# The design studio's brief

Ten sections, the version design studios write rather than ad agencies: it carries competitors, visuals and people, which the agency briefs leave to other documents. Behind the ten sections are seven questions: what is this project, why are we doing it, who is it really for and why should they care, where and when will it be used, who engages with it, how will it be remembered and retold, what needs doing by whom by when. The rule: an unread creative brief is an unused one. Just enough information to be thorough.

Source: Terry Lee Stone, "Creative Briefs in Shifting Times," *Communication Arts* (commarts.com/columns/creative-briefs-in-shifting-times).

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## 1. Background summary

Who is the client? What is the product or service?

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## 2. Overview

What is the project? What are we creating, and why?

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## 3. Drivers

What is our goal for this project? What are we trying to achieve?

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## 4. Audience

Who are we talking to? What do they think of the client?

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## 5. Competitors

Who is the competition? A SWOT on them.

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## 6. Tone

How should we be communicating? What adjectives describe the desired feeling?

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## 7. Message

What are we saying with this piece, exactly?

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## 8. Visuals

Are we developing new images or using existing ones?

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## 9. Details

Mandatory information. The list of deliverables. Any pre-conceived ideas.

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## 10. People

Who are we reporting to? Who will approve this work?

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Other formats on the class page: [the one line](/course/business-of-design/handout/brief-one-line) · [Goodby, Silverstein](/course/business-of-design/handout/brief-goodby) · [Ogilvy DO](/course/business-of-design/handout/brief-ogilvy) · [the design studio's](/course/business-of-design/handout/brief-design-studio) · [Workhorse's](/course/business-of-design/handout/brief-workhorse) · [the course template](/course/business-of-design/handout/creative-brief-template)