Use AI to generate a brand-new website for a business with no existing site to copy.
Build from Scratch is for clients who have no existing website, or cases where you want to create a completely fresh design rather than rebuilding an existing one. Instead of downloading and analysing an original site, you provide business details and the AI designs and builds the entire static site from nothing.
Once created, the site enters the normal pipeline at the Demo Complete stage — you can host, revise, and deliver it exactly like any other lead.
Click the Build from Scratch button in the top toolbar of the main window. A single dialog opens with all fields on one screen. The dialog has two operating modes depending on whether you fill in the Existing Demo Folder field.
| Field | Required | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Business Name | Yes | The business name. Auto-generates the Slug field as you type. |
| Original URL | No | The business's existing website, social page, or Google Maps listing — anything the AI can visit for research. Leave blank if none. |
| Slug | Yes | URL-safe identifier used as the folder name and deployment subdomain. Auto-filled from the business name; editable. |
| Existing Demo Folder | No | Path to a site folder already on disk. If provided, that folder is copied to edited_sites/<slug>/ and the Demo step is marked complete — Claude is NOT run. Leave empty to use AI. |
| Form Response | No | Client's brief, preferences, or instructions. Type directly or click Load from .txt… to load from a text file. The AI reads this during the Research phase. |
| Niche Example Folder | No | Dropdown populated from your example_sites/ subfolders. Select a niche to give the AI reference sites for style inspiration. Browse button lets you pick a folder outside example_sites/. |
| Claude Prompt | Yes | The full instruction prompt sent to Claude. Pre-filled with the 6-phase default prompt. Editable — you can customise it per project. |
Fill in the Existing Demo Folder field (browse to your folder). The Claude section is automatically dimmed — it will not be used. Click Add:
The selected folder is copied to edited_sites/<slug>/ off the UI thread (a background worker handles it so the UI stays responsive).
The lead is added to the pipeline with the Demo step already marked complete. You land straight at the Host Demo step.
Leave Existing Demo Folder empty. Fill in Form Response and optionally select a niche. Click Build:
The app combines the Claude Prompt, the Form Response, the Original URL, and the niche folder path into a single prompt written to a temp file.
A PowerShell window opens in the new edited_sites/<slug>/ folder and runs claude --dangerously-skip-permissions with Opus 4.7 at max effort.
Claude works through all 6 phases. You can watch progress in the terminal. Typically 10–20 minutes depending on site complexity.
When the terminal closes, the site appears in the pipeline with Demo marked complete.
The from-scratch prompt instructs Claude to work through these phases sequentially in a single session:
| Phase | Name | What the AI Does |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Research | Reads any provided URL or example sites to understand the business and industry aesthetics. |
| 2 | Plan | Creates a site structure plan: pages, sections, content hierarchy, and color palette. |
| 3 | Build | Constructs the full static site with all pages. |
| 4 | Analyze | Reviews the built site for visual consistency, missing content, and technical issues. |
| 5 | Revise | Applies fixes identified in the analysis phase. |
| 6 | Document | Writes a DESIGN_NOTES.md file explaining every design decision — colors, fonts, layout rationale, and component choices. |
The from-scratch build typically takes longer than a demo rebuild — plan for 10–20 minutes depending on site complexity and model choice.
Build from Scratch uses the Website from Scratch model setting in Settings → AI Model & Effort. This defaults to Opus 4.7, max effort for the highest quality output. You can change it to Sonnet 4.6 for faster results if quality is acceptable.
Providing a niche with saved example sites produces noticeably better results. Run a few discovery searches, save good-looking sites as examples, and your from-scratch builds will match that aesthetic.