guide to writing a creative brief

For your next campaign to really work, then you need to give us a clear and structured outline of what it is you're trying to achieve.
Here we have prepared a guide to writing a creative brief. By using this guide, we believe that you will be able to communicate your goals more effectively.
If you are unsure about the answers to some of these questions, some market research may be required.

Key elements of the brief:
The product or service:
You should provide a brief summary.

• what is it?
• what does it do?
• what are its features and benefits?
• what sales support will the product receive?
• What are the sales and market share objectives for the promotional campaign?

Customer requirements:
For a promotional campaign to work, it must address your customers' needs. We need to understand these needs.

• what are the needs and wants of the customer?
• which of these needs are the key ones?
• how does your product meet these needs?
• how and when and where do customers use the product?
• who or what are the influences on product purchase?

Market competition:
Competitive advantage is one of the keys to success. How do you want to differentiate your product.

• what are the competing products or services?
• how do competitors promote themselves?
• what are the competitive strengths and weaknesses of your product?
• what is your USP?
• what is the market size and potential?
• how is the market segmented?

Promotional objectives:

• What is the specific purpose of the campaign?
• What are you aiming to achieve?
• are you trying to inform or educate your audience about your product?
• is your objective to generate enquiries or to stimulate immediate purchase?
• is this a launch campaign where the main objective is awareness of the product?

A summary in one or two sentences of the message that you wish to communicate is a vital element.

• highlight the key message/s
• don't try to say too much as this will only confuse the audience
• concentrate on your USP for the campaign

Target audience:
Precisely who are you trying to influence?

• who is the audience?
• what kind of people are they?
• are they existing users of your product?
• If so what is their current attitude to the company and the product?
• what products or services do they currently use or buy?

Tone:
We need to understand how you want the campaign materials to reflect the product and your company's personality.

• professional, serious?
• traditional?
• fun?
• caring, understanding?
• go ahead, cutting edge, high tech?
• authoritative?

Creative requirements:
Do you have a view on what medium or media you want to use for the campaign.

• printed literature
• advertising
• exhibitions
• direct mail
• DVD ROM multimedia
• web

Timing and budget:

• When do you want the campaign to be ready?
• How much do you want to spend?
  Most of our clients have a deadline for a project and are happy to tell us before it arrives. However cost is something that clients are often reluctant or unable to reveal. If you can tell us what your budget, or your expectation of costs is, we can tailor the project to fit your budget. We can also suggest how best you can break down your budget into different platforms. For example you could spend your entire budget on one brochure, or we could suggest a smaller brochure, together with a web site or a small targeted advertising campaign.