Writing Good Creative Briefs-1

8/8/2019 Writing Good Creative Briefs-1

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Creative Briefs and Briefing

Black Pencil Academy,

Toronto


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Agenda

1. What is a Brief?

2. Filling in the Boxes

3. The Briefing

4. A Case Study

5. Conclusion


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1. What is a Brief?


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What is a Brief?

A creative brief is the most important piece of

paper an account team produces

It is a demonstration ofhow good you are

Therefore, it is how a creative team

judges/curses you


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What is a brief?

A distillation of everything you have learned

All the information that must be conveyed by

the advertising

A contract for you, the Creatives and the

Client

A team effort


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What it isnt ...

Set in stone

Sole property of the planner

A place to copy out the client brief

A place to show off every fact you know or

marketing term you have learned

Primarily for placating the client

The same as the strategy or the advertising


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The Advertising Process

Develop the Strategy

Write the Brief

Write the Ads


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The Advertising Process

The Brief is their road map

If the directions arent good, theyll get lost


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What Makes a Good Brief?

Direction + Inspiration


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Direction

What is the one thing you want the

advertising to say?

If you cant explain it to your friends in onesentence, start again


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Inspiration

The most powerful advertising contains

insights that truly resonate with the

consumer

One important insight should be at the heart

of your brief


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What makes a good brief?

Direction + Inspiration

One clearand compelling

thought about the brand


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I didnt have time

The Client made me write it this way

There was nothing to say

There were too many things to say

We didnt have enough information

The Account Team couldnt agree

Make No Excuses!

Why Briefs Go Astray


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Believe in the possibilityof every assignment


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The Goal

The best briefs are so good you cant wait for

the account team to leave your office so you

can get started

Unidentified Creative


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2. Filling in the Boxes


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Filling in The Boxes

These can be confusing

What goes where?

What are they for?

Just remember, they all have to lead to one

main thought - the proposition

Include only what is both necessary and

illuminating


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1. Whats the reason for this brief?

What you need to explain:

What is the background/context for what we are

doing?

Why the heck are we advertising this brand

anyway?

What do we need the advertising to do for it?


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Objectives must be realistic

Advertising objectives, not business

objectives

Keep it to the point


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The producthas a severe saliency deficiency so it does

not get into the targets consideration set. The leading

brand sets the category values and our brand is seen

as a me-too because of these dominant associations.

Alternatively, a proportion of the target segmenthave a

dissociated perceptual set with respect to the brand.

The campaign objective is to increase saliency and to

communicate a brand identity which is motivating andmore appropriate to the products experiential

manifestation



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Cheers main benefit is to keep colours

bright, but most people dont know this. We

need to make them understand so that they

choose it for its own merits and not as asecond best to Tide.



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2. Who are we talking to?

Be as specific and vivid as you can

Women 18-45 not very helpful

Neither is laundry list of meaningless

adjectives and media cliches

Try to describe a real person

But, dont tell whole life story

Include only what will help Creatives totalk to them


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2. Who are we talking to?

Young adults 18-25. Someone self-assured, active

and energetic, self-reliant, positive, optimistic,

individualistic, self-centred, not superficial, irreverent,

somewhat cynical, skeptical, savvy, fashion-conscious,

honest, straight-forward, computer-literate,

entrepreneurial, self-indulgent, hedonistic, likes having

new things, doesnt change opinions to please others,

doesnt change behaviour in order to be liked, thinks of

him/herself as an individual buthas a powerful need tofit into a group, preoccupied with sex/gender-related

issues, has short attention span, wants instant

gratification AND likes chocolate bars


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3. What do they currently think?

This is not about their life in general

Rather, their relationship with the brand, the

category, the advertising


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How interested are they in the product?

How often do they use it?

When do they use it?

How do they feel about it?

How do they feel about our brand vs. the competition?

What do they ultimately want the product or brand to do for

them?

