This document provides an agenda and materials for a creative brief workshop. The agenda covers what makes great creative, how to create content and write effective creative briefs, and how to evaluate and provide feedback on creative work. The document includes examples of effective and ineffective creative from brands like REI and Comcast. It also covers best practices for writing creative briefs, including key components like objectives, context, and direction. Guidelines are provided for evaluating creative work based on principles of user experience and for giving constructive feedback to creatives.

1. CREATIVE BRIEF
WORKSHOP

2. Wacarra Yeomans Chris Baggott
Director, Creative Services Title
Responsys Compendium
@wac_intosh cbaggott@compendium.com
wyeomans@responsys.com

3. Agenda
• What makes great creative
• How to create great content
• What makes a great creative brief
• How to use a brief to evaluate creative
• Tips for giving creative feedback

5. What makes great creative?
Your brand
Call-to-action The inbox

6. How we read email

7. pop quiz
How many
pandas
do you see?

9. Example: REI

10. Example: Schwann’s
before after

11. Example: Comcast
before after

14. Personas
Jill Brown Behaviors & Culture Fears
Single Working Mom • Slightly unorganized • Feeling unaccomplished
• Very practical but easily flustered • Something bad happening
• Honest and sincere to her son
“There is always something • Passionate • Getting off task
to be done. I need tasks to
be simple and easy so I can Challenges Motivations
focus on the more important • Managing multiple tasks at once • Checking things off her
things in life, like my son • Coping when “life” happens and “to-do” list
goes against her “plan” •
Brady.” Quality time with her son
• Feeling accomplished
Known Information:
User Category: New Apartment
Tenant Sample Search Queries Needs & Expectations
• Apartments in safe • Simplicity
Age: 38
neighborhoods • Affordable housing options
Race: White • Affordable apartments in • Products and services that are
Education: Associate Degree St. Louis easy to understand and choose
• How to downsize living space • Anything that is in the best
Employment: Full time
interest of her son
Household Income: $40,000
Family: Divorced, Single mother

15. Customer Engagement Cycle
Stage Questions Asked
Awareness How can I find/fix/help __________?
Consideration What do I need to consider when purchasing
__________?
Inquiry What options/solutions does this company offer?
Purchase Why is it better to purchase from this company over
another?
Retention What would make me purchase from this company
again?

16. Topic Modeling

17. Topic Modeling

19. Editorial Calendar

22. Customer

23. Customer

24. Repurposed
Existing Content Repurpose Existing Content As:
News Releases • Rewrite in conversational tone and post on content hub
Video of CEO Annual • Post video on YouTube
Meeting • Convert audio to MP3 for downloadable or streaming podcast
• Transcribe speech and post on blog
Customer case studies • Create PowerPoint and post on SlideShare
• Record PowerPoint with voiceover as video and post on YouTube
• Post video (YouTube embed code) on content hub
Self-published articles • Rewrite in conversational tone and post as a month long blog series
• Combine similar articles into an eBook and write a post promoting it’s
download
Evergreen Content • Find content that has performed well before and link to it from a new piece
of content or promote it through social

25. FAQ

28. Demonstrating Content Value

31. Why briefs?
• Think about briefing as a process
and not just a document
• What are you trying to achieve?
• How does this project fit into your marketing
strategy?
• How can you ensure all parties are on the same
page?
– Nail down the strategy before someone even
opens photoshop or word
– Someone is designing, someone is doing copy, need to
break down silos

32. Why briefs?
• The Brief is the primary indicator that a goal
has become an actual project
• A way to document the project goals
• A document that can be referenced along the way
• There’s a lot of assumptions that someone
understands the nuance and detail that you’re not
communicating

33. 2 kinds of projects
1. Production: Campaigns that use the same
framework or template
• Briefs can be prescriptive
• Sometimes all that is needed is the new image and
messaging direction

34. 2 kinds of projects

35. 2 kinds of projects
2. AdHoc/New Program: A new program or
project that doesn’t follow an existing template
• Absolutely make recommendations and references
• Frame the ask as a visual problem to solve

38. Time to sketch
• Break into teams
• Review your assigned brief
• In your group, agree on a sketch or
wireframe of how you think this message
will look
• Be prepared to answer questions 

39. Exercise
• What kind of project was this? Production
or Adhoc?
• Was this brief effective in communicating
what you needed to sketch out the
campaign?
• What was missing?
• What was helpful?

40. Briefing a new Adhoc Project
Objective Context Direction
• How will we • Marketing • Identify the
know Strategy problem you
success? • Segmentation want solved
• Brand • Let your team
Guidelines decide the
• Reference “how”
The Briefing Document

41. Objective
Which of these is more clear?
• Drive conversions?
• We need to upsell hotels to people who
have purchased airlines.
• Currently 5% of our customers who
purchase flights also purchase hotels. We’d
like to see 10% by the end of this
campaign.

