Worldsite

A worldsite is a brand environment, not a marketing page. It is the editorial face people read, the structured backend machines parse, and the agentic layer where the brand negotiates with models on its own behalf - designed for decade-long operation, not campaign cycles.

Studio Artifice builds four to six worldsites a year. Each is principal-led, handbuilt, and engineered to be cited by ChatGPT, Claude, Perplexity, and Gemini - the search surfaces that increasingly answer on the brand's behalf. The page below is the canonical offer: three tiers, the pipeline they pass through, and what's optional. See the full offering menu →

What a worldsite is made of

1. StrategyPositioning, narrative, territory. The argument that makes everything after it non-arbitrary.
2. Brand IdentityMarks, type, color, motion, voice. The identity as a working kit, not a slide deck.
3. Spatial Web DesignArchitecture, not pages. Designed for the mutable web - search, embeds, AI overviews - not just the hero shot.
4. CMSA structured content spine in Sanity (or equivalent). Schemas the client can write into without breaking the design.
5. Design SystemTokens, components, documentation. The handoff that makes the next surface cheaper to ship.
6. World ModelAn agentic AI layer grounded in the client's content, voice, and constraints. Every other layer is replicable. This one compounds with use.

Three tiers

The six phases inside

P1–P4 are URL - the worldsite proper. P5–P6 are IRL - what happens when the worldsite meets the world. A client buys the phases they need; tiers are pre-bundled selections. See the IRL engagement →

1. Strategy · 4 weeksPositioning brief, narrative architecture, mood directions, voice spec, competitive + cultural landscape map. Closes when the client locks one direction. No further strategic revisions after.URL · $20K · 1 revision round · Live presentation
2. Identity · 7 weeksWordmark, type system, color, iconography, motion principles, design tokens (JSON + Figma), brand guidelines, launch toolkit. Closes with identity locked and tokens build-ready.URL · $55K · 2 revision rounds · Live presentation
3. Website · 6 weeksFull site design across breakpoints, content architecture, CMS schemas, interaction + motion spec, Schema.org markup spec, llms.txt drafted, agentic-layer specification. Closes with design + schemas locked.URL · $40K · 2 revision rounds · Live presentation
4. Handoff · 5 weeksFront-end build (Astro/Next, WCAG AA), CMS integration, agentic-layer live, Schema.org deployed, llms.txt at root, analytics, QA, DNS + hosting, team training, documentation, pre/post LLM-visibility benchmark. Site live. Client owns it.URL · $35K · 1 revision round (QA only) · Site live
5. Activation · 4–6 weeksPress kit (long + short release, ~20-outlet pitch list, media kit, embargo materials), event identity application (signage, name cards, program, master deck), day-of comms coordination, pre-launch readiness. The public moment itself.IRL · $22K · Pre-event lock + day-of
6. Post Production · 4 weeksLaunch video creative direction + edit oversight, documentation capture + edit (photo + video), public case study published with client consent, distribution kit, pre/post LLM-visibility delta. The artifact engine - each worldsite produces what the next sale depends on.IRL · $13K · Case study live

Network venues - for P5 Activation

When a client books Tier 3 (Worldsite + IRL), venue selection is part of P5. The Studio's working network in NYC is below - places scouted, programmed in, or with warm contact. Day-rate ballparks are 2026 estimates; final pricing depends on day-of-week, season, and scope. Booking, AV, F&B, and staffing are passthrough costs (or rolled into the Production Coordination add-on).

For brands whose register doesn't fit those three, Studio scouts from a curated set - Spring Studios (luxury), The Glasshouse (high-end private), Tank (performance), e-flux Screening Room (intellectual/publishing), Brooklyn Steel (music-scale), National Sawdust (performance-cultural). Custom scout starts in the P5 scoping conversation.

Add-ons (any tier)

• Production Coordination

  Studio owns venue scout, AV/staging vendor selection, day-of production lead, run-of-show. Recommended when the activation event is in scope and the founder needs to stay press-facing in the final four weeks. 10% sourcing fee waived.
  +$18,000
• Social Media Package

  Channel strategy, cross-platform profile imagery, on-brand Figma templates (6 formats), launch content batch (12 posts), reel templates, social playbook, 30-day advisory.
  +$16,000
• Year-1 Maintenance Retainer

  Quarterly brand audits, deck refresh per quarter, content + agentic-layer maintenance, up to 12 hours/month implementation. Starts 30 days after final delivery.
  +$24,000

How an engagement moves

Every worldsite passes through the same pipeline - from first contact to delivery and beyond. Each stage has a defined exit gate before work moves forward.

1. Discovery - no feeA 30-minute scoping call. We listen for whether a worldsite is the right shape, where the brand is in its arc, and what the real timeline looks like. If it isn't a fit, we say so.
2. Quote - within 48 hoursA three-tier proposal with explicit deliverables, ship dates, what's out of scope, and a tier recommendation tied to the discovery conversation.
3. SOW - formal scopeStatement of Work with payment milestones (50% on signature, 25% midpoint, 25% final), revision rounds defined per phase, and change-order rates for out-of-scope work.
4. Active - deliveryPrincipal-led. Two weekly written updates (Monday plan, Friday recap). One live presentation per phase, with recording. Calendar locked end-to-end.
5. Past - case study + retainerPre/post LLM-visibility benchmark captured. Public case study published with client consent. Optional Year-1 retainer for compounding maintenance.

What's not included

The following are passed through at cost or sourced separately. Studio sources at agency rates with a 10% coordination fee (waived if Production Coordination is selected).

• Domain transfer + hosting$20–$200/mo
• Custom photography$3K–$10K
• Editorial content writingclient-owned
• Activation event production (venue, AV, F&B, staffing)$15K–$60K+
• Launch video production (camera, edit, color, sound)$15K–$40K
• Paid media or PR distributionseparate
• Print production runs$1K–$5K

Who it's for

A worldsite is built for brands where getting it right is the whole job. The serviceable market is small - roughly 280 firms across six verticals.

• Luxury and fashion~80
• Cultural institutions~30
• Boutique hospitality~50
• Real estate development~40
• Architecture and design~30
• Funded startups, Series B and later~50

What we don't build

AI-slopped landing pages. Vibe-coded one-offs. Framer template re-skins. Agency decks that never become sites.

What we build

Handbuilt, maintainable front-ends. Spatially considered architecture. Editorially precise copy and typography. Systems the client can own and extend without us.

Start a conversation

If you're building something that has to live longer than a campaign, talk to us before design starts. The intake routes to Studio Artifice — a few fields on scope, tier, and timing is enough to tell whether a worldsite is the right shape.

Every intake lands with Studio Artifice and gets a reply within two business days. Studio is selective - not every fit is a yes.