An architecture website needs to help a prospective client make a decision. They should be able to recognise the kind of work you do, understand your approach and decide whether their project is a sensible fit before getting in touch.

Beautiful project photography carries much of that first impression. The surrounding content and website design determine how easily a visitor can move from admiring a building to discussing a brief.

For an established architecture practice, the aim is often more specific than increasing the number of form submissions. You may want more enquiries for a particular project type, fewer requests outside your service area or a clearer starting conversation with prospective clients.

Here is how to brief an architecture website around those goals, with practical decisions for your homepage, portfolio, service pages and enquiry process.

Start with the work you want to attract

Before choosing a layout, agree on the projects the website should support. List the building types, locations and services that fit your practice, alongside work you do not currently take on.

Be specific enough to guide the design. “Residential architecture” may cover a broad range of work. A practice specialising in heritage restorations will need different project stories and client information from one focused on apartment developments.

This also helps you decide which projects deserve the strongest positions in the portfolio. A visually striking older project may be less useful as the lead example if it represents work you no longer pursue.

Use your recent enquiries to check the brief. Which prospects understood your service? Which questions did almost everyone ask? Where did a mismatch become apparent? These conversations provide a useful starting point for the content your website needs.

Make the homepage clear before making it clever

A visitor should be able to establish three things near the top of the homepage: what the practice does, where it works and what distinguishes its approach.

You can express that with a restrained headline, a short factual introduction and an appropriate project image. The language can still have character. It simply needs to give the visitor enough context to understand the work.

For example, a hypothetical heritage-focused practice might describe itself as designing considered restorations and additions to established homes across its actual service area. That says more about suitability than a broad statement about creating extraordinary spaces.

Then give visitors useful choices: explore relevant projects, learn about the design process or discuss a project. Avoid asking everyone to complete a detailed enquiry form before they have seen enough evidence to judge the practice.

Organise the portfolio around a client’s questions

Architects may recognise projects by their internal names. Prospective clients are more likely to browse by building type, location, style or project scope.

A portfolio can retain distinctive project titles while adding plain-language descriptions. “Federation house restoration and contemporary addition” helps a visitor understand what they are opening. A short introduction can clarify whether the project was a new build, alteration, interior refurbishment or another service.

Choose filters only when there is enough work to make them useful. A small practice with eight carefully chosen projects may need a simple grid with clear labels. A larger archive may benefit from filters for residential, heritage, commercial or regional work.

Check the order on mobile as well as desktop. The first few projects should represent your current direction, because some visitors will never reach the bottom of the gallery.

Treat each project page as a small case study

A useful project page combines strong imagery with enough explanation to reveal the practice’s contribution. Consider this structure:

• A concise project description and an opening photograph

• The client’s brief, expressed without disclosing private details

• The site or building constraints that shaped the design

• Your practice’s role and the scope of work

• Selected decisions illustrated by relevant images

• Credits for collaborators and photography

• A link to a related service or an invitation to discuss a similar project

The text does not need to become an architectural essay. A few specific paragraphs can explain what a reader cannot infer from photographs alone.

For example, a project involving an existing house could explain how circulation changed, how the addition relates to the original building or how the design responds to orientation. Use claims you can support, and distinguish completed outcomes from design intentions or unbuilt concepts.

Obtain the necessary permissions for photographs, drawings, quotations and client information. The level of location detail should also suit the project. Naming a broad area may be enough; publishing a private residential address is rarely necessary for the story.

Make services and process easy to understand

A portfolio shows experience. Service and process pages help a prospective client understand how that experience might apply to them.

Explain what your practice offers and how an engagement usually begins. Describe the stages you provide in language a homeowner or business owner can follow. If your involvement varies between projects, make that clear rather than implying every commission follows an identical package.

Useful questions include:

• What information should a prospective client have before contacting you?

• Do you work on new buildings, alterations, interiors or selected combinations?

• Which regions do you serve?

• How do you establish the scope and prepare a proposal?

• Who would be involved in the early discussions?

• What happens after an enquiry is submitted?

Avoid publishing fee ranges or timelines unless they are current, approved and properly qualified. It is better to explain what influences the scope than to use a low headline figure that creates the wrong expectation.

Design the enquiry form for the next conversation

A good form collects enough information to assess a project without asking the visitor to write a complete design brief.

Name, contact details, project location, project type and a short description may be a useful starting point. Depending on your process, you could also ask about the current stage, desired timing or an optional budget range. Explain ambiguous fields and allow a visitor to say they are still exploring.

Mark required and optional fields clearly. Avoid demanding information that your team does not use, and consider whether attachments belong in the first enquiry or a later conversation.

The message after submission matters too. Confirm that the enquiry was received and explain the next step without promising a response time the practice cannot consistently meet. Test where the message actually arrives and who is responsible for responding.

Keep a visible alternative contact route for people who cannot complete the form. The website should accommodate a real conversation, including visitors who are uncertain how to categorise their project.

Keep image-led pages usable on a phone

An architecture site can be visually generous without making every visitor download the largest available image. Ask your designer to prepare appropriate image sizes, check the mobile crops and test real project pages on a slower connection.

A wide photograph may need a different crop on a narrow screen to keep the important part of the building visible. Captions, credits and text should remain readable without zooming.

Also test menus, gallery controls and enquiry buttons using a keyboard. Ensure visible focus indicators, clear form labels and understandable error messages. Text should have sufficient contrast, including text placed over photography. Avoid making essential information dependent on hover effects that a phone user cannot access in the same way.

These checks belong in the website brief and review process, rather than being left until after launch. They also help distinguish an attractive presentation from a site that people can comfortably use.

Connect your portfolio with search and AI discovery

Give each service and project a descriptive page title, a clear heading and relevant supporting copy. Link related projects and services so visitors can follow their interests without repeatedly returning to the homepage.

A practice that wants to attract heritage work should be able to show that experience in its content. A practice pursuing regional projects should explain where it works and provide suitable evidence. Simply adding a long list of locations to the footer does little to help a visitor assess that experience.

For an example of positioning translated into a digital presence, see Creato’s Michael Bell Architects case study, which documents the practice’s branding and website project. Its classical and heritage focus gives the portfolio a clear context.

If you are also reviewing search visibility, Creato’s AEO and GEO services provide a related starting point. Website design and search work should share an accurate understanding of the projects your practice wants to attract.

Agree on what a successful launch means

Before approving the site, test the complete client journey: arrive on a relevant page, inspect a project, understand the service and submit an enquiry.

Check that the practice can update projects and team information without unnecessary friction. Confirm who maintains the content, who receives enquiries and which elements the team can safely edit.

After launch, review enquiry quality alongside website activity. Record whether the project type and location fit, whether the prospective client understood your service and which pages helped them decide to contact you. This gives future improvements a more useful basis than judging the website only by its appearance.

Architecture website design FAQs

How many projects should an architect’s website show?

Show enough relevant work to demonstrate the experience you want clients to understand. Prioritise well-explained projects over a large archive with little context. There is no universal project count that suits every practice.

Should an architecture website publish fees?

That depends on how the practice scopes its work. Publish fees only when the information is accurate and sufficiently qualified. Otherwise explain the proposal process and the factors that shape the scope.

Do architects need a separate service page as well as a portfolio?

A service page can answer questions a gallery does not: what the practice offers, where it works and how to start. Link that explanation to relevant projects so the claims have visible support.

Plan a website around your next clients

Creato’s website design service brings together page planning, design and development. If your architecture website needs a clearer portfolio or enquiry journey, send us your website and project details. Include the work you want to attract and where the current website falls short, so the discussion starts with a useful brief.