment.

Sponsored article