Are You Briefing Your Designers Badly?

April 7, 2022

“Branding is what people say about you when you are not in the room.” This resonating quote is just one of many that underlines the importance of design when it comes to business. Anyone with a successful company knows that your visual presentation is crucial to attracting and retaining an audience as well as to telling the right story about your brand. That is just one of the many reasons why designers play such a vital role in organizational development. The creatives who handle your logo, website, videography, images, advertising, animations, icons, presentations, branding templates and marketing collateral are responsible for reflecting your brand messaging to the outside world at just a glance. Their job is to ensure that this done correctly, effectively and consistently. So why are far too many clients making their job harder? Yes, we mean you. You might not think it, but you are probably part of the problem.

Whether you have an in-house design team or outsource your visual needs to a freelancer or design agency, briefing mistakes can be costly, both in terms of time and money. For those without a ‘creative’ background, it can be tough to understand the creative process and why there are central aspects to ensuring its success. Ultimately, the more effectively you can work with your designers, the better the product they will give you. They will work quicker and be more innovative if you give them the tools they need and the environment to work. So how can you improve the way you brief your designers to ensure you get the best value for money? We break down the DOs and the DON’Ts for you…..

Red Flags

If you only take away a small portion of the points in this article – trust us – these are the ones to take. You must know these three things BEFORE you brief a design team:

Know what you want

Simple, but true. That doesn’t mean you have to have a vision of the design you are looking for (that is the designer’s job after all), although do share any ideas you have had if they might help. It means that you need to have a proper understanding of what the objectives of the project are, what is the strategy behind it, what collaterals will you need, what story are you trying to tell, who is the desired audience etc.? The more you can inform the designers, the more likely they are to achieve the concept you want.

Know who the decision makers are

That might sound obvious but you’d be surprised at how many companies struggle to identify this or fail to have an efficient chain of command when it comes to finalizing the creative process. No matter who will be coordinating the design project, you need to ensure that they have direct and regular access to the ACTUAL person with whom the final decision rests. Guessing how a manager will feel about a draft or sketch idea isn’t the same as knowing and letting a designer spend hours, days or even weeks, working on a concept that hasn’t been 100% approved is a waste of everyone’s time. It is also worth bearing in mind that the closer the designer can be to the decision maker, the better results you will get as they can hear the vision ‘from the horse’s mouth’ so to speak, which will help them more accurately capture the ultimate aim.

Know the value of the work being done

It won’t come as a surprise to you to hear the phrase ‘you get what you pay for’. The trouble is that most people struggle to understand this is a concept that also applies to the creative industry. Designers, content creators, photographers and performers are not that different from other fields, the less you pay, the lower the quality you can expect. Top performing creatives are that way because they have built up a wealth of experience and understand how to bring to life the visuals and designs that will achieve your goals. When you understand the value of that experience and the time, effort and creativity it takes to produce the things you need, you can recognise why it might take a significant investment from your side. Not anyone can ‘photoshop something’ especially in such a competitive marketplace, so if you want to stand out, you need the best and the best isn’t cheap.

Briefing Checklist

Think you are ready to brief your designers now? Well, just before you go, have a quick go through this Designer Checklist to make sure you have everything covered.

Do you have a vision for the project and is the right person able to communicate that to the designer directly?
Do you know what your desired outcome is for the project and what objectives you hope to achieve?
Have you identified your budget for this project and is it realistic given the scope of work required and the caliber of designer needed?
Are you able to provide the designer with a proposed timeline that takes into account the accurate amount of time it will take to complete certain aspect of the work?
Does the decision maker and the project coordinator understand the design process and how much effort and talent is involved (therefore preventing them from having unrealistic expectations about output etc.)?
Have you internally confirmed the accuracy of any information or facts that are to be included in the design work? Seemingly small changes to a layman can be quite consequential to a designer and costly to a budget. You need to make double sure that company information is in order before design work is concluded

The key to getting the most value out of design projects is to recognise that the more support and information you give creatives, the better outcome you will get. If you are unsure about briefing or if you have everything you need, ask. As with almost every aspect of business, the more effectively, honestly and openly you can communicate, the better off the results will be. Designers will be the first to tell you what it is they need, so don’t be afraid to communicate upfront that you are unsure of how to proceed, they can guide you to a more successful partnership that will get you the results you want.

If you would like to talk to our creative team about how to get the most out of your design needs, you can get in touch on john@serindipityevents.com or 050 5944226 today. They can even help you out with briefing suggestions……😉