Technical Specification

A prototype shows what the user sees; a technical specification describes what isn’t visible on screen — roles and access rights, how the system behaves in error scenarios, integrations, data structure, acceptance criteria. A developer can only estimate roughly from a prototype, but precisely — and with accountability — from a specification.

A Google Doc with open access and a PDF version to share with contractors. Inside: product goals, user roles, functional requirements by module, screen behaviour, non-functional requirements and acceptance criteria.

Yes — that’s one of the main reasons to order it. With a clear specification, contractors give comparable quotes you can weigh against each other, rather than “somewhere between $5,000 and $30,000, depending on the details.” We can prepare a stage-by-stage breakdown with effort estimates as an additional service.

An understanding of the business task: what the product is, who it’s for, what problems it solves. We’ll draw out the rest in a one-hour brief. If you have a prototype, analytics, process documentation or an existing system, send them over — it speeds things up considerably.

Yes, but in that case it’s worth starting with a prototype — decisions mature faster and more cheaply at the structure stage. For complex products, the optimal sequence is: prototype first, then the specification based on the agreed structure.

Any team — your in-house developer, a freelancer, a local or overseas studio. The document is deliberately not tied to a specific tech stack, so it also works for running a tender across several contractors.

A contractor describes what’s convenient for them to build, and naturally builds their own interests into how ambiguous points are interpreted. An independent specification locks in your requirements before negotiations over timelines and budget begin, and remains your reference point at acceptance.

You do, with no restrictions. You can share it with any number of contractors, modify it, and attach it to a contract.

Two rounds within 7 days of delivery. A round is one consolidated list of comments that we work through in full. An extra cycle costs $150 and adds 2 business days.

That’s normal for any product. The Google Doc stays with you, so your team can make minor changes themselves. If a section needs substantial reworking, we can return to the project by separate arrangement.