If you’re running a content team, then you know how important it is to have a plan and goals for what you’re trying to achieve. If you’re not using a content brief for your blog posts, articles, or other pieces of content, you’re missing out on a crucial step in the content creation process. But what is a content brief and why should your content team follow one?
What Is a Content Brief?
A content brief is a document that outlines the specific details of a piece of content. It’s a set of guidelines that a content creator can use to write their article. It includes information about what the content should cover, what tone it should take, who the target audience is, what keywords to target, and any other relevant details.
A content brief can be used as a tool to help ensure that all stakeholders are on the same page about a particular project. It can be a helpful tool for both freelance writers and in-house content creators alike.
It can help ensure that all pieces of content are on-brand and align with the overall marketing goals. Plus, it can be used as a template to save time when commissioning new work.
Understanding how to structure a blog post can help in creating an effective content brief.
Why are content briefs important?
A content brief is essential because they help to ensure the content you create is focused, keyword-rich, and optimised for search engine ranking. Without a content brief, everyone on the content team – from the marketing managers to the freelance writer may have difficulty understanding what you want to achieve with your content.
A great content brief is comprehensive and includes everything the freelance writer or freelance team needs to know in order to produce quality content that meets your goals. Without an effective content brief, it is difficult to create comprehensive, keyword-optimised content that meets all of the requirements set forth by SEO best practices.
What is the purpose of the content?
Or, to put it another way, what is your goal for the article? Having well-defined goals and objectives is essential for success. Your goals should be specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound. They should also be aligned with your business goals and objectives.
When creating articles for your website, it’s important to consider their purpose and how they can help you achieve your goals and objectives. The purpose of the article could be to produce a piece of content that will help potential customers understand their problem and how you are offering a solution. You should aim to define the problem and the solution in a way that your target audience can easily understand. The target audience for this content is potential customers who may be interested in using your company’s products or services.
The type of content and how it is presented can impact how well the target audience understands the potential solution to their problem. By clearly defining the problem and outlining the solution, your content can be an effective tool in reaching potential customers and achieving business objectives. The goal is to provide information that will help them make a decision.
When considering the purpose of the content, you should also understand how the content is going to be promoted. Your content strategy may specify your distribution channels. These could include your website, blog, or social media channels.
Give clear direction and approval
A content brief should provide clear direction and approval. When delegating a task, be sure that your writer or content creator has been given clear instructions on what needs to be done and by when. This will help the person you’re delegating to know exactly what is expected of them. Make sure they understand the content brief before beginning any work. And also be clear about the deadline for when you need the task completed by.
Once the piece is complete, make sure you go through an approval process before finalising. This will help avoid any issues down the road. Don’t forget, if you want a good article, the onus is on you to ensure that your writer or content creator has been given clear direction.
Content briefs provide a single source of truth for content teams
In order for a content team to function effectively, it is essential that there is a single source of truth for content creators. This means that all team members should be able to access the same information and communicate with each other using the same platform. Having proper procedures and guidance available to all ensures that everyone is on the same page and can make informed decisions. Your content brief is just one example of how you can introduce control measures into your content operations.
Prevent rewrites and reduce revisions
Use a content brief to prevent rewrites and reduce revisions. By doing so, you can prevent rewriting and reduce revision cycles. This will also make sure the content meets the needs of the client. Which will save you time and possibly money.
Make sure to include any critical information
When writing about a topic, it’s important to include all of the relevant details. Don’t leave anything out that could be important to understanding the issue at hand. This includes key stats, facts, and figures. Make sure to include all important data points so that readers can have a complete picture.
This will ensure that your readers have all the information they need to understand your argument or point of view.
Stick to your content brief and you will save time and money
A content brief is a document that outlines the specific goals, objectives, and requirements for a piece of content. Creating a content brief can save you time and money by keeping you focused on what needs to be accomplished. By clearly defining your goals, you can ensure that your content will meet your objectives and help you achieve your desired results.
When should you use content briefs?
A content brief is used to provide guidance to content writers, editors, seo copywriters and other content creators. It typically includes information about the target audience, the purpose of the content, key messages, and desired tone and style. It may also include information about SEO keywords and other technical requirements. A well-detailed content brief can help to ensure that the final product is high-quality and aligns with the overall content strategy.
It is often used by agencies, freelance writers, marketing teams, and content teams to ensure that all of the necessary information is included in a piece of content. Following a brief helps to avoid wasting time and money. It also helps to avoid misunderstandings about the project.
If you work with freelance writers or other content creators, then using a content brief can help avoid wasting time and money. A content brief provides clear guidelines for what you want the finished product to look like. This helps avoid misunderstandings and ensures that everyone is on the same page from the start. It also helps ensure that the final product meets your needs and expectations. If you work with clients, a content brief can also be a helpful tool to ensure that they are happy with the final product.