42. Objective
Objectives should include a measurable metric
– This clearly outlines expectations for the
projects
– Objectively enables you to determine if the
project was successful
– Gives the team a common goal to work toward
and guide their decisions.

43. Context
Sum up the overarching marketing strategy
• How does this project fit into the way we’re
talking to our customers in other programs?
• Are there materials that have already been
created that we should reference?
• Do we have previous performance metrics
we can refer to?

44. Context
Brand Guidelines
– Brand guides are like giving the creative team
a map to your organization
– Good brand guides should include:
• Messaging/Tone
• Color palette
• Font sizes/weights

45. Context
Examples/Reference
– Are there programs that your company has
already done that we should refer to?
– Do you have an example of a brand who has
accomplished your same goal?

46. Context
Segmentation
– With the proper marketing information
(demographics, etc..) your creative team can
craft a message to the appropriate segments.

47. Direction
• True direction requires trust
– It’s important to identify what problem this
project will solve and let your creative team
come up with the solution
• You can contribute Why and What, but you
have to let your team decide how
• If you can explain why your subscriber
should care, your creative team can tell that
story visually

48. 4 Components of a great brief
Objective Context Direction
• How will we • Marketing • Identify the
know Strategy problem you
success? • Segmentation want solved
• Brand • Let your team
Guidelines decide the
• Reference “how”
The Briefing Document

50. Creative Brief Checklist
 Dated title of email contact
 Target Audience  Summary of deliverables required
 Audience Profile where appropriate  Count of files
 Segmentation and Versioning, where appropriate  Description of files/format
 Subject Line Direction  Personalization Elements, where appropriate
 Primary Message Objectives  Objective
 Primary content objective: what do we want the  Simple
subscriber to do?  Field names and application
 Specific outcomes desired, when appropriate  Dynamic
 Traffic/Engagement to Online Experience X  Content Segment(s) names and application
 Traffic/Engagement to Retail Store Experience X  Field names and application
 Creative Input  Testing Elements, where appropriate
 Summary:  Objective
 Primary  Assets required for execution
 Secondary, where appropriate  Landing Experience(s):
 Tertiary, where appropriate  CTAs required, recommended, prohibited
 Promotional, where appropriate  Description of Landing Page requirements expected
 Preview, where appropriate from Online team
 Social, where appropriate  Product(s) recommendations and/or count
 Template considerations, (optional)  Category recommendations and/or count
required, recommended, prohibited  Seasonal Landing Page recommendation
 Images: (optional) required, recommended, prohibited  Email Specific Landing Page recommendation
 Agency-Generated Landing Page
 Copy: (optional) required, recommended, prohibited  Creative Direction (aligned with Email
 Disclaimers, where appropriate specifics, above + Landing Page requirements from
Online Team
 Recommended Product
 Individual product and/or product categories  Analytics Requirements
supporting messages

52. Time to sketch
• Break into teams
• Between yourselves come up with an
upcoming project that needs a brief
• What’s your objective?
• What context would you need to provide?
• How would you write direction for your
team?
• Be sure to keep the brief you write

53. 4 Components of a great brief
Objective Context Direction
• How will we • Marketing • Identify the
measure Strategy problem you
success? • Segmentation want solved
• Brand • Let your team
Guidelines decide the
• Reference “how”
The Briefing Document

54. Creative Brief Checklist
 Dated title of email contact
 Target Audience  Summary of deliverables required
 Audience Profile where appropriate  Count of files
 Segmentation and Versioning, where appropriate  Description of files/format
 Subject Line Direction  Personalization Elements, where appropriate
 Primary Message Objectives  Objective
 Primary content objective: what do we want the  Simple
subscriber to do?  Field names and application
 Specific outcomes desired, when appropriate  Dynamic
 Traffic/Engagement to Online Experience X  Content Segment(s) names and application
 Traffic/Engagement to Retail Store Experience X  Field names and application
 Creative Input  Testing Elements, where appropriate
 Summary:  Objective
 Primary  Assets required for execution
 Secondary, where appropriate  Landing Experience(s):
 Tertiary, where appropriate  CTAs required, recommended, prohibited
 Promotional, where appropriate  Description of Landing Page requirements expected
 Preview, where appropriate from Online team
 Social, where appropriate  Product(s) recommendations and/or count
 Template considerations, (optional) required,  Category recommendations and/or count
recommended, prohibited  Seasonal Landing Page recommendation
 Images: (optional) required, recommended, prohibited  Email Specific Landing Page recommendation
 Agency-Generated Landing Page
 Copy: (optional) required, recommended, prohibited  Creative Direction (aligned with Email specifics,
 Disclaimers, where appropriate above + Landing Page requirements from Online
Team
 Recommended Product
 Individual product and/or product categories  Analytics Requirements
supporting messages

56. Tips for evaluating creative
Objective Context Direction
• Will the creative • Does this solution • Does it fit your
solutions lead to make sense with “what” and “when”
us meeting our the rest of my criteria?
goal? consumer • Is there a solution
communications? to the problem we
identified?

