Why a Strong Design Brief Is Crucial for Project Success

You've probably heard the term 'design brief' thrown out several times, but you may need clarification on what that even means. If you plan to work with a designer on any content, especially web design, you must create one. It's a blueprint and a handful of supporting documentation and information to guide the design process. It has even been said that "Designing without a design brief is like playing charades."

What Is a Design Brief?

A design brief is a document created by a client or employer and given to a designer outlining the requirements for a design project. It usually includes information about the project's background, purpose, goals and objectives, target audience, and timeline.

The brief serves as an agreement between both parties and should be clear and concise to ensure everyone understands what is expected of them.

A well-written design brief helps ensure the project runs smoothly, saves time, and produces successful results. Providing detailed instructions in advance of the project's beginning and design thinking process allows designers to get started quickly with minimal confusion or misinterpretation.

Elements of a Design Brief

Difference Between a Design Brief and a Creative Brief

Even though both the design brief and the creative brief are crucial for the design process, they serve two different purposes.

At the same time, a creative brief captures the essence of a project's strategy and vision, and a design brief delves into the specifics, objectives, and requirements of the design.

Therefore, a design brief works together with a creative brief. More detailed roadmap for the design team.

The Importance of a Design Brief: Why You Need a Design Brief

Any design project that aspires to success must have a design brief. A design brief is the foundation for a project's success, and its goals and objectives set clear expectations, along with any limitations that may apply.

Should be addressed starting with the objectives. Expectations should be reasonable and backed by a rational process for understanding the objectives. Design briefs cultivate collaboration among various stakeholders.

In the end, design briefs help organize and sort the various elements of the design project. This is important to ensure the project stays within budget and is delivered on time.

Benefits of a Strong Design Brief

Focused design briefs offer many advantages, such as:

1. 1.

   Design team gets a better understanding of the project

2. 2.

   Stakeholder communication becomes more effective

3. 3.

   Waste of time and resources is minimized, as misunderstood design briefs are avoided

4. 4.

   The design team can deliver the end product of the design that the client wants

5. 5.

   Expectation is seen more clearly, so scope creep is managed

6. 6.

   Collaborating among stakeholders becomes easy

Who Should Create a Design Brief?

Every design project needs to have a design brief. It needs to help the design team adjust goals, manage time, and, financially, adjust the budget to inform the brief.

The brief needs someone with a clear understanding of the design cycle and the client's or company's objectives. Often this is a designer, but also a marketer or product person. They understand the audience best.

Source: Marten Bjork on Unsplash

In fact, marketing- or design-wrapped stakeholders' heads are essential to cover the design brief fully.

How Do You Write Design Briefs?

5 Key Things to Include in a Design Brief

A design brief should include a clear description of the design project, its goal and objectives, the target audience and their needs and preferences, a timeline, an indication of the budget, and any special considerations.

The design brief should also include examples of similar work done in the past and any specific requirements from the client, such as required fonts or color palettes.

A good design brief will provide the design team with all the information they need to create a successful design that meets all the criteria set out in the brief.

Additionally, a designer must be able to communicate effectively with their client, so a detailed but concise brief outlining the project expectations can help ensure both parties are on the same page throughout the process.

Elements that Design Brief covers

Step 1: Determine the Goals and Objectives of the Design

Of course, a design with a clear goal or objective has more merit. It's essential to state the design goal and what you hope the design work will accomplish. This way, the designer or web design agency will know what role this design fills in the grand scheme.

For example, you might need a new website design to portray a new brand image. Getting a new design is probably a good idea if you've got a new logo, slogans, or color palette. Ensure you're clear with your designer on the project's purpose.

Step 2: Communicate the Project Budget and Timeline Requirements

When creating a design brief, it is essential to include the time a designer has to complete a job and the compensation they will receive. This is a must for every kind of work, in every kind of industry.

Still, each designer needs to know these particulars to decide whether to take on this project or move on to something else.

Assigning a dollar value to each deliverable in the design brief will help eliminate the disparity between a designer's anticipated value and the client's perception of that value.

These values, when fully developed, help clarify situations in which a designer is perceived to have set an irrationally low price. In contrast, the client is perceived to have set an excessively high price.

Source: Kelly Sikkema on Unsplash

Step 3: Include Details About Your Target Audience

While this may not be as intuitively obvious as the first two, there is a good chance you have anticipated this as part of the design brief. However, it is not advisable to wait until the end of the project to mention that your design is intended for people over sixty.

Here, you wish to provide them with something extraordinary while leaving enough to the imagination. Conversely, something big pulls in a younger demographic. If you are hitting 40-hour-a-week workers, you want something easy to digest. After all, they may look away at any second.

Step 4: Get Clear About the Scope of the Design Project

Source: Towfiqu barbhuiya on Unsplash

One of the main benefits of a creative brief is that it can clarify the desired outcome. This is done more effectively through structures that optimize the budget to split deliverables from the budget, and provide them separately or together with the budget estimates.

