After analyzing more than 500 development requests, we identified key issues and factors that complicate communication between entrepreneurs and development studios. In this article, we share a guide on how to formulate requests that are clearly understood by all parties. Learn how to clearly define goals, structure expectations, and make your next IT project a success.
Hello, I’m Maxim from Sailet. We specialize in custom development, have been working since 2017, completed many interesting projects, discuss automation, and are developing our own ECM (Enterprise Content Management) system.
Constantly communicating with entrepreneurs, we know that many of them spend an enormous amount of their own—and not just their own—time searching for an IT contractor "to develop a system." Later, they share stories about how there are few specialists on the market, companies don’t understand them, and, in general, all these studios are "meh." I decided to create a detailed guide for all future clients, which, I hope, will make life easier for many. Let’s go!
How to Define a Goal and Why Is It Important?
The goal sets the direction for the entire project. If you don’t understand why you need this system, it’s time to stop right here. It’s easier if the goal is specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound (the classic SMART criteria). No contractor will define the goal for you because that would make it their goal, not yours.
Steps to Define a Goal:
- Identifying the Problem or Need — What do I want to solve or achieve with the future system?
- Identifying the Target Audience — Who will actually use my system? Employees are also part of the internal target audience. Lydia Mikhailovna in accounting and Sergey Fedorovich in production may be one segment, depending on the task. Meanwhile, 20-year-old support specialists might form another segment.
- Market and competitor analysis - and what do they have and how does it work? Is my product even needed? We've had a couple dozen requests to develop a cab service ("Brother, I want to be like Yandex"). The questions "why?" or "what is the goal?" naturally went unanswered.
- Market and Competitor Analysis — What do they have, and how does it work? Is my product even necessary? We've received dozens of requests to develop taxi services ("Bro, I want something like Yandex"). Naturally, questions like "Why?" or "What's the goal?" often went unanswered.
- Prioritization of Needs — What is most important right now? "We want to automate the entire company and create a unified portal" often means, "We don’t know what we want, and our processes are not documented."
- Stakeholder Engagement — Do users actually need the system? It's clear that most people fear change, but this is where classic change management comes into play: first, sell and communicate the value, then implement and train.
- Documentation — Of course, the great "Agile" tells us that a working product is more important than comprehensive documentation, but this doesn't mean documentation is unnecessary. There must always be a reference point, and what isn’t written down isn’t real.
Tools for Defining Goals
- Mind Mapping (MindMeister, XMind)
Helps visualize your idea and organize it systematically.
- Surveys (Google Forms, SurveyMonkey)
Use them to gather feedback from your potential audience to understand their needs.
Divine Integration
Of course, during the sales stage, when we receive a request, if it’s "ours," we help you formulate it, convert it into a mind map, create a project structure, etc. Below are a couple of examples of how it might look. You can submit a request via the link. We don’t take on everything—only after qualification.
Format 1:
Format 2:
Format 3:
All formats actually work; the key is knowing how to apply them.
Examples of incorrect requests and their analysis
Let’s look at three simple examples of requests and why they might not meet the requirements of a quality request.
Too General Request: "We need a website for our business"
Problem: Lack of details. It’s unclear what type of website is needed, what functions it should perform, and who the target audience is.
Request Without Budget and Deadlines: "We want to develop a mobile app for online courses"
Problem: Lack of specific boundaries. It’s difficult for the developer to estimate the project and propose solutions that align with the client’s constraints.
Technically Overloaded Request from a Non-Professional: "We need an app on React using GraphQL for the backend and Firebase for authentication"
Problem: Technological preferences without clear goals and tasks. What if it’s actually a pyramid or a web service on plain "C"?
Structure of a Proper Request
- A brief description of your business
At least the company name. Many are even afraid to include this in the form. Don’t worry, we’ll Google it ourselves. :)
- Project Goal
Following SMART is ideal, but at least provide a brief summary.
