Better briefing, with Baxter & Bailey

For some people, a creative brief is a dull but necessary part of the creative process. For others, a creative brief doesn’t even feature in their creative process at all. Matt and Dom, co-founders of design studio Baxter & Bailey, think these people are seriously underestimating one of the most powerful tools in the creative toolbox.

A considered and well-structured brief provides those reading it with the insight and inspiration they need to properly, and purposefully, respond to your need. To provide you with the solution to your problem.

Over the course of this 90 minute session, we’re going to deconstruct the core components of the creative brief — drawing from the evidence and experience Matt, Dom and their team have developed shaping briefs with partners ranging from the Royal Mail to MyMaths. We’ll pull the brief apart to work out what separates a good brief from a great brief. Because, after all, how can we possibly make great work without a great brief?

We’ll be talking about purpose, and how to distil it. We’ll be discussing the audience and how to bring them to life. And we’ll investigate what on earth the "liberating nature of constraint" is, and why it’s a good thing.

By the end of the session, you'll have a set of practical, hands-on ideas that will help you turn a humble, often-reviled document into creative rocket fuel.

What we’ll cover

• The client brief and the creative brief, and the difference between them.
• The distillation of purpose into something concise, meaningful and inspiring.
• How active language and creative description can bring your audience to life.
• Practical standards, technical standards and creative standards, and the difference between them.
• How to use the brief to combat client subjectivity.
• How the creation of a brief can be a creative act in its own right.

How the session will be structured:

Expect a lively and engaging session, with instruction and examples as well as conversation, activities and the opportunity to ask questions and discuss ideas.

Who the session's for:

Anyone involved in the production of a creative brief: from agency side to client side. The session is practical and has real world application at its heart. You’ll come out of this with some useful, hands-on tips and ideas to put the boom back into your brief writing.