\u201cWe need a campaign.\u201d \u201cLet\u2019s do an event.\u201d \u201cWe need an activation.\u201d \u201cHow about building an app?\u201d Almost all of these requests share the same first step: the brief. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
In day-to-day marketing, phrases like these tend to show up as the starting point for new projects. The problem is that, more often than not, they don\u2019t present the challenge. They already present the answer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And when the solution comes before the problem, creativity starts out with less room to explore.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
That doesn\u2019t mean a campaign, an event or an activation is a bad choice. The real question is whether it is, in fact, the best answer to what the company needs to transform. After all, it\u2019s entirely possible to execute a solution perfectly and still solve the wrong problem.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
An effective brief shouldn\u2019t start with the deliverable. It should start with the context.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
These questions help turn a request into an opportunity for investigation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe need to create an activation to increase store traffic,\u201d for example, already defines a big part of the path. But realizing that a significant number of people move through the space without engaging with a particular category opens up a far more interesting discussion: how can we make this journey more relevant?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n An activation may still be the answer. But now it\u2019s one possibility among many \u2014 not a decision made before the problem was understood.<\/p>\n\n\n\n There\u2019s an important difference between giving direction and dictating the solution. A good brief needs to be clear about the challenge, the audience, the objectives, the context and the constraints. At the same time, it should leave room for the team to question assumptions and explore different paths.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It\u2019s precisely this combination that can make the creative process more powerful.<\/p>\n\n\n\n When the brief says \u201cdo X to achieve Y,\u201d the discussion tends to focus on how to do X as well as possible. When it says \u201cwe need to achieve Y because this is the scenario we\u2019re facing,\u201d the question becomes \u201cwhat\u2019s the best way to get there?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n It may seem like a small difference, but it can completely change the outcome.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The solution might lie in a physical experience, in content, technology, service, communication, environment, journey or a combination of different possibilities. The format stops being the starting point and becomes a consequence of the strategy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n With whoever is on the other side.<\/p>\n\n\n\n A good experience doesn\u2019t come only from what the brand wants to communicate or offer. It needs to take into account the context of the people who will live it. What do they expect? What could create friction? What\u2019s relevant at that moment? What role does the brand play in that journey?<\/p>\n\n\n\n When these questions make it into the brief, the project stops being just about a deliverable and becomes about a transformation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This perspective also helps avoid one of the most common mistakes in experience projects: creating something interesting for the company but not very relevant to people.<\/p>\n\n\n\n An idea can be beautiful, innovative and technically flawless. But if it doesn\u2019t respond to a real need or doesn\u2019t make sense in that context, it\u2019s unlikely to be a good experience.<\/p>\n\n\n\nA good brief opens up possibilities<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
So where does experience come in?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
The brief doesn\u2019t need to come with a ready-made idea<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n