- Description of the problem the project aims to solve
- Target audience, including internal users
- List of must-have features
Very high-level, but still essential.
- Realistic budget and project timelines
"Looking for an ERP, budget $2000" only leads to self-managed open-source solutions.
- Links to similar products or features that inspire you
If there are any, of course.
Examples of Proper Requests
Title: Company "X" Request: We are looking for a team to create a mobile app that helps users form and track daily habits. The goal is to launch an MVP within 4 months with features for habit creation, reminders, and progress analytics. Target audience: young professionals aged 25-35. Budget: up to $20,000. We are considering 'Habitica' and 'Todoist' as examples.
Title: "Training and That's It" Request: We need to create a web platform for advanced training courses. The task is to provide access to educational materials, video lectures, and tests with the ability to track progress. The course will have 1,000 students. Target audience: adult learners aged 30-45. The project budget is limited to $10,000, with a timeline of up to 6 months. Examples for reference: ‘Coursera’ and ‘Udemy’.
Title: "Sailet LLP" Request: We are planning to develop a system for automating inventory management for small retail businesses. We aim to simplify inventory and product tracking and reduce the time required for data processing for small store owners. The project budget is up to $40,000, with a desired implementation time of 3 months. Desired features: barcode scanning, integration with existing accounting systems, reporting. We are aiming for functionality similar to ‘Square’ and ‘Shopify’.
These are examples of real requests, slightly modified and anonymized.
In fact, we have two target audiences, and the approach to working with them differs slightly. It’s clear that there are many more qualification points, but on a global scale: the first are individuals/companies with an idea, and the second are companies with processes. Therefore, below are two scenarios for each.
How to Formulate a Request if You Only Have an Idea?
✓ Description of the Idea: Start with a general description of your idea. Focus on the problem you want to solve and the potential target audience. Don't worry about technical details; your task is to convey the vision.
✓ Expected Impact: Describe how your idea can improve the life or work of your target audience. This will help developers understand the value of the project.
✓ Research: Share the results of any preliminary research you have conducted, including competitor analysis or surveys of potential users.
✓ Functional Expectations: Even if you can't fully describe all the features, specify the key functionalities that you think will be important. Use the format "I would like users to be able to..."
✓ Questions and Gaps: Honestly outline any questions or uncertainties you have regarding the project. This may include technical capabilities, future scalability, cost, how to maintain it, number of iterations for revisions, etc.
How to Formulate a Request for Automating an Existing Process?
✓ Current Process: Describe the existing process, including its steps, participants, and tools used. This will help developers understand where to start. You can read how to do this here.
✓ Problems and Shortcomings: Clearly specify the problems you face in the current process. These may include delays, frequent errors, or high operational costs.
✓ Desired Automation: Specifically describe which steps or tasks you would like to automate. If possible, indicate preferred technologies or platforms. Often, processes are formed and described in companies with at least 50 people, who already have their own "IT specialist."
✓ Expected Result: Specify what improvements you expect from automation, including any specific success metrics you are aiming for.
You can learn more about processes here:
In conclusion
I admit, I may have been a bit too detailed, and it might seem like I’m shifting the responsibility onto you (the future client), since quality service = a service. However, the responsibility for the success of the project always lies with both parties. If your project isn’t important to you from the start and you’re not ready to invest time into it, figure things out, or formulate anything, you’ll likely finish it with only a 1% chance of success (I’ve stated it as a statistical error).
Divine Integration 2
I’m not sure if it’s clear from the article, but we take our work seriously, put effort into the processes, and strive to provide the best service (perfection has no limits) while being skilled in development (you can read more about it in previous articles, for example). However, if it’s still unclear, you can leave a request on the website and we’ll share a dozen more advantages, including weekly demo results, transparent processes, and of course, flexible payment based on hours. Just like the entrepreneurs’ credo says: minimizing risks, maximizing profits. Good luck!
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