What are Development Requests?

Development Requests are how you request changes that go beyond simple text editing — things like new pages, layout modifications, or custom features.

The Big Idea

DCS separates content that can be edited immediately (text, SEO) from changes that require code modifications. Development Requests bridge this gap by providing an AI-assisted workflow that automates much of the development work.

How It Works

You describe a change → AI analyzes it → the pipeline implements it → You review → It goes live

1. You Describe the Change

Write a natural language description of what you want:

"Add a testimonials section to the home page with three customer quotes and their photos"

2. AI Analyzes Your Request

Our AI system:

• Determines if the request can be automated
• Classifies the type of change
• Estimates the version bump (patch vs. minor)
• Identifies any pending text overrides to include

3. The Pipeline Implements It

For automatable requests:

• A GitHub issue is created to track the work
• An AI coding agent is assigned to the issue
• The change is implemented
• A pull request is opened for review

4. You Review

• Preview the changes in your dev environment
• Request modifications if needed
• Approve when satisfied

5. It Goes Live

• Changes deploy to production
• The request is marked complete
• Release notes are generated

Types of Requests

Type	Description	Automation	Version
Text Override	Consolidate text changes	✅ Full	None
New Page	Create a new page	✅ Full	Minor
Layout Change	Structural modifications	✅ Full	Minor
Complex Feature	Major new functionality	🟡 Partial	Major

What Can Be Automated?

✅ Great for Automation

• Adding new sections to pages
• Creating new pages with standard layouts
• Changing colors, fonts, spacing
• Adding new components (cards, forms, lists)
• Modifying existing component behavior

🟡 Partial Automation

• Complex interactive features
• Third-party integrations
• Performance optimizations
• Accessibility improvements

❌ Requires Manual Development

• Payment processing
• User authentication changes
• Database schema changes
• Security-sensitive features
• Custom backend logic

The Queue System

Development requests are processed sequentially per site to prevent conflicts.

Request 1 (processing) → Request 2 (queued) → Request 3 (queued)

Why a Queue?

Each request modifies your site's code. Processing them one at a time ensures:

• No merge conflicts
• Clean version history
• Predictable deployments

Queue Status

Status	Meaning
submitted / triage	Waiting for earlier requests and being classified
in-progress	Currently being implemented
in-review	Awaiting your review
completed	Approved and deployed

Request Lifecycle

A development request moves through these states:

submitted → triage → in-progress → in-review → completed

Two off-ramps can end a request early: rejected (declined) and archived (closed out of the active list).

Status	Description
submitted	Request created and awaiting analysis.
triage	Being analyzed and classified; automation potential is determined.
in-progress	The automated pipeline is implementing the change.
in-review	Implemented and deployed to a preview environment, awaiting your review.
completed	Approved and deployed to production.
rejected	Declined — will not be implemented.
archived	Closed out and removed from the active request list.

Requests are processed one at a time per site, so while one is in-progress, others for the same site wait their turn.

Best Practices

Be Specific

Instead of:

"Make the home page better"

Say:

"Add a hero section with a large background image, centered headline 'Welcome to Our Platform', and a blue 'Get Started' button"

Provide Context

Include:

• What page or section to modify
• Desired visual appearance
• Any reference examples
• Specific colors or styling

One Request, One Feature

Break large requests into smaller ones:

❌ "Redesign the entire site"

✅ "Add testimonials section to home page" ✅ "Update the footer with new links" ✅ "Create a new pricing page"

Review Thoroughly

Before approving:

• Test on different screen sizes
• Check for broken links
• Verify all content is correct
• Test interactive elements

Next Steps

• Submitting Requests — How to submit a request
• Tracking Progress — Monitor request status
• Reviewing Completed Work — Review and publish