A good brief gives your creative partner the right balance of structure and freedom. It provides the context we need to understand your world, and the space to explore new possibilities.

Without that foundation, projects can take longer. Opportunities to make the best use of your time and budget can be missed.

Start with the bigger picture

If you can, share a document that describes your organisation’s wider context – your strategy, values and marketing efforts.

Define success

What are your aspirations for the project? How will you know it’s working? A clear sense of success – whether that’s engagement, visibility or internal clarity – helps guide creative decisions from the start.

Share your story

Tell us where you’ve been, where you are now and where you’re heading. This helps us understand your organisation and team better, and make sure our work supports your direction of travel.

Tell us about the competitive landscape

Who else is doing work like yours, and who’s doing something different? Which ones work with you (or perhaps against you!)?

Describe your audience

Who are you speaking to, where are they, what matters to them? What do you want them to think, feel or do after seeing this communication or materials?

Set the purpose and reaction

What do you want this project to achieve? And how do you hope people will react or respond?

Define the lifespan

What’s the shelf life of the project? Is it a short-term campaign, a one-off, or something you’ll build on year after year?

Be clear on parameters

Share any existing guidelines or specific requirements. If you have brand guidelines but you have areas you’re happy to push, or want us to explore something new, that’s also useful to know.

Be open about your budget and timeline

Provide a clear budget and timescale. Do you have a deadline or event you are working towards? This will enable your team to create a detailed process document with key milestones.

Share your preferences and boundaries

If there’s something you definitely do – or don’t – want, tell us early. Do you have a format or approach in mind, or are you looking for a new direction? Being honest about your expectations and openness to ideas can save significant time and budget.

Describe your team and process

What are your resource pressures? Who will make decisions and give feedback? Does your project need approval from a trustee or the board? Being clear about these things gives us a definite structure and allows us to set key milestones on what can be a challenging journey.

And if this feels like a lot…

Don’t worry. Creating a clear brief is something we can help with too. Working with an experienced design team that understands your world means you’ll get thoughtful questions, creative thinking and research that expands your options – not limits them.

That’s where great projects begin.