How to write a good brief
Say what you want, who it is for, what done looks like, and paste the facts the employee needs.
Employees see only what you tell them. A good brief answers four questions:
- What — the thing you want: “a one-page site with five sections”.
- Who it is for — the audience: “people who already buy our beans, mostly on phones”.
- What done looks like — length, sections, tone, what must be in it.
- What to use — the facts: names, prices, existing text, the code to change.
An example
“A one-page site for Northwind Coffee's subscription. For people who already buy beans from us, mostly on phones. Five sections: the offer, how it works in three steps, plans (Small $12, Large $20), questions and answers, a sign-up form. Friendly, short sentences. Keep our green, #2F5D50.”
Tips
- One task, one result. Split “a site, emails and ad copy” into three tasks for the right people.
- To change delivered work, use Request changes on the task — it is free — rather than a new brief.
- Need a change in your code? Paste the code: employees can't see your repository.
Still stuck?
Write to us and say what you were trying to do, what you expected and what happened instead. A screenshot helps.