The dreaded “I just want a brochure” syndrome.
In my travels around the country for the Association of National Advertisers teaching creative brief writing, marketers share their headaches about the document and the process. Near the top of the list: “I have trouble getting what I want so I end up just telling my ad agency/in-house design department to give me what I want.”
Who writes the best creative briefs?
If you want the best work possible from you creative partners, learn to speak their language. That language is on display in a well-written creative brief. Produce a creative brief even half as well done as the best creative briefs that agencies write, and I promise you’ll inspire your creative partners to respond in kind.
What’s the difference between a client brief and a creative brief?
Follow my podcast—The Brief Bros.—on Youtube. My partner Henry Gomez and I talk about creative briefs, briefing and advertising. I argue in my creative brief writing workshops for the ANA that the best brief writers work in the ad agency world. That’s where the discipline (account planning) and the document were born. Like all skill […]
SNEAK-PEEK BOOK EXCERPT
Howard Ibach’s new graphic textbook, How To Write A Single-Minded Proposition, is available in May. Already it has received critical raves from advertising and marketing professionals everywhere. He is also the author of the critically acclaimed text, How To Write An Inspired Creative Brief 2nd edition.
Book excerpt: Writing the creative brief is like developing a roll of film.
From How To Write An Inspired Creative Brief 2nd ed. The creative brief was designed to foster a common vocabulary, to define terms, avoid confusion, and ultimately save time and boat-loads of money. It’s a document around which we can all huddle, call signals and move down the creative field in unison. Okay, that was […]
Why I teach
I am both an adjunct college English instructor and a faculty member of the Association of National Advertisers’ School of Marketing. The first is about teaching young adults, the second about teaching marketing professionals, from junior to senior levels. Both require that I make a real connection. Truthfully, I don’t always know if or when that happens. […]
An excerpt from How To Write A Killer Single-Minded Proposition
The following is from the Introduction of the forthcoming book, How To Write A Killer Single-Minded Proposition. “You need a whole book to explain how to write one sentence?” a family member asked me. He was clueless about what I do for a living, but don’t blame him. The answer, in a word, is “Yes.” I […]
Navigate the seven C’s to write an inspiring creative brief.
The seven “Cs” for writing great creative briefs.
Why “I” is better than “we” on a creative brief.
After years of preaching that the creative brief is about the content, not the template, I’m about to commit heresy. I’ve changed my mind. But only a little. The creative brief template is just a set of questions, sometimes statements, requiring thoughtful responses. Emphasis on the word thoughtful. Now I think that is not enough. […]
Who is the real culprit behind bad creative briefs?
The people who screw up the creative brief are not likely to read this essay. That’s too bad. They need a serious talking to. The thing is, I don’t know who they are by name, but I do know their identities by title or role within a client’s organization. Notice I don’t mention ad agencies. While […]