Dont go overboard: only include what is truly relevant

to the problem the advertising must solve


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PMB 99

IfIworkhard enoughIwill get to where Iwant, Idont

like taking orders, What brands Ibuy says a lot about

me, Ihate anything that is hype and smacks of

phoniness, If its too perfect, it cant be trusted


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They chew gum all the time but its not

something they think about much. As far as

theyre concerned, all gum is pretty much the

same. Whats more, theyre completely turnedoff by gum advertising which they see as

cheesy and trying too hard. Still, they might be

persuaded that one gum was superior if it made

its point convincingly and actually managed tobe entertaining.


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The most crucial to get right and the easiest to go

astray

Remember, the box says single-minded

Be concrete, not abstract Err on the side of simplicity

Distinguish between what you tell them and what you

want them to think

One clear and compelling thought about the brand!

4. Whats single message should this

communication convey?


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Single Minded vs.Double-headed

Mr. Big is the

biggest bar,

bar none

Mr. Big is the big bar

that wont slow you

down, now available

in new Peanut Ripple

flavour


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Concrete vs. abstract

Abstract ideas are muchharder to

demonstrate

Abstract language can make you sound likeyoure saying something important, even

when you arent

Concrete language makes your point for you,

and doesnt let you hide behind it


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Abstract vs. Concrete

Brand X is a totally

different kind of car

The Second Cup is

the Ultimate Coffee

experience

Brand X is specially

designed for women

drivers

Second Cup coffee is

the strongest coffee you

can buy


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Dont be afraid that a simple idea is too dull,

just because it is simple

A simple idea is easier for the Creatives towork with

Its their job to make it interesting

Deep Thoughts vs. Simple Thoughts


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Extra is the gum that

will stick by you intodays hectic lifestyle

Extras flavour lasts

a long, long time

Deep Thoughts vs. Simple Thoughts


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Proposition vs.Desired Response

Often confused

Distinction between what you tell them and

what you want them to think

Desired response ultimately more important

to brand

But proposition more relevant to creative

team as a starting point


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Proposition vs.Desired Response

Heinz is the thickest,

richest ketchup

Pizza Pops have

a lot of stuff in them

Heinz is the best

tasting ketchup

Pizza Pops will

really fill me up


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The Final Test

Write it out on a blank sheet of paper and ask

yourself: Can Iwrite an ad from this and this

alone?

If you cant, probably no one else can either.


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5. Kick start!

For proposition to be credible, it must be

backed by evidence

Should be one of most inspirational elementsof brief

Give Creatives ideas they can dramatize

Try to unearth interesting nuggets that might

inspire


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Proposition: Cadbury Milk Chocolate is the

creamiest milk chocolate

Support: Only Cadbury Milk Chocolate containsa glass and a half of fresh milk in every 225g

Holy Shit Factor: All the milk in Cadbury Milk

Chocolate comes from Cadburys very ownherd of Irish dairy cows


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Brand Voice

How you say it, not what you say

Most well known brands have an established

tone - an essential part of their equity

Dont list contradictions: energetic, peaceful

Try and do it in one perfect word


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Creative Considerations

Executional mandatories

Media ideas and opportunities


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When you think youre done:

Re-read it

Sleep on it

Show it to someone older and wiser (not your

Dad)

Get agreement from the Creatives

Sell it to the client

And finally, be sure you havent used any of

the following words...


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The more we use language rooted in the real,

ordinary world, the better equipped the

creative team will be to communicate

with it in the advertising


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Paper plus Personality

Both parts of the briefing should inspire and

excite and motivate

One part is notoriously neglected


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What is not a briefing?

Slipping a brief under a Creatives door, or

the old leave-on-the seat trick

A rushed, last minute meeting

Something attended by client

A formal, boring presentation

A spoon feeding

A one-time meeting with your Creatives


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How to Brief

Set aside enough time

Show the packaging

Show historic / competitive ads

Touch, smell, eat product

Get out of the office

Visit the factory

Use images, music, animals

Get drunk together and brainstorm


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In Conclusion

Remember: its your road-map for the

creative team!

Know exactly what you want them to do and

make sure they can understand: Speak English

Include only what is both necessary and

illuminating

Focus on one clear and compelling thought aboutthe brand

Put time and effort into writing andbriefing


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Writing Good Creative Briefs-1

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