3 REASONS A CREATIVE BRIEF IS ALWAYS A GOOD IDEA (& 10 TIPS ON WRITING A GREAT ONE)!
This week, Hannah Kilgallon, our Digital designer, is telling us all about creative briefs and why they’re important.
Why you should use a Creative Brief:
1 - SAME PAGE FROM THE OFFSET.
Creative briefs can be a hugely helpful foundation for any campaign and for everyone involved. By building a document from the start that breaks down target audiences, creative messaging, campaign goals and more, it ensures that all parties involved are on the same page 📃 (literally).
Top Tip: Consider building the document in a Google Doc/Slides. That way you can make changes on the fly and adjust editing/viewing capabilities per person. In addition, with it all being online, it means you can't leave it behind by accident one day in the office when you’re wfh the next!
2 - AGREE ROLES AND DELIVERABLES.
A creative brief is a great way to informally assign roles, deadlines, approval contacts and required deliverables to everyone included within the project. By outlining what is required from each person (whether in-house or agency), not only does it make sure everyone is aware of the role that they play, but it also works as a great starting point for project management, weekly meetings & more.
3 - AMENDMENTS CAN BE COSTLY.
Often, agencies and designers alike will have limitations on how many rounds of amendments you can make to a creative before additional costs are incurred. This isn't done to make a little extra money; in fact, these are put in place to streamline the process to make it as effective and cost efficient for the client as possible. By providing all the required information, amendments & feedback as early and as clearly as possible, it allows for your design team to work more effectively and turnaround artwork quicker.
By starting the process with a detailed creative brief (although not guaranteed), it greatly increases the chances of outcomes being on brand ✅ with the right content ✅ and to the right specifications ✅. This means fewer rounds of amendments, less unnecessary back and forth, and finally, deliverables that everyone is happy with.
Hannah’s top 10 tips to writing a great creative brief
Creative briefing documents can vary wildly from company to company and they really depend on what you're looking for out of your campaign. Below are some considerations to help you build your next creative brief.
1 - Cover the Basics.
Whether you have worked with a company before or not, it's always worth starting the brief with the basics about the brand. Break down your brand's position in the market, brand personality, message & more.
2 - Brand Guidelines.
Brand guidelines are important for anyone involved with the creative process. If you have specific typefaces, colour schemes, or logo guidance, then this should be shared as soon as possible. These can play a big part on how the final deliverables will look, so it's important the designers have these from the get go, to avoid any deviations.
3 – Goals, goals, goals.
What do you want out of the campaign? Is the goal to raise brand awareness or maybe to drive sales? Knowing the desired outcome will help define content and messaging within the ad, so it's vital that everyone within the team is working to the same goal(s).
4 - Target Audience
If you compare an ad aimed at grandparents versus an ad aimed at young couples, you'll likely notice a HUGE difference in messaging, colour scheme, layout etc. This is because people of different sex/age/income/location will respond differently to different creatives.
By tailoring ad messaging in line with the target audience, it can have a huge positive impact. Be sure to let your creative team know who you want to target, so they can make recommendations on how to reach your target audience.
5 - Competitors
List a few of your top competitors. It’s always good to be educated on what the competition is doing, but the main aim should really be: how do we stand out against them?
6 - List the Required Deliverables.
At the very least, your team needs to know what your required outcomes are. Most creative teams will have an understanding of some of the standard creative specifications, but for anything out of the norm, it's a great idea to include any specifications (dimensions, file size, file type, etc).
7 - Limitations.
Are there any limitations to the outcomes? Are certain assets only allowed to be used on certain formats? Are there limited licensing options to some of the video assets? These are the things the creative team needs to be made aware of. It’s easier to follow guidelines than to have to go back and edit later down the line, wasting both time & money.
8 - Outline the Approval Process.
Who will be the main contact for approval? Are there certain approval processes in place? Most companies will have their own strict approval process, but it's always good practice to double check.
9 - Deadlines
Before any work begins, there should be set deadlines in place. This needs to include the final deadline, but depending how structured you prefer to work, this could also include deadlines for first/second/third draft, feedback to be provided, third party approvals and more!
10 - Contact Details
Last but not least, consider including (if allowed of course) contact details for anyone involved, to keep an open line of communication.