Did you know? A professional copywriter can assist in creating an effective content brief for your business.
Here’s what you need to include in a brief
A content brief is an essential tool for any content marketing campaign – whether you’re working with in-house writers or freelance writers. It tells the writer what to write, how long the piece should be, and includes any keywords or other information that the writer needs to know.
At a minimum a content brief should include the following:
- The keyword or phrase you want the piece of content to rank for
- The length of the piece (in words)
- Any specific information about the target audience or tone that the writer should keep in mind
- Any other keywords that you want the content to include
- A call to action
- A deadline
- and any other important details
However, if you want to create a really great content brief, we’d suggest including the following:
Show Examples of Competitors’ Articles
It’s a good idea to share content that you like or that you aspire to compete against. There are a few different ways that you can go about finding examples of competitor articles. One way is to simply search for your topic on Google and take a look at the top results. Another option is to use a tool like BuzzSumo to find the most popular articles on your topic.
Once you have a few examples, your writer should take time to analyse them.
- What makes those articles so effective?
- What could be improved?
- What unique angle could you take with your own article?
By taking the time to understand what makes the competitor article good, you’ll be able to create something even better.
Topics, Subtopics, Subheads
Most articles will require the writer to discuss the topic in detail. It’s a good idea to provide any additional topics or subtopics you need to cover. You can use topic suggestion tools to help you with ideation, or come up with ideas on your own. These will also help to provide structure for your article.
When adding subtopics to your content, you are effectively breaking up the structure and making it more searchable. This is because subheads help to organise your content and provide searchable snippets. By doing this, you are also making your content more user-friendly and easier to navigate.
What Keywords Should be Included?
We all know that when you’re creating content, it’s important to include the primary keyword. This helps to ensure that your content is relevant to your target audience. However, if you want to write an seo-focused content brief you need to make sure your content is covering the search intent behind the query. You are after all trying to create valuable content.
To specify your target keywords, you’ll want to start with a “seed keyword.” This is a broad term that describes what you’re trying to rank for. From there, you’ll want to find relevant keywords that are related to your seed keyword. These will be the terms you’ll want to focus on when optimising your website.
When conducting keyword research for your website, you should aim to include a mix of seed keywords, relevant keywords, and competitor keywords. Seed keywords are the broad, general terms that you want to rank for. Relevant keywords are more specific terms that are related to your seed keywords and have high search volumes. Competitor keywords are the terms that your competitors are ranking for. You can use a gap analysis tool to determine which relevant keywords you are not currently ranking for. Including a mix of all three types of keywords will help you reach your target audience.
The keywords you choose should be relevant to your audience and have a ‘good’ search volume. However, don’t choose keywords that are too difficult to rank for. While this might be your eventual target, it’s unlikely that you can compete with established players.
Rank for multiple keywords with one content piece
If you want to rank for multiple keywords with one content piece, you need to start by identifying a seed keyword. This is a relevant keyword with high search volume that you want to rank for. Once you have your seed keyword, you can use a tool like Google Keyword Planner to find secondary keywords that are relevant to your topic. You can then use a gap analysis to identify any gaps in your content strategy. This will help you determine what type of content you need to create to reach your audience. Finally, you can use competitor analysis to see what type of content your competitors are creating and how they are ranking for similar keywords.
Be careful not to ‘keyword stuff’ your article. Your goal here is to try and capture as muchorganic traffic as you can, by targetinglong-tail keywords.
State the ‘tone of voice’ that should be used
The tone of voice you use when writing can have a big impact on your audience. Before you start writing, think about who you’re writing for and what kind of language they’ll understand. Avoid using jargon or overly complicated language – keep it simple and easy to read. Use plain English instead.
Choose the right words for your audience and learn to speak like them. This may mean using a different style of language depending on who you’re writing for. In general, your writing style should be less formal for most audiences. But if you’re writing for a specific audience (like a professional group), make sure to follow their style guide.
The tone of voice you use must be consistent across all channels. This means avoiding jargon and keeping it simple. Use plain English and choose the right words for your audience. Learn to speak like your audience, using a different style of language if necessary. A less formal tone is often more effective. Always refer to your style guide for guidance. Learn how to unlock the power of brand voice in your content.
Messaging: how you come across can impact your conversion rate
The way you speak can make a big difference in how your audience perceives you. If you want to come across as approachable and friendly, avoid using jargon and keep your language simple. Using plain English will help ensure that your audience understands you and can follow along with what you’re saying. Different audiences will require a different style of language.
For example, speaking to a group of children will require a less formal tone than if you were giving a presentation to business executives. It’s important to learn to speak like your audience so that they can easily connect with you.
Messaging and tone of voice is very important when your content has a conversion goal. We’d always recommend that content creators follow a style guide. A style guide can be a helpful tool in ensuring that you’re using the right words for your audience.
