Content Brief
Talk through the piece — hand your writer a brief, not a vibe
What it makes
content brief
Creative
Real output
A rambling ask, briefed
A landing-page ask recounted off the cuff — a self-correction on the content type, an open benefit count, a product-name mandatory, and a CTA.
What you said
alright so this is for the Nimbus launch, we need a, okay so originally I was thinking a blog post but actually no, let's make it a landing page, the landing page for the new analytics dashboard. the whole point is to get people to start a free trial. um so it should explain what the dashboard does, the main thing, the hook, is real-time data without the setup headache. and then like the three or four key benefits, real-time, no code setup, and it plays nice with the tools they already use. oh and we have to use the actual product name, it's Nimbus Pulse, two words, not just Nimbus. the call to action is start your free trial. keep it tight, it's a landing page not an essay. they want it live for the launch which is the fifteenth.
What you got
Objective
A landing page for Nimbus Pulse, the new analytics dashboard. The goal is to get people to start a free trial.
Angle & Key Message
Real-time data without the setup headache.
Key Points
- What the dashboard does
- Real-time data
- No-code setup
- Works with the tools they already use
Format & Length
Landing page. Keep it tight — not long-form.
Must Include & Avoid
- Product name is Nimbus Pulse (two words) — use this name throughout; do not shorten to "Nimbus"
- Call to action: Start your free trial
- Cover three or four key benefits: real-time, no-code setup, and integrates with existing tools are named; confirm whether a fourth is wanted
Timing
Live by the fifteenth (launch date).
Assumptions
- Benefit count open — "three or four" indicated; three are named (real-time, no-code setup, plays nice with existing tools); confirm whether a fourth is wanted.
- Reader not specified — assume prospective users or buyers evaluating the product; confirm.
- Tone not stated — assume concise and direct, fitting a landing page context; confirm any brand voice requirements.
Why it’s better
The self-correction resolves cleanly — "a blog post — no, a landing page" keeps only the landing page — and every must-include lands: the Nimbus Pulse name (two words), the real-time-without-setup hook, the start-your-free-trial CTA, the fifteenth. The open "three or four" benefit count is kept and flagged rather than silently settled, and the one thing you didn't give — the reader — is surfaced under # Assumptions instead of invented.
A vibe stays a vibe
An invention-bait ask — a richly-described luxury brand but almost no concrete brief — the kind of input that tempts a tool to fabricate a reader, an angle, and a tone.
What you said
okay so I just got off a call with the new client, they're a high-end watch brand, like properly luxury, handmade Swiss movements, the kind of thing that costs more than a car, everything about them is heritage and craftsmanship and quiet status. I want us to do a piece of content for them, honestly something that just captures that whole world, that feeling of timeless luxury and exclusivity. it should really resonate with the kind of person who buys these things. let's make it sing and set the tone for the brand. I'll send over more specifics later but wanted to kick this off.
What you got
Objective
A piece of content for a high-end watch brand — handmade Swiss movements, heritage and craftsmanship, quiet status, luxury positioning. The piece should set the tone for the brand.
Assumptions
- Content type not specified — "a piece of content" is named with no format given (blog post, brand editorial, social post, landing page, campaign copy, etc.). Confirm format before writing.
- Reader not specified — the brand is characterized (luxury, heritage, quiet status) but no reader is named for this piece. Assume prospective buyers; confirm.
- Angle not specified — "captures that whole world" and "set the tone for the brand" convey an intent but no hook, thesis, or core message is given. Angle is open; confirm before writing.
- Tone not specified — no tone words are given for the piece itself. Confirm before writing.
- Length and structure not specified — no word count, format shape, or structural direction given. Confirm before writing.
- Channel or placement not specified — where this piece lives (website, social, press, campaign) is unstated. Confirm; channel will affect length and format.
- Timing not specified — no deadline or publish date given. Confirm.
Why it’s better
The brand description stays at your altitude in the Objective, and the things you didn't give — the content type, the reader, the angle, the tone, the length, the deadline — are each named under # Assumptions rather than invented. It doesn't derive an "affluent collector" reader or a "sophisticated" tone from the fact that it's a luxury watch; it flags what's missing so the brief is honest about what still needs confirming.
What comes back
- It scales to the ask: a quick social post comes back short; a full case study comes back with the whole section set.
- Self-corrections resolve cleanly — "a blog post — no, a landing page" keeps only the landing page; an open count like "three or four benefits" is kept and flagged, not silently settled.
