The importance of creative briefs

How many times did you work on a marketing project with an agency only to be frustrated with the lack of alignment between what you wanted and what they delivered? That's not too uncommon, and the main reason why this happens so often is that we are so eager to start on a new project that we rush the most important step: planning and briefing.

You might have a very clear idea in your head of what you want, but that doesn't mean that the agency is going to understand it, unless you take the time to clearly detail your brief before starting any work. Whether you have worked with this agency in the past or not, don't skip this very important step. Of course you will most probably meet in person and discuss the project, but nothing beats a well detailed brief on paper: just eliminate any second guessing.

A good agency should have their own brief template so feel free to ask them for a copy. They will be more than happy to help you since it will make their job much easier down the road.

So what goes in a design brief?

The details of the brief depend on the type of project you are working on, but the essentials remain the same.

Background introduction:

Your company, your industry and the need for this project.

Provide as much information about your company: what product or service you offer, who your competition is, what your positioning is, etc.

The audience:

Who do you want to reach? Be as specific as possible: geography, industry, gender, age, etc..

Objectives:

what are the objectives for this project? Do you want to create awareness around your brand, get more leads, increase traffic on your website, educate on your product, etc.

The specifics:

this is where you will detail as much as you can about what you want the artwork to look like (the design) and what it should be doing (the functionalities). This part is very flexible depending on the type of project you are working on, logo, brochure or website for example.

The project details:

What is you budget, your deadline, who are the points of contact in your company, etc.

Design brief templates

Here are two templates that I created and used in the past. Feel free to download them and modify them as needed. They are just Word documents so anyone can work with them.

• Logo design brief template


• Website design brief template

If you want to read more on the subject, I recommend you dig into this article on Freelanceswitch.com : 17 articles to help you master creative briefs. It is packed with useful tips and links to many other articles and templates.

I hope you find this article and the templates useful. If you need any help with your brief, don't be scared to ask me, I'd be happy to help.