Free template
Brand brief template
Decide who you are before anyone draws a logo.
This brand brief template covers what a designer needs before starting a logo or rebrand: what the business does and why, what's prompted the work, your customers, competitors, positioning, personality, what must stay, what you need made, likes and dislikes, budget and sign-off. Most of it is about strategy, not looks.
A designer who knows who you're for and how you're different can get to the right answer much faster.
At a glance
- What
- A 10-section brand brief in plain text, free to copy.
- For
- New businesses, and businesses planning a rebrand or a refresh.
- Price
- Free. No email or sign-up.
- Next
- Send it to us and we'll turn it into a written plan and a fixed price. We'll reply within the hour (working hours).
Ready when you are.
We'll reply within the hour (working hours).
Copy the brand brief template
Copy it into Google Docs, Word or an email. Short answers are fine, and blanks are better than guesses.
BRAND BRIEF
Business: [name] Date: [date] Contact: [name, email, phone]
1. THE BUSINESS
What you do, in one sentence:
Why the business exists, beyond making money:
Where you're going in the next few years:
2. WHY NOW
What's prompted this brand work (new business, growth, merger, new market, looking dated):
What isn't working about the current brand:
3. CUSTOMERS
Who you sell to, and who decides:
What they care about most when choosing a supplier:
How they'd describe you today:
How you want them to describe you:
4. COMPETITORS
Three businesses customers compare you with:
What each one does well:
How you're different:
5. POSITIONING
Finish the sentence: "We're the only [type of business] that [does what] for [whom]."
The one thing you want to be known for:
6. PERSONALITY AND TONE
Three words for how you want to come across:
Three words you never want to be:
Brands outside your sector whose tone you like:
7. WHAT STAYS
Anything from the current brand that must stay (name, colour, symbol, strapline):
8. WHAT YOU NEED
Logo, colours, typefaces, brand guidelines, templates, signage, packaging, website:
Where the brand will be seen most (online, print, vehicles, packaging, events):
9. LIKES AND DISLIKES
Brands you like the look of, and why:
Anything you don't want to see:
10. PRACTICALITIES
Budget:
Deadline, and any launch date it's tied to:
Who signs off the work, and when they can give feedback:How do you fill in a brand brief?
Start with the business and its customers. The visual sections are easier, and better, once those are clear.
- 1
The business
What you do in one sentence, and why it exists. If the team can't agree on this, sort that first.
- 2
Why now
Be honest about what isn't working. It tells the designer what problem the brand has to fix.
- 3
Customers
How they describe you now and how you'd like them to. The gap between the two is the brief.
- 4
Competitors
Name real ones. A brand that looks like everyone else in the sector is hard to remember.
- 5
Positioning
Fill in the one-sentence line. It will feel awkward, and that's the point: it forces a choice.
- 6
Personality
Three words you are, and three you're not. The "not" list is often more useful.
- 7
What stays
Anything with recognition worth keeping, so it isn't thrown away by accident.
- 8
Deliverables
List everything the brand has to work on, from the website to the van.
What makes a good brand brief?
A good brief makes choices. A brief that wants to appeal to everyone gives the designer nothing to work with.
- A clear customer.One main type of buyer, described the way you'd describe them to a new hire.
- A real difference.Something a competitor couldn't honestly say too.
- Honest problems.What's wrong with the current brand, in plain words.
- Practical uses.Where people will actually see the brand most often.
- One decision-maker.With feedback slots agreed before work starts.
How does Foundry use a brand brief?
We read it before the first call, so the session is about decisions rather than questions. We agree the positioning first, then design the identity around it.
You get a fixed price agreed before we start, a written plan after a short call, and feedback over WhatsApp or Slack rather than a ticket system.
Our averages. Not our best days.
Our averages
5days
Website, kick-off to live
3hours
Google Ads setup
4hours
Meta Ads setup
7days
To a first PR feature
20mins
Average reply timethis service
Brand brief template FAQs
What the business does and why, what's prompted the work, your customers, competitors, positioning, personality, what must stay, what you need made, likes and dislikes, budget, deadline and who signs off.
A brand brief is about who you are and how you come across. A website brief is about pages, content and features. Do the brand brief first if both are happening.
Yes. A logo designed without one is a guess. Even a one-page brief saves rounds of changes.
The person who will sign off the brand, with input from people who talk to customers every day.
That's useful to know early. A brand strategy session can settle positioning before any design starts.
Yes. Bring what you have to a call and we'll go through it together. We'll reply within the hour (working hours).
Related
Brief ready? Get moving.
Tell us what you need. We'll reply within the hour (working hours), and most websites go live about 5 days after kick-off.
We'll reply within the hour (working hours).
Or email hello@foundryagency.co.uk