The power of a visual brief

There’s a running joke in our office that Kate, Zoë and I are frustrated designers. Which is kind of true, but let me explain why we are not afraid of sharpening our pencils and getting the creative juices flowing. As account managers, Kate, Zoë and I often meet most regularly with clients to talk about and progress all the projects we’re working on with them and taking briefs for new design, web and marketing projects. We then digest all this information into a concise brief for the various deliverables that we then oversee with our creative whizzes Phil and Lara, and our clever web developer, Paul.

Our briefs invariable include our ‘thoughts’ on what would make a good solution to the problem – in the form of a wonderful (well, at least we think so) sketch or two! ‘We’re not saying it should look exactly like this’ we quip, but really we’re hoping they will take on board some of our creative input!

But joking aside, at the heart of our sketches is the desire to get the best results for our clients. We understand the value of a visual brief in addition to a written and verbal one. Often during the course of meetings or conversations with clients we sketch, mind map, doodle and list information relevant to projects, whether the designers are present or not. It’s by understanding all the little nuances in the information that we can deliver a really brilliant project, and since we’re all perfectionists (for our sins) we aim to do that for each and every project we work on. A few off the cuff client comments in a meeting can sometimes form the essence of the brief.

Visual tools also help us to complete our job more effectively. Sketching out a rough idea of an email newsletter, for instance, helps us steer the copy that we write for it and the ordering of the key messages. Mocking up a brochure and jotting down key themes and images to be used, helps us create a workable order for the information and provide the best possible chance of getting the right result, as well as informing conversations with the designers and clients about the best format for the brochure so we can ensure that the project is achievable in budget. We never charge straight in to the design, but instead spend the right amount of time planning with the designers so when they do put pencil to paper or mouse to screen they are heading in the right direction. The old phrase ‘failing to plan is planning to fail’ is certainly true with what we do.

We’re not the only ones who sketch – we often have a few ‘back of the envelope’ sketches from clients to help them articulate what they need and its really helpful, even if, as in the cases with some of our sketches, they bear no resemblance visually to what the designers come up with (which is, thankfully, always better than our efforts!). It’s the thought processes and key messages displayed in the sketches which is the bit that the designers latch on to.

So, if you’re putting a design brief together, my advice is not to feel restricted by the written word. Take a big blank sheet of paper and just write down and sketch everything that comes to mind. Add to that magazine cuttings, fabric swatches or computer parts (yes, really – this happened recently) and you’ll have a really useful starting point for the project, a mood board if you will. Our job is to decipher your musings and distil them into a fabulous, effective piece of creative. And that’s what we absolutely love doing.