As all web publishers know, the secret to an incredible piece of content that gets clicks, drives conversions, and catapults your site to the top of the SERPs (search engine results pages) isn’t always the writer.
It’s the content brief.
Content briefs are, what we like to call, the unsung heroes of successful web publishing.
They’re not visible on your home page and they’re never shared externally, yet high quality content briefs are the roadmap that transform vague ideas into structured written content that gets results.
For web publishers, a strong and creative brief ensures that your writers can produce content that hits its goals – which is why it’s vital to invest time in the preparation process, study content brief templates and examples, and practice till you get it right.
This article explores five detailed content brief examples that you can use to level-up your content creation process.
From SEO blogs to social media posts, we’ll uncover the essential elements of each and highlight how AI tools, an AI SEO Writer, can make creating these briefs easier and more efficient.
What Is a Content Brief?
But if you’re new to the whole content creation process, you’re probably wondering what a content brief actually is, and how they fit into a content marketing strategy.
A content brief is a detailed document that outlines all the essential information you need to create a piece of written content.
It acts as a guide for writers, designers, and marketers, ensuring that every piece is aligned with business objectives, audience needs, and brand identity.
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Without a strategic content brief, it’s difficult to write top ranking articles, as the writer doesn’t have the full picture and will struggle to get to grips with the nuance.
Ultimately, a content brief provides clarity and structure. It answers crucial questions, like: Who is the content for? What’s its purpose? Which primary and secondary keywords are a priority?
By addressing these elements upfront, plus providing the unique takes that a writer and designer needs to know, a content brief eliminates guesswork and keeps the creation process efficient and effective.
Key Components of an Effective Content Brief
So, what does a content brief need to be successful?
A great content brief is sufficiently detailed that it ensures you and your writer are on the same page when it comes to the piece of content.
Detailed content briefs should include a clear objective, target audience details, and specific instructions about tone, structure, and relevant keywords.
You may also wish to include competitor articles, internal links and external links, a suggested title, and general editorial guidelines to help your writer write content that sounds like yours.
The content brief might look different depending on the type of content you’re creating.
For SEO-focused content, a strong target keyword strategy and search intent is critical, while a creative brief for a landing page might emphasize storytelling and visual elements that a writer must consider.
Importantly, any kind of content brief should include your own unique perspective, USPs, angle, or argument.
Remember, if you’re working with a specialist SEO content writer, freelance writer, or copywriter, they’re not the subject matter expert here: you are.
Your content brief should include your expertise, whether that is your own data, your own interpretation, or the position you’d like the article to take.
How to Create Effective Content Briefs
When creating a content brief, then, there are lots of things to consider. Let’s take a look at the process.
1. Identify the Objective
What is the purpose of the content? Start with this end goal in mind, then work backwards.
If your purpose is to get more clicks to your site, then consider how your brief should incorporate important SEO elements.
If you need content to fit within a landing page design, consider the data and information your writer will need to get it right first time.
2. Research Keywords
Use tools like Ahrefs or SEMrush to find high-ranking keywords relevant to your topic, or work with an SEO team to help you do this.
Either way, your content brief should absolutely include primary and secondary keywords, especially if you’re writing for search engines.
3. Provide Context
Share unique insights and competitor research for added clarity.
Also provide context on where the customer will interact with this content – is it in the search results? Will this be shared via email?
Whatever it is, this knowledge of the content funnel will help your writer strategize and see the bigger picture.
4. Provide a Structure
Once you’ve considered the basics, provide a general content outline for your writer to follow.
At this point, you might want to include important features they need to include, such as meta descriptions, guidance on writing an SEO title, word counts, character counts, and more.
Think here if you have specific requirements that a writer should know. For instance, do you expect every blog post to include FAQs?
If so, then suggest some and provide information on what you’re looking for. Do you have strict title character counts to fit into a design? It’s vital to say so in the content brief stage.
5. Use A Content Brief Template and Ask for Feedback
Speed up the process by turning your repeatable briefs into a customizable content brief template.