In any structure, the deliverables hint at the design parameters the designer or design agency should follow for the project. It would be a pity for the designers to spend hours preparing print files only to find out they needed web design.

It would also be very problematic to presume you loved the design when, in fact, the fundamental working files that are needed to implement it are absent. These problems can easily be avoided when both parties agree on what the design brief should include and exclude.

Step 5: Include a 'Big Picture' Idea of how the Ideal Design Would Look

To ensure the commissioned design is successful, the designers need a comprehensive visual reference. Sketching the design with the precision required is impossible. If this were the case, a designer would be superfluous!

You can think of it like a producer humming a tune to guide a singing artist. You have distinct images in your mind. The designer knows how to bring it to life.

Source: Mark Fletcher-Brown on Unsplash

Step 6: Beware of Competition

All businesses face competition, and a competitor in another location is doing the same things we are. Understanding rival brands can inspire design that differentiates.

Designers should study competitors' successful designs, and unsuccessful ones, to inform the next creative brief. Understanding the client's competitors helps designers make better choices.

Understanding Your Brand and Audience

Brand Overview and Brand Guidelines

In a design brief, a brand overview is a very important element. Here, one would get information about a client's brand, what the brand stands for, the brand's mission, values, and what sets the brand apart.

In contrast, brand guidelines specify design features unique to the brand, logos, colors, typefaces, and graphics. With brand overview and brand guidelines, the design team will stay on the right track in designing within the client's brand identity and brand message.

Brand Overview should cover:

• A short explanation of the company and what it stands for
• Who the brand's target audience is and what the audience needs
• Brand differentiators and why the brand has the edge over competitors
• What the brand sounds like and what the brand's personality is like

The guidelines for the brand should include:

• A comprehensive brand style guide that states what is allowed and what is not before starting new projects
• General information on the brand's logos, including how to use them, how big they should be, and utilization guidelines
• Color specifications of the brand (hex codes and Pantone numbers), and general information on the brand's color palette
• What the brand uses for guidelines on pictures and images, including the style and tone

Some Design Brief Template

A Simple Design Brief Template

Design Brief Template

If you need help with how to start creating your brief, look at design brief examples or start with a good design brief template. This helps you get from knowing you need a brief to take action on creating one!

Design Brief Examples

A well-crafted design brief serves as a roadmap, ensuring that both the client and the designer are aligned on the project's goals, scope, and expectations. Here are a couple of examples:

1. E-Commerce Website Redesign

Objective: Revamp the existing online store to enhance user experience, increase conversion rates, and ensure mobile responsiveness.​

Scope:

• Current Challenges: High bounce rates on product pages and a complicated checkout process.​
• Deliverables: Redesigned homepage, product pages, and a streamlined checkout process.​

Target Audience: Tech-savvy individuals aged 18-35 who prefer shopping online.​

Budget: €15,000

Timeline: 3 months​

2. Non-Profit Organization Logo Design

Objective: Create a modern and memorable logo that reflects the organization's mission to support environmental conservation.​

Scope:

• Design Requirements: Incorporate elements of nature, use earthy tones, and ensure scalability for various mediums.​
• Deliverables: Primary logo, monochrome version, and favicon.​

Target Audience: Individuals passionate about environmental issues, aged 25-50.​

Budget: €2,500

Timeline: 6 weeks​

These examples demonstrate how design briefs can vary in detail and focus, depending on the project's nature and objectives. Crafting a clear and concise design brief is crucial for the success of any design endeavor.

FAQ

What Is The Meaning Of Design Brief?

A design brief is a document outlining a project’s goals, audience, scope, and deliverables that guides designers throughout the process.

How To Write A Design Brief Grade 7?

Explain what you’re designing, who it’s for, what problem it solves, and key requirements. Keep it clear, short, and focused on purpose.

What Is A Design Brief GCSE?

In GCSE Design & Technology, a design brief describes the problem, target user, and success criteria for a project you’ll plan and prototype.

Who Creates A Design Brief?

A client, teacher, or project manager usually writes the brief, but designers can refine it through research and discussion before work begins.

Read more

• What Is UX Data-Driven Design Process? Effective UX Analysis
• UX Strategy: Guide, Insights, Tips for 2026
• Why Good UI Design Is Necessary for Small Business

Conclusion

A design brief is primarily used to communicate between the client and the designer. It outlines the project's goals and the approach the designer should take.

This communication method uses clear, unambiguous, and succinct directives to guide project participants to the most important elements of the project's goal. The value of a design project is achieved when there is a match between the design brief and the projected outcomes.

This is a result of meeting the requirements of the design brief, including identifying the target audience, defining the goals and objectives, specifying the pertinent resources to be used, and other key factors.