An architecture firm website needs eight things: a clear statement of what you design and where, real projects with drawings and data, a page for each sector you work in, a visible process, proof from clients, a journal, an inquiry form that qualifies leads, and fast, well-structured pages that search engines can read. Everything else is decoration.

Most practice websites are beautiful galleries that leave a client with one question: can these people do my project? The sections below are how you answer that question before anyone picks up the phone.

1. A positioning line, not a slogan

The first screen should say what you design, for whom and where. “Houses, libraries and workplaces in Copenhagen, Oslo and Lisbon” does more work than “Space, light and form”. Clients scan for relevance in about five seconds, and search engines read the same words to decide what you rank for.

2. Projects that read like case studies

A project page is your strongest sales document. Beyond photographs, show the brief, the site, the plan and section, the materials and the numbers: area, budget band, timeline, energy figures. A prospective client is not judging your taste; they are judging whether you solved a problem like theirs.

What to put on every project page

Project data: location, sector, year, area, status. The brief: two or three sentences on what the client needed. Drawings: at least one plan and one section. Figures: three or four numbers that matter. A client quote if you have permission.

3. A page for each sector

Houses, public buildings, workplaces and retrofits attract different clients with different worries. A private client asks about budget and planning; a council asks about procurement and community consultation. Sector pages let you speak to each one directly, and they rank for searches like “residential architect Copenhagen”.

4. Your process, in stages

Clients who have never hired an architect are nervous about what happens next. A simple stage-by-stage scope (feasibility, concept, planning, technical design, construction) with typical durations removes that uncertainty and makes the first call easier.

5. Proof

Awards, publications and client words matter, but only when they are specific. One quote that says “they designed the whole house around a birch tree we loved” beats a wall of logos.

6. A journal

A journal gives search engines fresh, relevant text and gives clients a reason to trust your thinking. Two posts a month about materials, process or a finished project is enough.

7. An inquiry form that qualifies

Ask for the site location, the project type, a rough size and budget band, and a short description. A good form filters out poor fits and gives you everything you need for a useful first call.

8. Speed and structure

Large images, unlabelled pages and missing page titles quietly cost you visitors. Every page needs a unique title and description, compressed images and a clean heading structure.

How the pieces work together

These eight parts are not a checklist to tick once. They feed each other. A journal post about board-marked concrete links to the library where you used it; that project page links to the public buildings sector; the sector page ends with an invitation to get in touch. Every page should lead somewhere useful, and no page should be a dead end.

Think of your site as a set of drawings rather than a brochure. The homepage is the site plan, the sector pages are the sections through your practice, and the projects are the details. A visitor should be able to move from overview to detail and back without getting lost.

What to leave out

Intro animations that hide your work, full-screen sliders with no text, long manifestos on the homepage, and team pages where every portrait is the same. None of these help a client decide. Keep the studio story short and put it on its own page for the people who want it.

Also leave out anything you cannot keep up to date. A news page with one post from three years ago does more harm than no news page at all. Start small, with what you can sustain, and add sections as your rhythm settles.

A one-week plan to fix an existing site

Day 1: rewrite the homepage positioning line. Day 2: pick your six best projects and add briefs and data. Day 3: draft one sector page for the work you want most. Day 4: write your stages and typical durations. Day 5: replace the contact email with a short inquiry form. Day 6: set page titles and descriptions. Day 7: check everything on a phone and publish.

Template vs custom website at a glance

Time to launch: template, a weekend · custom, 6–12 weeks

Cost: template, a one-off licence · custom, a design fee plus development

Structure for SEO and leads: template, built in · custom, depends on the brief

Uniqueness: template, shared layout, your content · custom, fully yours

Where a template fits

If you are starting from nothing, or replacing a dated site, a niche template gets all eight pieces live quickly. Hallform Architects was built for this: project pages with plans, sections and data, sector pages, a staged process, a journal and an inquiry form, all connected through the CMS. Once the site is bringing in work, a custom design is a natural next step.

For example, a two-person practice that publishes six projects and three sector pages in its first month has nine pages working for it in search, instead of one gallery page.

Common questions

How many projects should an architect show? Six to twelve strong ones. Quality and data matter more than volume.

Should I show prices? Show budget bands and fee structure, not quotes. It filters inquiries and builds trust.

Do architects need a blog? Yes, a light one. Two thoughtful posts a month keeps the site visible and shows how you think.

What is the most important page? The project page. It is where clients decide whether you can solve their problem.

Can I build this myself? Yes. With a structured template you can launch in a weekend and refine as you go.