Quick answer: A video brief is a short document that tells a video studio what you need. A good brief covers seven things: your product, your audience, the one main message, the goal of the video, where it will be used, examples you like, and your deadline and budget. A clear brief saves weeks of back and forth.
Why does a video brief matter?
The brief is where most projects are won or lost. Studios do not fail because they cannot animate. They fail because they were solving the wrong problem. A clear one-page brief means the first script draft is close to right, revisions are small, and the video ships on time.
The good news: it takes 30 minutes to write and you do not need any special format.
What should a video brief include?
Cover these seven points and you are ahead of 90% of clients:
- Your product in two sentences. What it does and who pays for it. Skip the jargon.
- Your audience. Who watches this video? A founder? An HR manager? A developer? Their job changes the words and the visuals.
- The one main message. If the viewer remembers only one thing, what should it be? One thing, not five.
- The goal. What should viewers do after watching? Sign up, book a demo, understand a feature? This shapes the whole script.
- Where the video will live. A homepage video, a paid ad, and an in-app onboarding video are all built differently. See why in our guide on landing page videos.
- Two or three examples you like. Links to videos with a style you love, and a note about what you like in each. This beats pages of style descriptions.
- Deadline and budget. Sharing your budget is not a weakness. It lets the studio suggest the best option you can afford instead of guessing.
What should you leave out?
Some things hurt more than they help:
- A pre-written script. Share your ideas, but let the studio write. Scriptwriting for video is a skill of its own.
- Every feature of your product. List them if you want, but mark the two or three that matter most.
- Vague style words alone. “Modern and clean” means something different to everyone. Links to examples work better.
A simple template you can copy
Paste this into an email and fill it in:
- Product: what it does, in plain words
- Audience: who watches and what their day looks like
- Main message: the one thing to remember
- Goal: what viewers should do next
- Placement: homepage, ads, onboarding, sales, etc.
- Length: 30s, 60s, 90s (or ask the studio to advise)
- Style references: 2 to 3 links plus what you like about them
- Deadline: real date, plus any launch it is tied to
- Budget: a range is fine
FAQ
How long should a video brief be?
One page is perfect. If it takes more than 10 minutes to read, it will be skimmed and things will be missed.
What if I do not know what style I want?
That is fine. Browse a studio’s portfolio, pick two or three videos you like, and say why. The studio takes it from there. Our styles comparison can also help you decide.
Do I need a brief before contacting a studio?
No. A good studio will pull all of this out of you in a 20-minute call. But coming in with a rough brief makes that call faster and quotes more accurate.
Ready to put your brief to work? Send it to us and get a straight answer on price and timeline within a day.
