How To Write A Good Creative Brief (Part 2 of 2)
Posted on 05. Jan, 2009 by Dave in Tutorials
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In the previous article (Template Customization And The Art Of User Optimization) I was talking about user optimization and template customization and the art of writing good pages, and how a lot of people spend more time on SEO (search engine optimization) than building good pages, and that by focusing primarily on the writing you will be able attract more visitors and turn them into customers.
Also good pages is what Google and other major players in this industry want, so by going after that, you’ll really be working towards two similar goals, user optimization and SEO, in other words, the way to reach search engine users is by giving user exactly what their interested in, having relevant information should never be an afterthought, and that’s what user optimization is all about.
What brought this up in the first place, was a series of discussions I’d posted earlier (download my eBook The Essential Quintessential Misguided Newbies Guide To Web 2.0 for details), talking about the main characteristics of the Web 2.0 era, and how the most central of these were, that you had to have lots of content, the content had to be clear, relevant and authoritative, and that you should always maintain that content fresh and up to date.
Soon, the emails stated pouring in, user basically telling me, thanks, yeah that’s really good advice, but I don’t have time to write, even if, I ain’t all that creative, for me writing is such a chore really, I’d prefer a colonoscopy. Can someone write my content for me?
So it occurred to me, whereas all the pieces of the jigsaw for a web 2.0 website were there, there was still the issue of writing, which presented that major obstacle for everyone else, all of the elements and pieces were there, but no real way explaining how to get that content up, nor anyone to write it.
From now on, however, your template customization will also includes a copywriter who can write original content for your Web site. And you will still be able to make any changes to the text as you see fit. And make revisions to your original template customization with up to three rounds of changes at any time during the course of the project.
Nevertheless, as regards to writing the content, that doesn’t mean you are off the hook, not totally anyway, you’ll still need to write brief. Its no good ploughing into a brief that involves a niche area without understanding your target audience, so it is really up to you to provide the copywriter with as much information as possible, in fact, the better the brief, the better the quality of our writing.
And remember that previously we have launched a 25 percent discount on all our template customization, plus a FREE template, so schedule a consultation now, chat with a template customization specialist to get your free template plus the extra 25% discount ($100 savings).
Ok, so how to you write a good creative brief? Writing a brief doesn’t require a college degree or any real writing experience. Generally speaking good grammar and spelling is nice, but more specifically, why don’t we let copywriter, author and speaker Nick Usborne tell us about the top five most essential areas in a good creative brief.
How to write a good creative brief
Most copywriters are not in the position of having to write creative briefs. But we do depend on those who do.
In fact, the creative brief we are given can have a significant impact on the quality of our writing.
Here are the five areas I think should be addressed in a good creative brief.
1. Description of task
This needs to be a complete description of the writing task involved.
2. Background on product/company
The copywriter will usually NOT be as “up-to-speed” as the account management group. It is easy to assume the writer has in-depth knowledge that he or she does not have.
So it’s important that the writer is given “too much” background information on the client and the product or service being written about.
3. Audience description
The fastest way to undermine the ability of a copywriter to do a good job is to deprive him or her of a crystal clear image of the target audience.
The writer needs to feel an intimate understanding of what the audience wants, needs and desires. That understanding needs to be of a depth that it allows the writer to picture clearly and accurately an individual within the target group.
The writer should be able to close her eyes, see the person, picture his home and yard, know how he likes to spend his free time and understand what most excites and scares him in life.
4. Principal purpose of the communication
Again, this is extremely important. Many a well-written piece of advertising has failed to deliver, simply because the writer was never given a clear view of what that “deliverable” really was.
What is the principal purpose of this email, web page, newsletter?
The more precisely this question can be answered, the better the copywriter will be able to write a clear, sharp communication that stays on purpose from the first word to the last.
5. Timeline
Great copy cannot be written in an hour. The assimilation of background information, a growing understanding of the audience at the individual level and the process of writing itself is a creative process when done well. It takes time.
The first draft is never the best draft. Nor the second. As a result, copywriters need to be given sufficient warning of an upcoming job and be provided with enough time to do the job well.
Concluding thoughts…
At the risk of being labeled an old fogy, I would say that the heydays of great brief-writers are long past. Or maybe it’s simply that online account groups haven’t had the same training as can be found in traditional, offline advertising agencies.
Regardless, the best possible copywriting and content writing is possible only with the support of the best possible creative briefs.
About the author
This article was kindly provided to Bytestart by Nick Usborne. Nick is a copywriter, author and speaker. You can access all his newsletter articles on writing for the web at ExcessVoice.com. You can also find articles and resources on how to make money as a freelance writer here.
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