The Creative Brief

The Creative Brief ///

A guideline that allows the designer to easily communicate with the client about the project.

It is necessary because with such an organized template, the design process can be finished at a much faster pace and with more efficiency. If the brief is a good one, the client will be happy to go through a question and answer process. As a whole, it offers forth questions and aspects of the design process that both parties may have forgotten to address and therefore makes for a great way to get the “ball rolling.”

Obtain client information

A good start to the creative brief is found here, where the designer obtains basic information about the client. Some aspects that should be considered are who the primary contact is, who is the key decision maker, what is a brief overview of the history of the company, and who are the client's competitors? This step can be looked at as the “ice breaker” for the brief.

Create overview of project

Now that the basic stuff is out of the way, the designer can now focus in on the project and therefore the overall design of it. Some of the aspects that should be considered are why the client needs a site, what are the goals and expectations of the site, what is the budget and time frame of the project, what is the general tone the site will express, what is the target audience, and what are the requirements and restrictions?

Recognize deliverables

Now the designer can get even more specific with the client, asking questions that include how many pages will be designed, if the site is producing an idea or providing a product, what the exact scope of the project is, who is in charge of the updates, what the primary message is that will be communicated to the reader, etc.

Know the team

Of course, a site can't be designed without a team. Although they can be effective, they sometimes can run into plenty of bumps and errors. Therefore, it is good to consult certain aspects such as who may be a decision maker and who may be a troublemaker, who is dealing with content, who is dealing with visual design, who is producing, if there are other contributors, and what a good contingency plan may be.

Know the workflow

To ensure that everyone is on track and that the project is where it should be on certain dates, the workflow must be considered. The timeline must be reviewed, the stages of design must be known (sketches), and the stages of production must also be known (quality control).