How to write a brief

How to write a design brief for your digital design project – how to make it a success.

We pride ourselves on our availability and help and advice offered to clients. I am on hand from the very beginning to get your project off to a great flying start, but it is still important for you to create a brief pinpointing exactly what it is you want the project to achieve.

Making decisions will be quicker and easier with a brief in place, and you will feel in control and fully involved from the word go. If you’ve never written a brief before, it can sound more daunting than it really is. Whether writing a brief for a new web design, logo or corporate identity, the fundamentals are still the same.

Here are a few key points to get you started- this is an example for a design overhaul:

– Look at other companies’ promotional material, particularly businesses within your own field, and jot down what elements you like about them, and what you don’t like. This could be the elegance of their logo, the atmosphere created by their brochure, or the impact of their website.

– Consider what the principal aim of the project will be – is it to generate sales, create brand awareness, or simply to give information to existing and potential clients?

– Give a detailed profile of your company – describe your products or services, your target market, the image or style you aim to portray, what sets you apart from other companies in the same field, and who your competitors are.

Corporate Identity:

– Your company’s logo is the most important aspect of your identity and communication, as it creates a first impression for customers. Spend some time considering the values that your company represents, as this is what your logo should reflect.

– Consider your target customer. Who is your current market? What future markets do you want to reach? This will have a significant bearing on the image you portray, helping you decide on a classic look or a more contemporary feel.

– Again, consider your competitors. Provide some examples, both good and bad!

Website design:

– You will need a basic idea of what you want the website to incorporate – company info, product listings, a news section, the ability for customers to buy products direct from the site? Roughly how many pages do you imagine the website will need?

– This will help you to gauge what services you might need us to provide – depending on what you want the website to do, you may require CMS Software, photography, copywriting or additional graphic design (for a new logo, for example). Would you like to be able to update parts of the website yourself as and when you need to?

Design for print:

– With any advertising material, from company stationery to a brochure, it is vital to think about the content and the aim of the publication. Whether you are looking for increased brand awareness or are planning an aggressive sales campaign, we can generate a wide range of solutions to suit the project.

– Consider the practical details. Is it to be mainly a colour production such as a brochure, or is it, in the case of advertising, to appear within black and white publications such as newspapers? How is the item to be supplied after production – is posting weight an issue?

Budget:

– Setting out your budget and timescale at this stage is vital – even if you can be flexible, it is important to have at least a rough guideline.

A brief can be as detailed as you like, or it can be a fairly simple document, incorporating just the key factors. You may find that you change your mind about some elements, but you will be confident that you have considered all the vital aspects of the project. But please, don’t hesitate to get in touch with me if you are unsure about any part of the process of creating a brief; I will be very happy to answer any questions you may have.

Your brief will be the beginning of an exciting dialogue between your project and us and it will enable us to understand your expectations further, so that we can begin immediately to deliver the results you want.

Contact us to discuss your project on 01384 931011

Navigating the Member Lifecycle: From Onboarding to Renewal and Beyond

Mapping the Member Journey: Engagement Roadmaps. The member journey encompasses the entire relationship between an organisation and its members, from initial contact to renewal and beyond. Understanding the key touchpoints along this journey is crucial for crafting...

Unleashing the Power of an Integrated Ecosystem: Deepening Member Engagement for Non-Profit Organisations

In the dynamic and ever-evolving landscape of non-profit trade associations, trade unions, and chartered institutions, member engagement stands as the cornerstone of success. A thriving membership base not only provides financial stability but also cultivates a...

SEO in 2023: The changing faces of search

The old adage "adapt or die" could never be more true when it comes to SEO strategies these days. SEO best practices are going to change whether we like it or not. We originally wrote this article in way back in 2016 and now it's 2022 we have revised and updates this...

SEO Guide part 1: The 5 parts to a comprehensive SEO Starter Kit

Were do I start as a newbie to SEO? Many newcomers to this topic will no doubt be experiencing information overload??!! Why is there so much information on the Internet about SEO? It’s there due to the fact that if you want to rank in Google you will need SEO and...

5 ways to Optimise your website- Quick tips

When editing or creating a new page or blog ensure good standards and do you research for the best page setup and for a good SEO foundation.There is no point in creating a page that is not structured properly, when it takes a short time to get it right, you should do...

Search Engine Marketing will boost your Business for less than advertising in the local or regional newspapers

SEO and Search Engine Marketing Boosts your online ranking for more business and it costs less than traditional advertising.When comparing the best marketing to return a good investment for your company if you think that your company can afford to forget or skip...

SEO Checklist for improving Local SEO

Part1Improving your SEO for more Local business is not easy, but can be very rewarding so we have put together a checklist. You may be also looking for national search results and for both local and national you will need a good, solid SEO plan to get ranked and...

The definition of Web Design Company [in under 100 words]

The definition of Web Design Company [in under 100 words]A Web Design Company is a business designers that delivers an organisation’s online web requirements. In addition to bringing in new customers, a Web Design Company will help an organisation gain control and...

Marketing Team Training- SEO Skills for good website content

Marketing Team Training- SEO Skills for good website content                Does your company lack a marketing person with website knowledge? if so we can help.We offer training in house, face to face for Marketing teams and...

A history Of Black Hat SEO Techniques

Black Hat SEO is really bad for your website and business, and is the wideley used term for website spam linking and a few other underhand practices that are not just ethically frowned upon, but also  dangerous. The aim of this breed of SEO is to fool the search...

All new websites include a FREE SEO Starter pack

Fancy a new website? Just order a new website from us before the 30th August 2016 (offer ended 30th September 2016*) and you will benefit from the starter SEO package to get your business ranked in Google The SEO Package offer includes: - Site set up and Google Set up...

Build your own website with SeeROC CMS

Since early 2015 we have been busy designing and building (from scratch) a 'pay and learn as you go' website building system, for people to 'Build your own website'. Allowing anyone to build and manage their own website, using all the SeeROC CMS...

How does your website look? Get a FREE Expert Review

Ever wondered how your website looks to Google in terms of how it is ranked by them? Get a FREE Expert Review carried out by us and we will tell you. Warts and all and how it looks and works from a users perspective. All delivered in a lovely report for you, FREE!

How much does Search Engine Optimisation cost?

Search Engine OptimisationHow long does it take to get to page 1 of the search engines; weeks, months? And how much will I expect to pay.. If only that question was as easy as it sounds!I get asked How long does it take to get to page 1 of the search engines a...

Top 25 Website Design & Digital Marketing profiles on LinkedIn

Looking for a highly recognised designer?I am listed in the Top 25 Website Design & Digital Marketing profiles on LinkedIn.Contact me on 01384 931011 for a FREE initial conversation and see what makes using me different! 

Enterprise CMS Projects. Looking to replace EasySite CMS, Contensis CMS or Immediacy CMS

Enterprise CMS Projects We replace EasySite CMS, Contensis CMS or Immediacy CMS   We've been very lucky to work on a lot of big bespoke enterprise website projects over the last two decades as a consultant in pre-project scoping, product and vendor selection,...

Pay per click or organic SEO

Pay per click or organic SEOHow do I get to the top of Google today?I get asked almost daily that very question, how do I get my website to the top of Google? Route one - Pay to appear or Pay Per Click Marketing (PPC) In short the answer is to pay to appear in...
Web Analytics