- Must-includes and do-nots are captured exactly — a stat to cite, a verbatim quote, an SEO keyword, a topic that is off limits.
- What you didn't give — a reader, an angle, a word count, a deadline — is flagged under # Assumptions, never invented to fill the brief.
What you can count on
- Never invents — no reader, angle, key point, word count, or deadline you didn't state; a vague "make it good" stays at your altitude with the gaps flagged, not turned into a fabricated spec
- An unstated reader or tone isn't guessed from the product — a luxury brand doesn't become an "affluent, design-conscious" reader or a "polished, sophisticated" tone; the gap is flagged for a steer
- Every open question — a missing reader, an undefined length, a loose deadline — is surfaced under # Assumptions, so nothing reaches the writer as a silent guess
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Spoken direction into a structured brief for writers.
Content Brief turns rough spoken direction for a single piece of content — a blog post, landing page, email, case study, social post — into a structured brief a writer can run with: what it is and what it's for, who's reading, the angle and the one thing it should land, the points to cover, the length and shape, the tone, what to include or avoid, and when it's due. It does the discipline a good content lead does by hand: it captures only what you actually said, keeps your direction at your altitude ("keep it practical" stays "practical" — it won't invent a word count or a thesis), preserves a must-include or a do-not exactly, and routes every gap — a missing reader, an open angle, an undefined length — to an Assumptions list the writer can confirm, instead of fabricating it. A vague "a blog post about the launch, make it good" comes back as an honest brief that names what's still missing; a fully-specified case study comes back fully structured. You talk; your writer gets something they can write from.
Best for
- Briefing a writer or freelancer — talk through the piece and get a structured brief they can write from without a follow-up call
- Turning a rambling "we need a landing page, real-time data is the hook, use the product name, live by the 15th" into one clean brief with the angle, key points, mandatories, and timing
- Kicking off content on the move — between meetings, on the drive back — into something a writer can pick up
- Capturing the must-includes and do-nots (a stat to cite, a verbatim quote, an SEO keyword, a topic to avoid) exactly as stated, so nothing gets lost between you and the writer
Not for
- Briefing a whole campaign of assets (video, ads, design) — reach for Campaign Brief; Content Brief briefs one piece of writing
- Recapping a call or meeting that already happened — reach for Client-Call Recap or Meeting Notes; this briefs a piece going forward
- A generic single task to hand off, or a spec for your own dev team — reach for Delegate or Developer Elite
Using it
How it works
- Just talk through the piece — what it is, who it's for, the angle, the points to hit, how long, the tone, any must-includes, the deadline. Ramble; it organizes it.
- It always leads with # Objective, then adds Reader, Angle & Key Message, Key Points, Format & Length, Tone & Voice, Must Include & Avoid, and Timing only when you gave them — no empty sections.
- It keeps your direction at your altitude — "keep it practical" stays "practical", and a reference like "make it feel like the Stripe blog" is kept in your words, not turned into a spec it invented.
- Where you were vague — no reader, no angle, an open length — it picks a sensible default and surfaces it under # Assumptions for you to confirm, instead of quietly making it up.
Try saying
- blog post for the Brightpath blog, for HR managers at mid-size companies, the angle is async work doesn't have to hurt team culture, cover the fear that remote teams drift apart, a couple of rituals that keep people connected, and how our tool helps, keep it practical and friendly, around 800 words, due next Thursday
- landing page for the Nimbus Pulse analytics dashboard, the hook is real-time data without the setup headache, cover real-time, no-code setup, and it works with your existing tools, use the full name Nimbus Pulse not just Nimbus, CTA is start your free trial, keep it tight, live for the launch on the fifteenth
- case study on how Halford Logistics used Vertex, for operations directors, before-and-after, they cut planning time sixty percent, cite that number and use the quote we got our evenings back from their ops lead Dana Reyes, work in the keyword route optimization software, don't mention the pilot that fell through, professional but human, twelve hundred words
Tips
- Say the must-includes out loud — "cite the 60% number", "use the quote verbatim", "work in this keyword", "don't mention X" — and they land exactly under Must Include & Avoid.
- It's fine to be vague on the reader or tone — "for small business owners", "keep it friendly" stays exactly that; Content Brief won't invent the specifics, it flags them for you to confirm.
- Briefing a whole campaign of assets rather than one piece? Reach for Campaign Brief instead — Content Brief is built for a single content deliverable.