57. Tips for evaluating creative
Use the 7 principles of user experience
• Hierarchy
• Utility
• Usability
• Aesthetics
• Identification
• Stimulation
• Value

58. 7 principles of user experience
Hierarchy
• Is the first element I see the most important
part of the message?

59. 7 principles of user experience
Utility
• Is this the right channel or delivery method
for this message?

60. 7 principles of user experience
Usability
• Does this email function like I would
expect?

61. 7 principles of user experience
Aesthetics
• Does this represent our brand?

62. 7 principles of user experience
Identification
• Can I identify myself with the product or
message?
Does it fit into my daily activities?

63. 7 principles of user experience
Stimulation
• Does the message give me inspiration?
Or wow experiences?

64. 7 principles of user experience
Value
• What’s in it for me?

66. HIERARCHY
On a scale of 1-10,
is the first element I see,
the most important one?

67. UTILITY
On a scale of 1-10,
is this the right
channel or delivery
method for this
message?

68. USABILITY
On a scale of 1-10, does this email function like I would expect?

69. AESTHETICS
On a scale of 1-10,
does this represent our
brand?

70. IDENTIFICATION
On a scale of 1-10,
can I identify myself with
the product or message?
Does it fit into my daily
activities?

71. STIMULATION
On a scale of 1-10,
Does the message give
me inspiration? Or wow
experiences?

72. VALUE
On a scale of 1-10,
what’s in it for me?

74. Critique
•Hierarchy
•Utility
•Usability
•Aesthetics
•Identification
•Stimulation
•Value

75. Critique
•Hierarchy
•Utility
•Usability
•Aesthetics
•Identification
•Stimulation
•Value

76. Critique
•Hierarchy
•Utility
•Usability
•Aesthetics
•Identification
•Stimulation
•Value

78. Giving Feedback: Copy & Design
• Assume every word, punctuation mark, color, font and
pixel are there for a reason before giving direction
• Let the team explain creative decisions
• The writer and designer are counting on you to make
sure the work meets business objectives
• Try to differentiate client direction from your personal
preferences (Both are valid! But in different ways)
• Ask questions and make suggestions, so the writer and
designer have a choice and trust your team
• Be specific about what isn’t working
• If there are more than a couple stickies or emails, TALK


79. Giving Feedback: Copy
• It looks easy, but it’s not 
• Give direction rather than rewriting
• Ask questions about word choice
• Keep the editing within the
copy discipline
– When typos happen,
it’s a reflection on the writer
• Include examples so the
writer can easily understand
what you’re looking for

80. Giving Feedback: Design
• At first glance, what are you immediately drawn to?
– In two seconds can you tell what this email is about?
– Do you look at the primary message first?
– Is a secondary message bolder and
carrying more visual weight?
• Be specific about what isn’t working
• Keep the end user in mind
– How will a subscriber interact
with this message?
• Decide whether your responses
are personal preference or
business objectives

81. Do’s and Don’ts
DON’Ts
• Say “I don’t like that”
• Stand over someone while they make changes,
unless you are invited
DO’s
• Keep the objective in mind – is this meeting the
objective?
• Think about your word choice when giving
feedback
• Be specific about what you’re looking for

83. Feedback
•Hierarchy
•Utility
•Usability
•Aesthetics
•Identification
•Stimulation
•Value

84. Feedback
•Hierarchy
•Utility
•Usability
•Aesthetics
•Identification
•Stimulation
•Value

85. Feedback
•Hierarchy
•Utility
•Usability
•Aesthetics
•Identification
•Stimulation
•Value

87. Exercise!
• Find your team’s original brief
• Share it with the team next to you
• As a group, you have 7 minutes to come up
with a wireframe for the project

88. Exercise!
• Now use the 7 principles of user
experience to evaluate the wireframes

89. Exercise!
• For our final exercise, let’s practice giving
feedback!

92. Thanks!
Wacarra Yeomans Chris Baggott
Director, Creative Services Title
Responsys Compendium
@wac_intosh cbaggott@compendium.com
wyeomans@responsys.com