Once you’ve made one brief, save it, turn it into an editable, fillable doc, and make your brief reusable. These creative brief templates will make the next brief much easier.
Don’t forget to get feedback from your writers at this point: Is there any other information they need in the brief example that you’re ommiting?
6. Leverage AI Tools
The brief process doesn’t have to be time-consuming, and neither does the content creation process.
Tools like Undetectable AI can help generate optimized content that’s aligned with your brief, or streamline the brief creation process by generating content as an example.
Let’s dive into a couple of specific examples to see all this in action.
Content Brief Templates & Examples
| Type of Brief | Purpose of Content | Focus of Brief | Content Brief Must Include |
| SEO-Focused Blog Post | Attract visitors through search engines by targeting specific keywords. | Keywords, audience needs | Target keyword, related keywords, audience insights, meta description, internal and external linking suggestions. |
| Landing Page | Encourage visitors to take action, like signing up or making a purchase. | Clear messaging, strong CTA | Main message, audience pain points, call-to-action (CTA), any visuals or graphics, tone guidelines for persuasive text. |
| Thought Leadership Article | Showcase expertise and provide unique insights into a specific topic or trend. | Deep research, key insights | Topic overview, audience details, supporting data or quotes, key arguments, publication goals. |
| Informational Guide | Help readers understand a topic or complete a task with clear instructions. | Easy-to-follow structure | Clear objective, audience challenges, section breakdown, research sources, visuals like diagrams or images. |
| Social Media Content | Grab attention, boost engagement, or promote a campaign on social platforms. | Captions and hashtags | Platform details, audience preferences, tone guidelines, hashtags, call-to-action (CTA), image or video instructions. |
Example 1: Content Brief for an SEO-Focused Blog Post
An SEO-focused blog post requires a content brief that is both strategic and detailed to meet the demands of search engines, but also to read well and engage a human audience.
When writing an SEO content brief, begin by defining your blog post’s objective, such as ranking for specific keywords or driving organic traffic.
Include audience insights to ensure the content resonates with readers, and highlight target keywords, internal links, and desired word count.
It’s also important to add more information here to help the writer position your piece ahead of the existing search results.
If possible, include info on your overall SEO strategy to help them see the bigger picture, and include top-ranking articles and information from your competitor analysis to help your writers gain an edge.
For instance, a brief might outline how the post should explore the topic of “content brief examples,” targeting marketing professionals (if you’re reading this, that particular content brief will have been successful!)
In this example, we’ll need to include the content structure (the suggested titles), the intended audience (Web Publishers), and some competing articles to help the writer gauge the competition.
But that’s not all. Any good SEO content brief template will include the results of your keyword research.
Make sure to include all target keywords – that’s your primary keyword as well as any related keywords (or secondary keywords) that you expect the writer to include.
A great content brief template for SEO blog posts will also include any helpful audience insights (who they are, what they like, what they do, why they do it, etc.) and internal and external links.
Internal links are hyperlinks that connect pages on your website, whereas external links are hyperlinks that direct the reader to external sources that give your writing credibility (think news outlets, statistics, research, etc.).
To streamline the process, you can incorporate our AI SEO Writer to draft optimized content that matches the brief’s requirements while maintaining a human tone.
Example 2: Content Brief for a Landing Page
When crafting a landing page, the content brief should prioritize clarity and persuasion.
You should also make sure that the brief keeps your desired outcome in mind – whether it’s converting visitors into leads, encouraging sign-ups, or promoting a product.
As a result, the brief you create needs to outline the page’s purpose, its core message, and include specific call-to-action (CTA) prompts that direct visitors toward the desired outcome.
A high-quality content brief for a landing page should include details all about the target audience and their pain points.
For example, a landing page promoting an email marketing tool might need to highlight features like automation and analytics while addressing common pain points like time management.
Including your unique selling proposition means that your writer can craft something that really stands out.
