Here is a checklist organized into 5 major topics with the questions you have to answer in the briefing:

About your company or brand

• Describe your company/brand in 2 lines?
• Which 3 words best define it?
• Who are your biggest competitors (domestic or international)?
• What are your strengths? where do you stand out from your competition? What do you do better than them?
• What are your weaknesses? All companies have them. It is important to understand them to minimize or disguise them.
• Which markets do you currently have the most business for?

About your current digital presence

• What is the www of your current website?
• Identify 2 things you like about your current site?
• Identify 2 things you don't like about your current site?
• What is the biggest problem with your current website? What is your site not solving?
• Do you have a presence on social media? If yes, which ones? If not, which ones do you consider relevant?

About the new website

• What is the biggest conversion goal you aim with the new site? (e.g. purchase, registration, contact, registration submission, form filling). If you need help answering to this question check tis article "What is the real purpose of your website?"
• Who is your main target for whom who want to communicate on the new website?
• What information structure - page and sub-page org chart - did you imagine for your site?
• In how many languages ​​do you want the new site to be?
• Are you able to have a portfolio, blog, news, faq's, testimonials or articles section that can be updated frequently? Keep in mind that it´s important to have content that can be updated regularly and understand which ones suit your business and which ones your team finds it easier to keep up to date.

Help understand your “taste”, what you identify with

• Do you have reference sites (national or international) that you like graphically? they may or may not be related to your business.
• Do you have sites you don't like? because they are confusing or just because they don't please you graphically?
• What colors define your brand? If you had to choose 3 colors for your website which ones would they be?

Some important graphic materials

• Send your logo in all formats and applications
• Do you have a brand manual? If yes send also
• Do you have a recent presentation (brochure, power point ...) that you can send?
• Do you have photos of your space/company/factory, products, portfolio, and team? if yes, send them
• Need a new photo shoot? What do you want to photograph?
• Do you prefer concept photographs (purchasable on image banks)?

Note that you don't need to invest a lot of time in answering the above questions! It is important that the answers are very frank, almost impulsive, short and to the point. 

Then, just leave it to the web specialists that should be able to: transform your words into a graphically appealing, impactful and harmonious website; with the right call to actions to convert; fast and 100% optimized for mobile responsive; compatible with all browsers and optimized according to organic search rules - SEO - Search Engine Optimization - for better positioning in search engines like Google.