Hello, I'm Shannon Marie.

I'm a Brand Expert, Entrepreneur, Content Creator, and World Traveler with 15+ years in Product Development + Brand Strategy, including NIKE. I'm here to share insights with Brands & Creators to build and scale your business.

There are a few things that can give you a competitive edge as a UGC Creator, and one of those things is a professional Creative Brief.

What is a creative brief exactly? It's a series of thoughtful questions that serve as a guide to planning and developing creative work. It's a simple process with a huge payoff.

A robust creative brief can mean the difference between a slam dunk or an epic failure with your client.

After spending 6+ years at NIKE, working in Product Development and Strategy, I've created, pitched, and reviewed dozens of creative briefs.

Today we'll cover exactly what to include in your brief and how to distribute it to your client.

Questions to Ask

Asking the right questions is critical to the quality of your creative brief and your ability for you and the client to align on expectations and deliverables.

What is your brand name?

This sounds simple but will allow you to identify each of your client responses easily and make sure you are spelling the brand name correctly.

Tell me a bit about your brand mission + products.

This gives the client the ability to share insights that you may not get from their website or social media. Often brands have refined their mission or goals or have new products dropping that you wouldn't know about otherwise.

This info helps you create content that aligns with their brand mission while giving insights into where the brand is headed.

Who is your ideal target consumer?

Knowing who you are making content for is critical to the type of content you create. If your ideal target consumer is women in college, you will have a completely different approach than if their ideal consumer is women over 50.

Your job is to create a unique point of view that authentically connects with their ideal target consumer.

 Why should the audience buy your product over others?

Instead of trying to guess or make up unique storytelling points, let the client tell you their point of view. While it's not always the view you will use, it will either inspire you creatively or demonstrate the need for your help in this space.

What does success look like for your brand?

It's essential to set realistic expectations up front for both parties. If the client is expecting that success = your first video going viral - that is unrealistic and does not set you up for success.

Clients should be able to communicate what they want from a UGC Creator partnership. And if they are new and cannot yet articulate, it's up to you to communicate your value add.

PRO TIP: Realistic expectations include brand awareness (grow by X amount of followers # of likes, etc.) Increased sales (by $ or %) etc. Make sure you both are on the same page regarding what success looks like in your UGC partnership. It's a marathon, not a sprint.

Are there any specific brand guidelines to follow?

If you are working with bigger clients or clients that are super niche, they likely have brand guidelines. If they do, you need to know what they are so you can adhere.

Or, if they fill this section out with a "No," it gives you full creative control!

How do you plan on using your UGC content?

There's nothing worse than signing a contract with a client without clearly noting the usage rights. We've all done it at least once, and it sucks.

This is where the brand will let you know exactly how they intend to use your content. Most common is: Organic Use, Paid Ads, Digital Use, or any other specific use.

TRUE STORY: One of my UGC students did a gifted collab with a local med spa and didn't clarify the usage rights. She ended up on the front of all of their brochures. We don't want that to happen to you. 

How many videos would you like?

This a simple question, but let's make sure it's documented. This will also impact how much you will be charging.

If you offer photography, include this same question for photos.

What is your target delivery date?

This ensures you both are working towards the same date. It also lets you know if they want to "rush" a delivery. If they do, make sure you charge them for it - your time is valuable too!

How long would you like the videos to be?

This question is so overlooked! I don't know about you, but I definitely charge more for longer-form videos. Make sure you know the expectation of the client, so you understand the level of effort required on your end to create and deliver your content.

Would you like text overlay or captions?

Another simple question.

PRO TIP: I charge $35 more per video if this is requested. Why? Because you have to run the video through another app and take the time to manually update the text to ensure it's perfect.

Would you like background music?

Some clients want it; some do not. You need to know this before spending valuable time looking for commercial usage music.

Would you like me to talk to the camera?

Some clients expect it, and others prefer only to see their product. Make sure you know which is preferred. If they have no preference, then do what you do best!

Please provide links to at least 3 content examples you like

Many of your clients have saved videos they love and think could work well with their brand. Other clients save videos that have done well for their competitors.

Asking for examples helps you refine the scope of the content type and shooting style you may use.

PRO TIP: Take the best parts of these 3 videos and incorporate them into your content strategy.

Is there anything specific you need me to say?

Sometimes, your client has specific phrases or words they want you to use. If so, you want to include these when writing your content.

Any other information you'd like to include?

This a final catch-all question in case there is something else they'd like for you to know or include that we didn't cover in our brief.

These are the exact questions I use in my creative brief but feel free to add any other questions you see fit!

Creative Brief Design

Now that you know the contents of your brief, you get to create it! I suggest using Google Forms or TypeForm.

Click here to use Google Forms

Click here to use TypeForm

Create your form and add your logo, fonts, and brand colors, so it's super professional.

Use text boxes, checkboxes, and multiple choice to make it quick and easy for your clients to fill out.

Next Steps

Congratulations! You have officially created your Creative Brief and are ready to start making a big impression on your clients.

Now what?

Whether you use Google Forms, TypeForm, or another form, you can generate a link that can be sent directly to the client.

Once I know a client is interested, and before meeting with them, I send them the link creative brief form via email and ask them to fill it out. In some cases, clients have their own creative briefs, but I have found that they usually lack critical info.

Once they have filled out and submitted the brief, you will get an email with all the info you need! Now you can set up a meeting or follow up via email to close the deal!

The results from your Creative Brief serve as input to your Content Creation Contract and your Content Creation Strategy.

Have a topic or burning question? Email me at [email protected], and I will include it in a future post!

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