Example Social Media Design Project Brief

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What is a social media design project brief? How do I construct a social media design brief so the freelancer I hire can make me quality social media content?

Here’s a social media design brief definition:

An effective social media design brief will contain an overview of your entire project, which includes:

  • [content type wanted – include a sample or two if you can!
  • Key dates & deadlines
  • Audience for project
  • Deliverable outcomes
  • Project goals

The truth is, it can be hard to know what to include in these social media design briefs when you’re planning your project. If you have no idea how social media design briefs work, how are your freelancers supposed to know what’s needed of them?

Social Media Design Brief Example

Luckily, we’ve provided a social media design project brief example, so you’ll know how to write a  social media design brief and bag yourself strong content!

This brief will provide your freelancer with everything they need to know about both your project and your business. If you’re struggling to get off the starting block, feel free to use it as a template for your own brief:

Name: 60 Sketch social media design project

About the company: My name’s Katherine, and I run an e-learning graphic design business called 60 Sketch. I work mostly with students and young creatives, running design classes online. I have been running this business for 8 months, and currently have a database of 150 students.

What do you need?: I need a bank of social media designs to help kickstart my social media marketing campaign.

Why do you need it?: I’m looking to grow my business and need an effective social media strategy to get started. I’m hoping to become a large contender within the e-learning/design industry.

Your vision for the project: I run my business through YouTube and my eCommerce website, so have existing visual assets to help build the social media content upon. With the saturation of the industry, I’d like the content to stand out and be bold. As my target audience regularly uses social media platforms like TikTok, Instagram, Twitter, etc, I’d like the content to have the ability to go viral. Let’s get playful!

Examples of styles you like:

https://dribbble.com/shots/14762423-Like
https://dribbble.com/shots/16968572-Fashion-Instagram-Stories-Exploration
https://coolors.co/3f292b-d34f73-f39c6b-5bc0eb-fde74c

Where will the content be used?: The three main social media platforms I’d like content created for are TikTok, Instagram, and Twitter.

What file types are required?: I would like both visual and audio content. For TikTok, I would like to create short videos that help embody the brand in a fun, creative way. I would also like to produce reels (short videos) for Instagram. For Twitter, and also Instagram, I would like visual, digital content pieces that promote 60 Sketch, whilst providing educational benefits.

Target audience: 14 to 25-year-olds with an interest in the arts/digital design, and media.

Deadline: I’d like to collaborate with the freelancer directly and come up with campaign ideas. I’ve set a date for a month’s time: 15th October.

Budget: $10,000

Point of contact: You’ll be working with myself, Katherine, directly.

Analysis:

social media design example brief

Now, let’s break the brief down section-by-section so you know exactly how it works: 

Name: 60 Sketch social media design project

Your freelancer is probably working on lots of different freelance projects, so give yours a name to distinguish it. It’ll help you keep organized too.

About the company: My name’s Katherine, and I run an e-learning graphic design business called 60 Sketch. I work mostly with students and young creatives, running design classes online. I have been running this business for 8 months, and currently have a database of 150 students.

Why does the freelancer need to know about you and your company? Giving them the whole picture helps the freelancer create the most appropriate work for you. Tell your freelancer what you do and how you do it.

What do you need?: I need a bank of social media designs to help kickstart my social media marketing campaign.

Be specific about what you want. Is it just one piece of work you need, or an ongoing project? Let your freelancer know upfront and this will help them work out how long your project will take to complete.

Why do you need it?:  I’m looking to grow my business and need an effective social media strategy to get started. I’m hoping to become a large contender within the e-learning/design industry.

This might seem completely obvious to you, but sometimes spelling out the motivation for your project can be really helpful. It gives the freelancer extra insight into why you need this work; do you want to reach new customers? Are you changing or launching your business? If you have current projects – why aren’t these working? All this extra information will help your freelancer do a great job.

Your vision for the project: I run my business through YouTube and my eCommerce website, so have existing visual assets to help build the social media content upon. With the saturation of the industry, I’d like the content to stand out and be bold. As my target audience regularly uses social media platforms like TikTok, Instagram, Twitter, etc, I’d like the content to have the ability to go viral. Let’s get playful!

If you already have an idea of how you want the work to look, write it down in your project brief. This will help the freelancer hit the ground running and shorten the delivery time. You and your freelancer will ideally develop concepts together. Don’t worry if you don’t know what you want yet – mention this to your freelancer and you can talk through ideas.

Here are some examples of styles we like: 

https://dribbble.com/shots/14762423-Like
https://dribbble.com/shots/16968572-Fashion-Instagram-Stories-Exploration
https://coolors.co/3f292b-d34f73-f39c6b-5bc0eb-fde74c

Sometimes it’s hard to describe a style you like, which is why you need to show your freelancer. Include images, links to other work you’ve seen, color pallets, fonts – anything that will help your freelancer get a good idea of what you want your finished project to look like.

Where will the content be used?: The three main social media platforms I’d like content created for are TikTok, Instagram, and Twitter.

Where you want to use your content can affect the kind of work the freelancer creates. Try your best to future-proof your ideas. Who knows where you’ll need to use the content in a year’s time? Your freelancer should create the work in a way that it can be used in any media or medium you require. The last thing you want is to rehire the freelancer in the future to adjust the content.

What file types are required?: I would like both visual and audio content. For TikTok, I would like to create short videos that help embody the brand in a fun, creative way. I would also like to produce reels (short videos) for Instagram. For Twitter, and also Instagram, I would like visual, digital content pieces that promote 60 Sketch, whilst providing educational benefits.

Granted, this may not be information that you know. But, depending on where you need to use the work, you’ll need different file types. If you’re not sure about this, it’s something to ask your freelancer.

Target audience: 14 to 25-year-olds with an interest in the arts/digital design, and media.

Your target audience is a vital piece of information that your freelancer should know. It’ll help them create work that specifically targets that section of the market and helps you draw in custom.

Deadline:  I’d like to collaborate with the freelancer directly and come up with campaign ideas. I’ve set a date for a month’s time: 15th October.

When do you need your project to be completed? Don’t forget this crucial detail.

Budget: $10,000

How much will you pay for the project? If you have a budget in mind, include it in your project brief. If you have no idea, you can discuss costs with your freelancer.

Point of contact: You’ll be working with myself, Katherine, directly.

Who will your freelancer be dealing with? Make it easier for remote workers to communicate with you by making it clear who their point of contact is during the project. There will be extra questions and work that needs to be signed off, so make sure your freelancer gets straight through to the right person.


When you post a project brief on Twine, you can add a fully comprehensive project description. This will help you find the right creative freelancer and ultimately get the project you want.

We vet all of our freelancers and match them to clients using over 10 different criteria. This allows both parties to gain maximum results at the most effective price. We’re here to help along every step of the way and will do everything we can to make sure you have an awesome experience.

So, there you have it! A top-quality template for your social media design project brief. For more help on writing a great project brief, check out our article here – or, check out our other creative brief examples: Logo Design Brief, Animation Project Brief, Illustration Project Brief, Music Production Project Brief, Copywriting Project Brief. Ready to find a social media content designer? Check out our talent here.

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