The short answer
A marketing brief is a one-page description of what you want to achieve, for whom, with what budget and how you will judge success. It does not need to be fancy. It needs to be specific enough that someone who does not know your business could do good work from it.
What to include
- The business in two sentences. What you sell, to whom, and where.
- The goal. One main outcome, with a number if you can: more enquiries, more bookings, a launch, a lower cost per customer.
- Your best customers. Who they are, what they want, what makes them choose you or someone else.
- What a customer is worth. A rough figure for the value of a typical new customer. It decides how much marketing makes sense.
- What has been tried. What worked, what did not, and any numbers you have.
- Budget and timing. Both the ad spend and the cost of the work itself, and any deadlines.
- Constraints. Things that must or must not happen: brand rules, legal requirements, tools you already use.
- Competitors. A few you respect and a few you do not.
- How you will measure success. The numbers you will look at, and how often.
- Who decides. The person who signs off, so feedback is not a surprise at the end.
A template to copy
- Business: [what you sell, to whom, where]
- Goal: [one outcome, with a number]
- Best customers: [who, and why they choose you]
- Customer value: [rough figure]
- Tried so far: [what worked and what did not]
- Budget and dates: [ad spend, project cost, deadlines]
- Must and must not: [constraints]
- Success looks like: [numbers and review dates]
Common mistakes
- Setting several goals at once, so nothing is prioritised.
- Describing the solution instead of the problem, such as "we need a new logo" when the real issue is no enquiries.
- Leaving out the budget because you want to see what people quote.
- Not sharing past results, even bad ones. They save time.
What a good supplier does with it
They ask questions, point out anything unrealistic, and give you a plan that fits your numbers. If you would like help turning a vague idea into a clear brief, that is where my strategy work starts. Say hello with whatever you have, and I will tell you where I would start.
A note on sources
This article is my own approach, from the briefs I find most useful, so it has no external sources.