A design brief is a short document that says what you want designed, where it will be used, who it's for, what the constraints are and who makes the final decision. Most extra revision rounds start with something nobody wrote down: a size that surfaces in round three, or a manager who sees the design after it's been approved.
Copy the template below and fill it in before you order any design, from a single post to a full identity. Revisions won't vanish, but they'll be about the design itself and no longer about facts you could have shared on day one.
The design brief template
Fill in the middle column. The last column is a hypothetical bakery ordering packaging, to show how specific you need to be.
| Item | What to write | Hypothetical example |
|---|---|---|
| The request | Exactly what's being designed, and how many | A sweets box in two sizes, plus a side label |
| Goal | The decision you want from the viewer | Pick this box as a seasonal gift |
| Where it's used | Every location, the smallest and the largest size | The bakery shelf, and product photos on phones |
| Audience | Who sees it, what builds or breaks trust | Someone buying a gift for a family visit, put off if the box looks cheap |
| Message | One sentence that must come through | Fresh sweets that make a respectable gift |
| Final content | Text and images as they'll appear | Name, ingredients and expiry date in Arabic and English |
| Competitors | Three or four, and whether to fit in or stand apart | Three nearby bakeries; we want to differ from their gold boxes |
| References | Examples you like and dislike, with reasons | We like this box's simplicity and dislike the heavy ornament on that one |
| Constraints | Anything that can't change | The current logo, two-color print, and our contracted box supplier |
| Delivery | File formats and source files | A print file to the printer's spec and an editable file |
| Date and rounds | End date and the agreed number of rounds | Two rounds, delivered three weeks before the season |
| Decision maker | One person's name | The marketing manager, who merges management's comments into one reply |
How to fill in the items behind most revisions
Six items deserve extra care, because a mistake in any of them can send the project back to the start.
Where it's used: size changes the design
List every location with its smallest and largest size. A logo that goes on a large shop sign and a phone icon needs different decisions from one that only appears on letterhead. If the designer learns about a new location at the end, the work may have to be redone.
Audience: write what builds trust and what destroys it
"The Egyptian market" doesn't help a designer make a single decision. Try something like "wholesale shop owners who deal with traditional suppliers," then add what might make them suspicious. They may read a very modern look as a new company with no track record, and that changes the direction of the design. If you haven't defined your audience yet, start with our article on brand strategy.
Competitors: decide where you stand
Send three or four competitors and answer one question: do you want to look like you belong in the category, or deliberately unlike it? Fitting in reassures customers they're in the right place. Standing apart makes you more visible and may take more explaining. This is a business decision, so don't leave it to the designer.
References: the reason matters more than the image
"Something elegant" has dozens of meanings. Send five examples you like and write under each what you like about it: the color, the empty space, the typeface. Add two you dislike with reasons, because they mark the edges of what you'll reject.
Constraints: state them on day one
List everything immovable: a color that has to stay, a name in both Arabic and English, a specific print material, a budget, a date tied to an event. A constraint revealed in round three can cancel the two rounds before it.
Content: send the final Arabic text
Don't commission a design with placeholder text and swap in something longer later. Text length changes the decisions, especially when Arabic and English share one space. If the work involves new colors and fonts, read our criteria for choosing colors and fonts for the Arabic market before approving them.
How to give feedback a designer can act on
Describe the problem you see and leave the solution to the designer at first. "Make the logo bigger" asks them to carry out your idea. "The logo is unclear from a distance" may get you a better answer than the one you had in mind.
| Instead of this | Write this |
|---|---|
| I don't like it | I can't tell what the service is at first glance |
| Make the logo bigger | The logo is unclear when the post appears small |
| Change the blue | This is very close to a well-known competitor's color |
| Simplify it | Too many things compete for attention, and the offer doesn't come first |
| Make it look premium | Our customers pay for quality, and this looks like the cheapest option |
Tie each comment to an item in the brief. A comment that doesn't trace back to the goal, audience or constraints may be personal taste, which is acceptable as long as you call it that.
Agree on what counts as a revision round
A round is one batch of merged comments, sent by the decision maker and then carried out by the designer. Comments from three people over three days can turn one round into three. Put these rules in the brief:
- One person collects comments and settles conflicts.
- Anyone who must see the design sees it in round one with everyone else.
- Comments are written down, and any call is summarized in writing afterward.
- Changing the request after approval counts as a new request with a new timeline.
- Reply times are set, because a late reply moves the delivery date.
Common design brief mistakes
- Asking for three directions with no reason: if the main decision is clear, ask for what serves it.
- A long brief nobody reads: one page usually covers a simple request. A full identity needs more.
- Forgetting the files you need: check the visual identity handover list before you agree.
- Rewriting the brief for every post: for recurring posts, build a social media template system with one brief.
Common questions
Who writes the brief, the company or the designer? The company holds the business facts, so it writes the draft. The designer reviews it and asks questions before starting, then both sides sign off.
How long does it take? That depends on the request. A single post can take minutes. A full identity may need a session with whoever sells and whoever decides, since the answers are spread between them.
How does it differ from a creative brief? A design brief focuses on visual outputs and their specifications. A creative brief usually also covers the campaign idea, messages and channels. In a small company, one document can do both.
Next step
Take the last design request that ran too long, fill in the template for it, and find the item that would have prevented the delay. Then use the template for every new request. If you're preparing for a full identity, these questions are where PlanKit's visual identity service begins.