Client Brief

/ Client Brief, GWD Business, Template / By

1. Business Overview

  • Company Name:
  • The Elevator Pitch: (What do you do in 2–3 sentences?)
  • Your Secret Sauce: (What makes you stand out from your competition?)

2. Goals & Success

  • The Main Goal: (Are we building brand awareness, launching a product, modernizing an old logo, or something else?)
  • Winning Scenario: (How will you know this project was a total success?)

3. Who Are We Talking To?

  • Target Audience: (Age, location, job, interests—who is buying what you sell?)
  • The Vibe: (What’s the one emotion you want someone to feel the second they see this design?)

4. Creative Direction

  • Style Keywords: (Minimalist, bold, retro, playful, corporate, luxury?)
  • Colors: (Any non-negotiables to include or hard-no colors to avoid?)
  • Inspo Board: (Drop 2–3 links or screenshots of designs you love, even if they’re from a completely different industry!)

5. Deliverables, Timeline & Budget

  • The Shopping List: (What files do you need? e.g., vector logo files, print-ready PDF business cards, 3 Instagram templates)
  • The Deadline: (Got a hard drop-dead date?)
  • The Budget Range: (Sharing your range helps me tailor the smartest solution to fit your pocketbook!)

Importance of Using a Discovery Form

  • The Budget Reality Check: If a client writes “$50” for a complete brand identity, you know instantly whether to educate them on your actual pricing or politely walk away before wasting hours on a proposal.
  • Decoding “Client Speak”: Clients rarely know design terminology. When they say “clean,” one person means minimalist white space, while another means high-tech neon graphics. Visual inspo links eliminate the guessing game.
  • Scope Creep Insurance: If your client signs off on a logo-only brief and later asks for a custom website header, you have written proof of what was agreed upon. You can easily say: “I’d love to add that on! Since it wasn’t in our original brief, here is a quick add-on quote for that extra asset.”

Tip!

Don’t send this as a boring plain-text email! Drop these exact questions into a clean Google Form or Typeform. It looks sleek, keeps your client answers organized in one place, and immediately positions you as a professional graphic and web designer.