5 phases
From the frame in the proposal to the documented acceptance.
One voice
Exactly one approving person on the client side.
PDF record
Approval with timestamp, version and open points.
What is an approval process?
The pre-agreed path a deliverable takes from first draft to binding approval.
An approval process answers four questions before they become problems: Who reviews? In what form does feedback arrive? By when? And how do both sides recognize that a phase is complete?
In a website project, every milestone typically travels this path: the concept, the design, the built site and finally the launch. Every agency knows the opposite of an approval process: feedback trickles in for weeks via email, WhatsApp and phone, nobody knows which version currently counts, and the final yes exists only verbally.
A fixed process saves real money
Revision loops are the most expensive part of web production because they’re rarely budgeted. The cause is almost never client malice — it’s a missing frame.
Without a process
The project end stays open
- Feedback arrives scattered and unlimited.
- Changes blur into new requirements.
- The acceptance slips for weeks.
- Every unplanned round costs time, management and momentum.
With a process
The project end is a date
- Feedback arrives bundled in agreed rounds.
- Extra work is visible and negotiable.
- Every phase ends with a documented approval.
- One to two rounds per phase instead of five.
From practice
The 5 phases of the approval process
Phases three to five repeat per milestone (concept, design, build).
- 1
Set the frame in the proposal
Define in the proposal how many feedback rounds are included, who approves on the client side and within what deadline feedback arrives. Whatever is missing here becomes the endless loop later.
- 2
Check internally before the client checks
Before every client approval comes internal quality assurance: spelling, links, mobile rendering, load time. The client should judge content, not find your typos.
- 3
Collect feedback in a structured way
One round, one channel, one deadline: all feedback is bundled in one place, ideally anchored right on the live page. Scattered emails, calls and chat messages don’t count as a feedback round.
- 4
Implement and show it back visibly
Work through the points as a batch and mark each one done. The client sees the status of every single note and never has to ask what happened to their point.
- 5
Accept formally and document it
The phase ends with an unambiguous approval, recorded in a sign-off document with date, version and signer. Only that truly closes the round.
How to run the feedback round in detail is covered in revision rounds in web projects. For closing each phase, see the website sign-off with a free template.
Roles: who decides what?
Approvals fail more often over unclear responsibilities than over content. A deliberately small cast has proven itself.
Approver (client side)
Exactly one person. They collect internal feedback, decide on contradictions and declare the approval. Without this role, the whole company reviews at the end — and every department wants something different.
Project lead (agency)
Provides versions, moderates the round, translates feedback into buildable tasks and keeps deadlines on track.
Subject reviewers (optional)
Legal, marketing or management feed their input to the approver — but never communicate with the agency directly.
The 6 rules that speed up every approval
Each rule removes one typical cause of the next unplanned revision round.
One voice
Feedback reaches the agency only bundled through the named approver, never as individual opinions from several departments.
One place
All notes live in a single place, ideally anchored right on the page instead of in mail threads and chat histories.
One deadline
Every round has a response date. If it passes without substantial objections, the agreed deemed-acceptance clause kicks in.
A frozen version
What gets reviewed is a fixed version. Nobody keeps building during the review — or the client judges a moving target.
Change request or defect
A defect deviates from what was agreed and is fixed for free. A new wish is extra work and gets its own quote.
In writing at the end
Every phase ends with a documented approval. Verbal agreement isn’t an approval — it’s a misunderstanding with a due date.
Why the formal acceptance matters
The acceptance isn’t a ritual — it changes what both sides owe each other from that moment on.
A documented acceptance typically triggers several effects at once:
- The final invoice becomes due — the project’s commercial end has a date.
- Warranty or support periods start per the contract.
- Responsibility shifts: what was reviewed and approved is approved — later change wishes become new, billable requests instead of blockers.
- Known open points that aren’t reserved in the record lose their force later.
That’s exactly why every web project should end with a sign-off record capturing version, date, open points and signer.
