• Written by Tom Lauck, Creative-Ops

Whether the project is an annual report, capabilities brochure, package, email campaign, website, direct mailing, corporate identity program, or simply a data sheet, companies can save time, money and misunderstanding by developing a creative brief before assigning a project to an agency. Unfortunately, too few corporate managers take the time to prepare a brief, thinking that “talking it through” in a meeting will suffice.

A written brief offers two important advantages:

1) It demands that in-house managers clarify the project’s business objectives at the start, and 2) it gives designers a summary of key corporate points to refer to. But keep the design brief short, and recognize that its purpose is to provide enough information to assess the proposed assignment realistically without discouraging creative exploration.

1. Corporate Profile

Even if your corporate name is more famous than IBM, don’t assume everyone knows what you do. People may only know your company by name, or have an outdated image of what you do, or think of you too narrowly in terms of one product or one market area. A designer’s erroneous assumptions about your business can skew the entire opening discussion. So first provide a synopsis of your current line of business and market emphasis, along with appropriate historical highlights.

2. Market Position

Provide a realistic evaluation of your organization, service or brand relative to your competitors. How is your company unique or different? What is your standing in the industry? What marketing communications techniques are most effective among your competitors?

3. Current Situation

Explain the situation that instigated the need for this project. For example: Our brand identity isn’t working anymore. We’re about to launch a big push into global markets, and our corporate identity hasn’t changed since we were a regional company. We just went public and need to be taken seriously on Wall Street.

4. Business Objectives

Define your objectives. What do you want to achieve? If it’s a sales brochure, what products are you pushing? If it’s an annual report, what are the key messages for the year? If it’s an advertisement, what is the single net impression you want to convey?

5. Target Audience

Who are you trying to reach? Are you reaching them now? If not, what do you feel is missing? Rank multiple audiences in terms of importance. Provide demographic information, if available. Explain any unusual attributes about your audience.

6. Corporate/Brand Personality

What is your image in the marketplace? How do you want to be perceived? Cutting edge? Relaxed and friendly? Inexpensive and approachable? What subliminal messages do you want to convey? Jot down a list of adjectives describing the attributes you want to project and another describing messages you want to avoid.

7. Budget

Until you know what form the solution will take, it’s hard to define a budget. However, it usually helps to state a ballpark figure for the total project. Some companies come in with lavish samples of what they want, only to discover that something comparable would wildly exceed their budget. In fairness to the design process, it is important to provide a budget range, so that the designer can develop concepts with that in mind — or advise you early-on that the ideas you want to execute will cost more than is currently budgeted.

8. Schedule and Deadline

Be clear about dates and costs. Not what you hope for, but what you can live with. What absolute targets must be met? A product launch at a trade show that happens once a year? An SEC filing? A Board of Directors’ presentation? If this is a program with many elements, is there a rollout sequence? Does the print advertising have to coincide with the brochure distribution, for instance? State when the project must be completed.

9. Design Medium

What medium do you have in mind for the design? A brochure, advertisement, package, website, direct mailing, poster, trade show sign, — or all of the above. Do you have a particular size in mind — e.g., a 24-page self-cover brochure or a direct mail piece that fits a No. 10 envelope? State your preference, but keep an open mind.

10. Technical and Practical Constraints

Does the designer have to stay within certain guidelines? Is it a point-of-purchase display that has to meet specific store guidelines? A brochure that has to be translated into three languages? If there are inflexible constraints, state them up front. But don’t prevent your designer from coming up with a solution that no one has ever considered before.