Always remain focused on the intended result
Content marketing isn’t just about driving traffic or capturing leads. It’s about building an audience and nurturing relationships with those who already know you.
It’s for that reason that having a clear understanding of your intended result will help guide the writer towards creating great content. By making it clear what you hope to achieve, you can better direct the writer in creating material that will be useful to you.
Recommendation: Create a content brief before sending out any work requests. This will help make sure you understand exactly what you’re looking for.
Audience overview
When you’re planning your marketing strategy, it’s important to think about your target audience. Who are the people you’re trying to reach? What are their needs and pain points? What benefits can you offer them?
Creating audience personas is a helpful way to understand the needs of your audience. By creating detailed profiles of your ideal customers, you can better understand their motivations and how to appeal to them. You can identify their pain points and what benefits they are looking for. This information is essential to creating content that resonates with your audience and meets their needs.
Additionally, tailoring your content to a specific audience will help you more effectively communicate the benefits of your product or service.
It’s also important to keep in mind that your target audience may change over time. As your business grows, you may find that you’re attracting new types of customers. Keep your personas updated so that you always have a good understanding of who you’re marketing to.
List Out Any Internal or External Links You Want to Be Added Contextually
When writing an article, it is important to include both internal and external links. Internal links are links to other articles on the same website. External links are links to articles on other websites. Anchor text is the text that is clickable in a hyperlink. When adding links, be sure to use keywords in the anchor text so that readers can easily find what they are looking for.
Make sure to include any relevant statistics in your story
These can be used to help make decisions about what is happening in a given situation. When used correctly, statistics can be a powerful tool for understanding the world around us.
Applying these tips for better copywriting can enhance the quality of your content brief.
What are your competitors doing?
When creating a content brief, it’s important to always keep your competition in mind. What are your competitors doing well? What could you do better?
Always look for ways to improve your performance and stay ahead of the competition. This can help you to improve your skills and become better at what you do.
Visuals
Including visuals in your content marketing is important for a few reasons.
- They help people understand your message quickly and easily.
- Images should always accompany text – it’s been proven time and again that images make your text more engaging.
- Images help break up large blocks of text and make your content more visually appealing.
Be Specific About Any Call-to-Actions
A “call to action” (CTA) is an instruction to the reader, designed to encourage them to take a specific action. A good CTA will increase conversions by encouraging visitors to take action. It should be clear and consistent, with clear instructions on what to do next.
It might seem obvious, but the CTA should be one of the goals of the content brief.
By including a CTA in your article, you can encourage visitors to take action and move closer to becoming a customer.
Frequently Asked Questions
Are content briefs different from creative briefs?
Yes, content briefs are different from creative briefs. A content brief outlines the specific topics and angles that a piece of content should cover, while a creative brief focuses on the overall tone and approach that should be taken.
Marketing Creative Briefs
The main difference between a marketing creative brief and a content brief is that a marketing creative brief describes the purpose of the project, whereas a content brief describes the content itself.
While a marketing creative brief may contain some content, it focuses primarily on describing the purpose of the project. This means that the document doesn’t need to include every detail about the content; instead, it just needs to give enough information to help the client understand the purpose of the project and decide whether it fits within their budget and timeline.
Is a Product Design Creative Brief Different to a Content Brief?
Both types of briefs are important because they help teams collaborate effectively, communicate clearly, and produce quality work. However, there are some differences between them.
A product design creative brief is a document used to communicate the vision and goals of a project to clients, stakeholders, and team members. This includes information about the client, the problem being solved, the target audience, the desired outcome, and the budget.
A content brief is a document used by writers, editors, copywriters, web designers, developers, marketers, and others who create content (text) for websites, blogs, social media pages, emails, etc. This includes information about topics, words, phrases, sentences, paragraphs, headlines, body copy, graphics, videos, audio files, etc.
Is an Advertising Agency Creative Brief Different to a Content Brief?
An advertising agency creative brief is not the same as a content brief. An advertising agency creative brief is a document used to define the purpose of a campaign, including objectives, target audiences, media mix, budget, etc.
The main difference between an advertising agency creative brief and a content brief is that the former focuses on the creation of ads whereas the latter focuses on creating content. However, there are some similarities between the two briefs. Both require a clear understanding of the client’s goals, target audience, and brand positioning.
Both briefs include information about the product/service being advertised. But the advertiser needs to be careful when writing a content brief because it should never contain too many details about the product/service. This may confuse the reader and prevent them from buying the product/service.
How can Highly.Digital help you?
Maybe you need a writer, or maybe you want help developing detailed content briefs. But even if you want help with your content marketing strategy, we’re here to help your business grow. As experienced content marketers we know what it takes to get the job done.
From developing content plans to collaborating with internal teams, we know how to create high-quality content. So if you need help with your SEO content and want help with your content marketing plan, get in touch with us today.
