You've got a design project. Maybe it's a new logo, a website redesign, or marketing materials for a product launch. You know what you want — or at least you think you do. But when it comes time to explain it to a designer, suddenly everything feels murky.
This is where a design brief comes in. And no, you don't need to be a designer to write one. You just need to be willing to think clearly about what you're trying to achieve.
What Is a Design Brief, Really?
A design brief is a document that tells a designer everything they need to know to create something you'll love. It's not a wish list. It's not a detailed specification. It's a communication tool that bridges the gap between the vision in your head and the work a designer can produce.
Think of it as giving directions. You wouldn't just say "meet me somewhere nice." You'd give an address, maybe mention landmarks, explain what you're looking for in a venue. A design brief does the same thing — it gives the designer a destination and helps them understand why you want to go there.
The Essential Elements
Every good design brief covers these areas. You don't need to write an essay for each one — a few clear sentences often work better than paragraphs of detail.
1. Project Overview
Start with the basics. What are you creating? A logo? A website? A set of social media graphics? Be specific. "Marketing materials" could mean almost anything; "three Instagram carousel posts and a LinkedIn banner for our product launch" tells the designer exactly what to deliver.
Also explain why this project exists. What's driving it? Are you launching something new? Rebranding? Trying to reach a different audience? This context shapes everything that follows.
2. About Your Business
Designers can't create work that represents your business if they don't understand it. Include:
- What you do (in plain language, not marketing speak)
- Who you serve
- What makes you different from competitors
- Any existing brand guidelines or style rules
Don't assume the designer will research this themselves. Give them what they need.
3. Goals and Success Metrics
This is where many briefs fall short. "I want a nice logo" isn't a goal. "I want a logo that looks premium and appeals to executives in the financial sector" is getting closer. "I want a logo that helps us charge 20% more because clients perceive us as more established" — now we're talking.
What does success look like for this project? How will you know if the design worked? The clearer you are about outcomes, the better the designer can optimise for them.
4. Target Audience
Who is this design for? Not you — your customers, your clients, your users. Describe them:
- Demographics (age, location, profession)
- What they care about
- What problems they're trying to solve
- What kind of visual style resonates with them
A design that appeals to millennial startup founders will look very different from one targeting retired executives. The designer needs to know who they're designing for.
5. Style Direction
This is where you share your aesthetic preferences, but be careful — vague terms like "modern" or "clean" mean different things to different people.
Instead, show examples. Find 3-5 designs you like (from competitors, from other industries, from anywhere) and explain what you like about each. "I like this one because the colours feel energetic" or "This layout feels organised without being boring."
Also mention what you don't like. "We hate designs that look like insurance companies" is genuinely useful information.
6. Practical Requirements
Cover the technical details:
- File formats needed
- Dimensions or sizes
- Where the design will be used
- Any technical constraints (file size limits, printing requirements)
- Timeline and key dates
- Budget (at least a range)
Common Mistakes to Avoid
Being too vague. "Make it pop" and "I'll know it when I see it" are frustrating for designers and often lead to endless revisions. Push yourself to be specific, even when it feels uncomfortable.
Being too prescriptive. On the other extreme, don't tell the designer exactly what to create pixel by pixel. You're hiring them for their expertise. Give them room to bring solutions you wouldn't have thought of.
Forgetting stakeholders. If multiple people need to approve the final design, mention this upfront. Better yet, have everyone aligned on the brief before work begins.
Skipping the 'why'. Designers make thousands of small decisions during a project. When they understand why you want something, they can make better decisions at every step.
A Simpler Approach
Writing a design brief from scratch can feel overwhelming. You're staring at a blank document, trying to pull all these details from your head, hoping you haven't forgotten something important.
There's an easier way. Instead of writing, answer questions. When you're guided through the right questions — about your project, your audience, your goals, your preferences — the brief writes itself.
That's exactly what we built at WeAlign. Our free brief creator walks you through a simple questionnaire, then uses AI to generate a professional brief you can send to any designer. It takes about 5 minutes, requires no design experience, and produces briefs that designers actually thank people for sending.
Final Thoughts
A good design brief isn't about having all the answers. It's about clearly communicating what you know, acknowledging what you don't, and giving the designer enough context to fill in the gaps intelligently.
The time you spend on your brief pays off many times over. Fewer revisions. Fewer misunderstandings. Better results. And a much more pleasant working relationship with your designer.
Whether you write your brief from scratch or use a tool to help, the principles are the same: be clear, be specific, and remember that you're writing to communicate, not to impress.
Your designer will thank you. And you'll get better design because of it.