A creative brief template you can copy
Seven fields, one page, and a filled example. Copy it, send it, and get a better first draft.
A creative brief is one page that tells a designer what to make and why. Vague briefs get guesses. Guesses get revisions. Here is a template you can copy, and a filled example.
The creative brief template
Copy this into a doc or an email. Fill in every line. If a line does not apply, write “none” so the designer knows you thought about it.
PROJECT: [name]
GOAL: What should happen after someone sees this?
AUDIENCE: Who is it for, and what do they already know?
MESSAGE: The one thing they should remember.
FORMAT AND SIZES: [e.g. 4 LinkedIn carousel slides, 1080 x 1350]
MUST-HAVES: Copy, logo, legal lines, links.
REFERENCES: One you like. One you do not. Say why.
DEADLINE: [date] and who approves.Why these fields
Goal comes first. A banner is a format. “More clicks to pricing from the newsletter” is a goal. The designer can only solve the second one.
Audience decides the tone, the density and the words.
Message keeps the design to one idea.
Must-haves stop the late request for a legal line.
References are the fastest way to share taste. A reference you dislike is as useful as one you like.
Deadline and approver stop work from stalling at the end.
Extra fields by type of request
The seven fields cover most work. Add one or two lines for these common types.
Social post: platform, aspect ratio, caption text, and whether it is part of a series.
Ad set: placement, offer, call to action, and the sizes you need.
Email: subject line, preview text, send date, and the button text and link.
Landing page: the one action you want, the sections you need, and whether the copy is final.
Deck: where it will be shown, slide count, and who presents it.
A filled example
PROJECT: Webinar promo, November
GOAL: 150 registrations from LinkedIn in two weeks.
AUDIENCE: Marketing managers at B2B SaaS companies. They know the topic and want a clear takeaway.
MESSAGE: Learn how to cut campaign design time in half.
FORMAT AND SIZES: 1 static post (1200 x 1200), 4 carousel slides (1080 x 1350).
MUST-HAVES: Date and time, speaker photo, logo, register link text.
REFERENCES: Like: our September carousel. Not like: stock photo collages.
DEADLINE: Friday 14 Nov. Approver: Sam.That brief takes about five minutes and answers most of the questions a designer would otherwise ask by message.
How long should a brief be?
One page. If it runs longer, the goal is probably not clear yet. Put long background material in a linked doc and keep the brief itself short. A designer should be able to read it in two minutes and start. If they have to ask what the goal is, the brief is not done.
How to give feedback on the first draft
Judge the draft against the brief, not against your mood. Say what works first. Then say what misses the goal, and point to the line in the brief. “This does not make the date obvious, and the brief says the date is a must-have” is useful. “Make it pop” is not. Send all feedback in one message from one person.
A one-line version for small requests
Not every request needs the full page. For a small edit, a single message with the goal, the format and the deadline is enough: “Resize the webinar post for LinkedIn and Instagram stories, same copy, by Thursday.” Use the full template when the work is new, when it has several formats, or when more than one person will approve it.
Reuse the brief for a series
If you make a weekly post, a monthly email or a campaign with many ads, keep one master brief with the goal, audience, message and brand rules. Then send a short note for each piece with only what changes. A designer who has read the master brief once does not need it repeated.
Five mistakes that cost you a revision
Describing the format and skipping the goal.
Listing three or four messages. Pick one.
Sending a reference with no note on what you like about it.
Leaving out the approver, then getting new feedback from someone new on the last day.
Sending the brief in pieces across several messages.
Save time with the generator
Our creative brief generator turns these fields into a clean one-page brief you can copy or download. It runs in your browser, so nothing you type leaves it.
Brief once. No chasing. Book a call and we will show you how a designer on your account works from a brief like this.
Written by Sachin Rathor
Founder, noondesk. I drop AI & design tricks a few times a month for fast-moving marketing teams. Write to me at sachin@noondesk.com.