Provide your writer with guidance on tone and structure. The tone should be engaging and concise, with attention-grabbing headlines that match search intent and drive action.
Competitor analysis can also help identify gaps in existing search results, giving your landing page a competitive edge.
Example 3: Content Brief Example for a Thought Leadership Article
A thought leadership article requires a more nuanced brief that balances expertise with relatability.
An easy way to start would be to outline the purpose of the article – is it about establishing authority within a particular industry or niche or addressing emerging trends?
The brief should include a clear topic overview and key arguments to ensure the content aligns with publication goals and resonates with the target audience.
You need to do a little research for this type of content.
Make sure your brief contains supporting data or information through good links to credible external sources to help strengthen authority.
Include some competitor articles to help your writer get a sense of tone and what to include.
The brief should also highlight the main takeaways or insights the article should convey.
For example, for a piece looking at advancements in renewable energy, the brief might focus on emerging technologies, their environmental impact, and the economic implications, backed by statistics and reliable data.
Suggest a structure to guide the writer, detailing sections for background context, analysis, and actionable insights.
Highlight any publication-specific goals, such as adhering to an editorial calendar or targeting particular keywords to optimize for search engines.
By providing a structured brief, you can guide writers in crafting content that positions your brand as a leader while engaging readers on a meaningful level.
Example 4: Content Brief for an Informational Guide
An informational guide demands a brief that is thorough and focused on educating the audience.
Start with the guide’s objective (explaining a complex concept or providing step-by-step instructions).
Include an outline of key sections, resources for research, and any visuals needed to enhance understanding.
For instance, a guide on creating content briefs might break down the process into simple steps, with practical tips and examples throughout.
Each section should address a specific aspect of the topic, ensuring that readers can follow along without feeling overwhelmed.
To make the content more effective, consider highlighting common audience challenges and questions that the guide aims to address in the brief.
This helps to make sure that the final product is written with their needs and expectations.
Including key elements like visuals (diagrams, screenshots, charts) can help your audience understand complex processes or technical topics.
Importantly, including these in your brief can help increase your writer’s understanding, too.
A detailed brief also benefits from specifying tone and style, e.g., formal and instructional or casual and approachable. This will help the writer to align the guide with your brand’s voice.
By supplying these upfront, you ensure that the final product is as informative as it is engaging. A detailed brief like this also helps to create a valuable resource for your target audience.
Example 5: Social Media Content Brief
For social media posts, you will want to create a content brief that is short but impactful. Begin by identifying the platform and target audience.
Outline the purpose of the post, whether it’s driving clicks, building engagement, or promoting a campaign.
For captions, consider tools like Undetectable.ai’s Stealth Writer, which can generate AI-crafted copy that is both creative and undetectably human.
For example, a social media brief might specify a light, conversational tone for Instagram captions, paired with a call-to-action such as “Click the link in bio for more tips.”
By aligning the brief with platform-specific nuances, your content will connect with its audience effectively.
It is also important to include details about the type of visual assets that you have in mind for the post. Do you want static images, a picture carousel, or short videos?
Specify the dimensions or formats that are suitable for the particular platform that you are posting on, as well.
Make sure to clearly highlight any mandatory hashtags or keywords that you want your writer to use to boost discoverability or line up with the rest of your campaign efforts.
Don’t forget to include the posting schedule.
Be sure to include any timing considerations in the brief, such as the best times to post for your target audience in your time zone.
A clear and concise brief helps to make sure that your social media content grabs attention and drives results.
Conclusion
So, it’s official. Content briefs are the foundation of effective content creation, and a great brief will help you get the most from your writers.
By tailoring your content brief templates to the specific type of content, an SEO blog, a landing page, or even simply a social media post, you set your team up for success and help them generate content that performs for you over the long term.
But writing a brief doesn’t need to be complicated.
Undetectable AI can help make this process easy, generating the brief in seconds and helping you create outstanding content that is human-like in its quality, in just a few clicks. Give it a try here.