Creative Brief Assignment Description

You MUST write a Marketing Brief, before writing the Creative Brief. The Marketing Brief gives you the facts that you need to properly write the Creative Brief. Remember that you are writing this for a creative team, not a client. It should inspire!

1. Why do we need to advertise? This is the challenge: This is a snapshot of the events that have led up to a need to advertise. You may be tempted to answer 'to sell more product' or 'to increase awareness.' Although those answers may be true, they don't help clarify what situation caused the initial decrease in sales or the lack of awareness. So do not write them! They are also marketing objectives vs reasons to advertise to the consumer. What you need to include here is WHY the consumer is ready to receive your advertising.  Find out the root of the problem and use this area to clarify it. This answer will determine the purpose of the advertisement. In asking this question, we seek to learn what the current business situation requires advertising to be created. What is the problem you are trying to solve or the challenge you need to overcome? Describe in a few sentences. Also, include any relevant topical cultural trend or tension. What is happening culturally that might be useful to consider. For example, concern about the economy is relevant to buying a car and taking out a car loan. The over-dependence on our smartphones and the time we spend on screens might be relevant to selling a vacation or amusement park that promises family time together. The rising cost of a college education might be relevant to a condom brand. This section sets up the rest of the brief. This section should be at least 5 sentences; more is ok.
2. What is advertising going to accomplish? This is the objective: What are the goals you are setting out to achieve? It identifies the end result of your advertising. What impression do you want to leave the target with? What action do you want them to take? What do you want the audience to think, feel or do? This is always consumer-facing. Think of this question as a companion to question one which determines the reason for the ad/campaign. How exactly do you envision your product/service in the consumer’s life after they’ve seen your advertising? This section should be one sentence only.  It helps to start the objective with “To….”
3. Who are we going to connect with? This is the audience: The viewers you seek to reach are known as your target audience.  Knowing your target -- their lifestyle choices, beliefs, values, education, careers, family size, likes, dislikes, and more -- is a critical aspect of creating a targeted and strategic advertising campaign. With whom are you engaging? Demographic – age, sex, income, marital status. Psychographic – interests, aspirations, lifestyle, habits, tech-savvy, other. These details can provide great insights to the creative team that can help them gear the ad specifically for that audience. For instance, creatives can pick up on lingo the target uses, reference specific locations the target is familiar with, or empathize with their family dynamic. Establish their relationship with the product. But don't stop there. Think about their lifestyles and mindsets as a whole. Give a comprehensive view of who they are, not just what demographic they fall into. Here you must bring your audience to life. Distill your information from there.
4. What is/are the insights that reveal how we can motivate our audience? This the insight. (To arrive at the insight you must do the fact/observation/insight method shown below): This is by far one of the most difficult sections of the brief to write. Think of this as an opportunity to get into your target's mindset. A few things to consider include how your audience feels about your product or service, the category, competitors, similar products, areas of their life that pertain to the product. This is one of the most important sections of the brief. Insightful is the key word here. It takes the description in the previous question and brings us to a place of intimate understanding of some aspect of the consumers' lives related to the brand/product we are working on. What can you write that provides a truly "beneath the surface" understanding of your audience? It’s usually a universal or human truth. A good insight shows a deep understanding of what motivates their target audience. Insight can come from anywhere – observation, patterns, even one compelling and true quote – but all insight requires a deep and true understanding of what motivates someone's thinking or behavior. One insight can be the basis of hundreds of ideas.
   
   One helpful way to describe “insight” is to give you an example of the difference between a fact, an observation, and an insight. You must write your insight using this method!
   
   Fact: people tend to feed their pets twice a day
   Observation: They tend to feed them at breakfast & dinnertime
   Insight: people feel guilty about eating in front of their pets
5. What is the single most persuasive idea we can tell them? This is the message/proposition: Also known as the single-minded proposition (SMP). Everything you have written in your brief thus far builds to this message. Make sure it doesn’t come out of left field. What can you say or do that will achieve your objectives and effectively drive action?  The SMP should also help people get over whatever frustration (if they have one) they may be feeling in the insight. While all of the components of the brief are important, this is considered by many to be the pinnacle of the brief. It's where you consider all of the research and information you've uncovered and boil it down into a single sentence. If you could tell the target only one thing that would convince them to learn about, consider, buy your product or service, or participate in an experience about your product or service, what would it be? It should strike a chord, relate to a need or desire, could be functional, emotional or both, but should spark a response from the person you are speaking to. Don't be vague. Provide a concrete, simple, clear idea. The more succinct the message, the easier to communicate. And remember to make it SINGLE MINDED. One sentence only!!
6. What else is there to know that supports this message? This is the reason(s) to believe: This is where you get to share your reasoning. Why does the product deliver the proposition? This section supplies the justification for your proposition. What product or brand benefits make the single most persuasive idea true? Always deal in facts. Is your price really lower? Do you really have an online system that makes life easier? Can the shampoo/body wash combo actually help people ration water? Turn attributes into benefits for the audience.  This should be facts to support your message. Don’t make this another message.