Note
A web project with approval gates
Every gate is a documented approval — after it, nobody jumps back.
| Week | Milestone | Approval gate |
|---|---|---|
| 1–2 | Briefing, concept, page structure | Gate 1: concept and structure approved |
| 3–5 | Design of the key pages, one to two feedback rounds | Gate 2: design approved (partial acceptance possible) |
| 6–9 | Build, content, internal quality assurance | no client gate — internal check |
| 10 | Client review on staging, feedback round | Gate 3: acceptance with a record |
| 11 | Launch and follow-up check | Project close, open points scheduled |
The effect of the gates: discussions happen where they belong. Whoever questions the color concept in week 10 is negotiating a new order, not the old one — because gate 2 passed, documented.
Running the approval process digitally
On paper the process is defined quickly. It only holds if, in daily life, it’s more convenient than the old email habit — especially for the client.
No login for the client
Every registration requirement lowers the response rate. One link has to be enough.
Feedback on the object
Notes belong pinpointed on the element on the page, not in abstract descriptions.
Approval and record built in
The acceptance should be declared and automatically documented in the same tool — otherwise the process still breaks at the end.
The acceptance that documents itself
In bepeq, your client reviews the frozen version right on the live page, rounds have deadlines and a close, and the approval automatically generates the PDF sign-off record with a timestamp. The entire process from this guide — without the manual work.
Start bepeq for freeSign-off record generated automatically
Version: staging.clientsite.com
Jul 8, 2026 · 2:32 PM · IP recorded
2 open points (category B) with a deadline
The approval toolkit
The in-depth guides for every stage of the process, with templates you can adopt directly.
Website sign-off
Defect categories, the record’s five blocks and a ready-made template.
Revision rounds
How many rounds are normal, the schedule and the billing clause.
Online proofing
Proof checklist, liability after approval and the digital practice.
Website Feedback
The overview guide: collect feedback, make it concrete and anchor it.
Choosing a feedback tool
The 12 criteria as an interactive checklist for vetting a vendor.
Redesign checklist
What must be checked before launch, point by point.
Common questions about the approval process
What is an approval process?
An approval process is the defined path by which project deliverables are reviewed, commented and formally approved. In a web project that means: the agency provides a version, the client gives bundled feedback, the agency implements — and the phase ends with a documented acceptance.
Who should approve on the client side?
Exactly one named person with decision authority. They collect internal feedback from the company, resolve contradictions and speak with one voice. Approvals from changing people or whole mailing lists almost always produce contradictory instructions.
What does the formal acceptance change?
A documented acceptance typically triggers real consequences: the final invoice becomes due, warranty or support periods start per the contract, and responsibility for the approved state shifts. The exact legal effects depend on your contract and jurisdiction — the record that any answer relies on is what the process produces.
What if the client just never approves?
Agree on a deemed-acceptance clause in the contract: if the client reports no substantial defects within a defined period after delivery, the version counts as accepted. Communicate the deadline actively at every handover — then it reads as service, not small print.
What’s the difference between an approval and the acceptance?
In everyday use the terms blur. Practically, an approval is the content-level yes to an interim state — a design, for example. The acceptance is the final, contractually relevant confirmation of the delivered work, typically at launch.
How much time should the client get per approval?
Five to ten business days per round is a practical frame: short enough to keep the project moving, long enough for internal alignment on the client side. More important than the exact duration is that the deadline is agreed upfront and has a consequence — the deemed acceptance.
What is a partial acceptance and when does it make sense?
With a partial acceptance, completed project parts are accepted individually — the final design before the build starts, for example. On larger projects that pays off: fundamental debates about already-approved parts are off the table, and partial payments can be tied cleanly to milestones.
About this guide
Written by David Malewski, founder of bepeq (DAMA Solutions GmbH), based on work with web, design and marketing agencies. bepeq builds a tool for website feedback and documented approvals and knows these workflows from daily product work. Last updated July 13, 2026.