Create your very own Auto Publish News/Blog Site and Earn Passive Income in Just 4 Easy Steps
Every editor knows the feeling of sitting in front of the computer, exasperated and internally screaming: “It would have been easier if I had done it myself.”
If your job is to commission and approve content, you know that frustrating feeling: Ten seconds into reviewing an article, it's obvious that the creator didn't understand (or understand) anything you told them never bothered to listen to him). As you delve deeper, your fingertips go from polite tapping to a digital river dance as your anger spills onto the keyboard. We've all been through this. That's why we drink. Or do yoga. Or practice voodoo.
In fact, even your best writer, designer, or audiovisual content creator can do a poor job. Maybe they had a day off. Maybe they are in a hurry to meet a deadline. Or maybe they just didn't understand the brief.
The first two excuses relate to the professionalism of the content creator. You can be grumpy about that. But if your content creator didn't understand the brief, then you as the editor are at least partly to blame.
Taking the time to create a thorough but concise brief is the biggest investment you can make in your work efficiency and sanity. The emotional contrast when a perfectly constructed piece of content lands in your inbox couldn't be greater. It's as if the sun broke through the clouds, someone released a dozen white doves, and the orchestra following you started playing the beautiful piece of “Madame Butterfly” – all at once.
This is what a good briefing does:
- This sets out your expectations clearly and succinctly (so be specific).
- It focuses the content creator's mind on the areas that matter most.
- It encourages the content creator to do a thorough job rather than a one-size-fits-all job.
- The result is more accurate and effective content (content that hits the mark).
- It saves hours of unnecessary work and stress during the editing process.
- It can mean the difference between profit and loss.
By giving content creators a thorough brief, they have the best possible chance of at least creating something that serves its purpose – even if it's not quite the way you would have made it. Give them too little information and there is almost no hope that they will give you what you need.
On the other hand, overloading your content creators with more information than they need can be counterproductive. I know an author who was given a 65-page sales deck to read as the backdrop for a 500-word blog post. If you do that, you risk several things happening:
- It's not worth it for the content creator to read it, so they don't.
- Even if they read it, there is a risk that they will miss the key points.
- They will charge you a fortune because they lose money with so much preparation.
- They will never work with you again.
It is important to find a balance.
It is important to find a balance.
Knowing how to give useful and concise short reports is something I learned the hard way in 20 years as a journalist and editor. What follows is some of what I find works well. Some of this may read like me teaching Grandma to suck eggs, but I'm surprised at how many of these points are often forgotten.
Who is the customer?
Provide your content creator with a half-page or one-page summary of the company:
- who is it
- What it does
- Who it serves
- What his story is
- Details of relevant products and services
Include the elevator pitch and other key messages so your content creator understands how the company positions itself and what type of language to include in the article.
Who is the audience?
Include a paragraph or two about the target audience. If a company has more than one target audience (e.g. a staffing company might have job candidates and recruiters), then be specific. Even one sentence will do, but don't leave your content creator in the dark. You need to know who the content is intended for.
What do you need to know?
This is where you tell your content creator what to create. Make sure you include three things:
- The purpose of the piece
- The angle at which to lead
- The message the audience should leave behind
In my opinion, it is helpful to provide links to relevant background information when it is available, especially if the information inspired or contributed to the content idea, rather than relying on content creators to find their own information. It can be frustrating when their research doesn't match your own or is worse.
How does the brand communicate?
Include all the information content creators need to ensure they are communicating in the authentic voice of the brand.
- Inflection: The easiest way to provide guidance about tone of voice is to provide one or two examples that illustrate it well. It's much easier for your content creators to emulate a specific example they've seen, read, or heard than to interpret vague terms like “formal,” “casual,” or “informative but friendly.”
- Design guidelines: Giving your content creator a style guide can save you a lot of effort. This is important for visual representations, but also for written content when you don't want to spend a lot of time converting “%” to “percent” or not capitalizing job titles. Summarize the main points or common mistakes.
- Examples: Examples aren't just good for tone; They are also handy for layout and design to illustrate how a piece of content should be submitted. This is especially handy if your template contains social media posts, meta descriptions, etc.
All elements in a documented summary
Here are nine basic things that every single job requires:
- Title: What do we call this thing? (A working title is fine so everyone knows how to refer to this project.)
- Client: Who is it for and what do they do?
- Deadline: When is the final content due?
- The order itself: What is the angle, message and editorial purpose of the content? Indicate who the audience is here.
- Specifications: What is the word count, format, aspect ratio or running time?
- Template: How and where should the content be stored? To whom?
- Contact information: Who is the commissioning editor, the client (if applicable) and the talent?
- Resources: What blogging template, style guide, key messages, access to image libraries, and other elements are required to create and deliver the content?
- Fee: What is the agreed price/tariff? Not everyone includes this in the briefing, but it should be included if appropriate.
Depending on your business or the type of content, you may also need to provide other important information here. Put everything together in one template and make it the front page of your brief.
Prepare your briefs well in advance
It's entirely possible that you're reading this and internally screaming, “If I did all that, I could have written the damn thing myself.”
However, much of this information does not change. You can document the background of a company and its target audience well in advance, and the way they speak won't change. You can combine all of these resources into a one or two page document, add some high-quality previous examples, add the templates you need, and you're good to go! They've created a short, useful briefing package that you can provide to any new content creator on demand. You can do this in a timely manner.
I expect these tips will save you a lot of internal screaming in the future. Not to mention alcohol, yoga and voodoo.
This is an update to a January 2019 CCO article.
For more advice, check out Chief Content Officer, a monthly publication for content leaders. Subscribe today to get it in your inbox.
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Cover image by Joseph Kalinowski/Content Marketing Institute
Create your very own Auto Publish News/Blog Site and Earn Passive Income in Just 4 Easy Steps
