How to brief a designer so the first draft is close
3 min read
A designer can only work from what you tell them. The gap between a first draft that makes you nervous and one that makes you relieved is almost always information you had and did not pass on.
Describe the problem, not the solution
The most common mistake is briefing a design instead of a need. "I want a blue logo with a leaf" tells a designer what to draw and nothing about why, which means they cannot tell you when a better idea exists.
Say what the business does, who buys from it, what you want somebody to think when they see it, and where it will appear. A designer who understands the problem will sometimes solve it in a way you would not have asked for, which is most of what you are paying for.
Constraints are a gift
Anything that genuinely cannot change belongs in the brief and belongs early. A colour already used on your storefront, a name that must be spelled a particular way, a script that must appear, a shape that has to work as a stamp as well as a sign.
Constraints do not limit a good designer. Discovering them at the third revision does.
- Colours you must keep or must avoid
- Where the design has to work — small, large, single colour
- Languages and scripts
- Anything legally required to appear
References, used properly
Two or three examples help enormously if you say what you like about each. "This one, because the type feels confident without shouting" is useful. A folder of twenty images with no comment is worse than none, because the designer has to guess which quality you meant.
Include one or two you dislike as well. Ruling things out narrows the space faster than adding more to it.
Say what you actually need delivered
A logo is not one file. Depending on use you may need a version for print, a version for screen, a single-colour version, and something that works when it is very small. If you know you will need it on a stamp or embroidered, say so before it is drawn.
Being specific about deliverables also protects the designer, who can then quote accurately instead of discovering the real scope halfway through.
Feedback that helps
When a draft arrives, react to the problem rather than prescribing a fix. "It feels too formal for our customers" gives the designer somewhere to go. "Make the font bigger" is a specific instruction that may or may not address what actually bothered you.
Gather everyone's comments before sending them, and send them once. Contradictory feedback arriving in three messages over two days is the single most reliable way to make a project take twice as long.
- Say what feels wrong, not what to change
- Collect all opinions before replying
- Be clear when something is a preference rather than a requirement
How to start
Everything runs through one place. Artists sign in at the artist studio, upload work, choose which products each piece suits, and see what they have earned. Customers browse the artwork, pick a design, and choose what to put it on.
Nothing about it is exclusive. You can sell the same work elsewhere at the same time, and there is no listing fee and no minimum.
- Apply with three pieces so we can see how you work
- Choose which products each design belongs on
- Get paid by bank transfer on what sells
Common questions
How long should a brief be?
Long enough to answer what, who and why. A few clear paragraphs beat a long document that never says what the business actually does.
Should I include a budget?
Here you choose a package with a fixed price before anything starts, so the scope is agreed up front. Elsewhere, saying a budget saves everyone the round of quotes that do not fit.
What if the first draft is completely wrong?
Say so plainly and explain why, in terms of the problem. That is what the revision stage is for, and a designer would far rather hear it at draft one than at delivery.