Master Digital Marketing Briefs: A Guide for Entrepreneurs

Navigating the digital marketing landscape can be a daunting task. With an ever-evolving array of platforms, technologies, and strategies, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed. For digital agency owners, ecommerce store owners, and online entrepreneurs, one of the biggest challenges is developing a clear and effective marketing strategy. Without a well-defined plan, your marketing efforts can become scattered and ineffective, leading to wasted resources and missed opportunities.

According to a study by Smart Insights, 49% of businesses do not have a clearly defined digital marketing strategy. This lack of direction can lead to inconsistent messaging, missed target audience, and ultimately, a lower return on investment. It’s like setting sail without a compass—you’re out there, but you’re not sure where you’re going.

This is where “digital marketing briefs” come into play. A digital marketing brief is a strategic document that outlines your marketing objectives, identifies your target audience, and details the tactics you will use to achieve your goals. It serves as a roadmap for your marketing campaign, providing clarity and direction. By using a digital marketing brief, you can ensure that your marketing efforts are focused, strategic, and aligned with your business goals.

Stay tuned as we go deeper into the world of digital marketing briefs, providing you with actionable insights and practical tips to help you harness the power of this essential tool.

Digital Marketing Briefs: A Comprehensive Guide

Digital marketing briefs are an essential tool for any digital marketing specialist. They provide a clear and concise roadmap for your marketing efforts, ensuring that you stay focused on your goals and target audience. In this article, we will explore what digital marketing briefs are, why they are important, and how you can create one for your own business.

Understanding Digital Marketing Briefs

A digital marketing brief is a strategic document that outlines your marketing objectives, identifies your target audience, and details the tactics you will use to achieve your goals. It serves as a guide for your marketing campaign, helping you stay on track and avoid costly detours.

The Importance of Digital Marketing Briefs

Without a clear plan, your marketing efforts can quickly become unfocused and inefficient. A digital marketing brief provides a clear direction for your campaign, ensuring that you stay focused on your goals and target audience. It also helps you allocate your resources more effectively, ensuring that you get the most out of your marketing budget.

The journey of digital marketing can often feel like navigating through a maze. With numerous paths to take and decisions to make, it’s easy to lose direction. This is where a digital marketing brief comes into play. Acting as your compass, it provides a clear path towards your marketing goals. But how do you create one? In this section, we will demystify the process of creating a digital marketing brief, providing you with a step-by-step guide to help you chart your course in the digital marketing landscape.

How Can Digital Marketing Briefs Propel Business Growth?

In the realm of online entrepreneurship, growth is the ultimate goal. But how can a document like a digital marketing brief contribute to this growth? Let’s delve into the impact of digital marketing briefs on business growth.

Driving Strategic Focus

A well-crafted digital marketing brief provides a clear roadmap for your marketing campaign. It outlines your marketing objectives, identifies your target audience, and details the tactics you will use to achieve your goals. This strategic focus can lead to more effective marketing efforts and, ultimately, business growth.

Enhancing Brand Consistency

Consistency is key in building a strong brand. A digital marketing brief ensures that all your marketing efforts align with your brand identity, leading to a consistent brand experience for your customers. This consistency can enhance your brand’s credibility and trustworthiness, leading to increased customer loyalty and business growth.

Facilitating Better Resource Allocation

A digital marketing brief helps you allocate your resources more effectively. By clearly outlining your marketing objectives and tactics, you can ensure that your resources are being used in the most efficient and effective way possible. This can lead to cost savings and improved return on investment, contributing to business growth.

Case Study: Specialist.PH’s Success with Digital Marketing Briefs

At Specialist.PH, we’ve seen firsthand the power of a well-crafted digital marketing brief. One of our most notable successes involved a campaign that achieved a 3x top-of-funnel return on ad spend (ROAS) within just 60 days.

In this campaign, a digital marketing specialist team (consisting of a Facebook ads specialist and video editing specialist) used a digital marketing brief to clearly outline our marketing objectives, identify our target audience, and detail the tactics we would use to achieve our goals. This strategic planning allowed us to focus our efforts and resources effectively, leading to impressive results.

The campaign not only achieved a 3x ROAS, but also significantly increased brand awareness and customer engagement. This success story serves as a testament to the impact that a digital marketing brief can have on business growth.

This case study underscores the importance of using digital marketing briefs in your marketing strategy. By providing a clear roadmap for your marketing efforts, a digital marketing brief can help you achieve your business goals and propel your business to new heights.

Digital marketing briefs can have a significant impact on business growth. They provide a clear direction for your marketing efforts, enhance brand consistency, and facilitate better resource allocation. So, if you’re looking to propel your business to new heights, consider harnessing the power of digital marketing briefs.

Case Study: Specialist.PH’s Success with Mike Social

At Specialist.PH, we’ve had the privilege of working with Mike Social, a company that helps people grow and make more money from their social media accounts. They do this by helping clients develop a strategy that incorporates their professional and human sides, giving them a way to capitalize on their personality while not compromising their professional image.

In this case,  digital marketing briefs played a crucial role. It outlined the marketing objectives, identified the target audience, and detailed the tactics that would be used to achieve the goals. This strategic planning allowed for focused efforts and resources, leading to impressive results. Digital marketing briefs played a key role in expanding Mike’s team when he hired 2 more specialists (automation specialist and PPC specialist).

“ When faced with the challenge of scaling my company, I knew I needed to add more staff… Sourcing applicants, combing through resumes, interviews, training, and everything else that goes into scaling human resources felt overwhelming.

I trusted Specialist PH and their process for ensuring they put the right people on my team and they didn’t disappoint. We went through a couple of staff members when we had a shift in projects, drawing on their guarantee to switch a team member out if we weren’t quite matching up - and in the end, everything went exceptionally well. Productivity is now higher than ever before. We’re able to offer more services and earn more per client than we were before hiring Specialist PH. I highly recommend hiring from Specialist PH - I would do it again in a heartbeat! ”

The success of Mike Social underscores the power of a well-crafted digital marketing brief. It serves as a testament to how clear direction and strategic planning can lead to significant business growth. This case study is a prime example of how digital marketing briefs can effectively improve online marketing efforts and contribute to the growth of a business.

Creating a Digital Marketing Brief

Creating a digital marketing brief may seem daunting, but it doesn’t have to be. Here is a simple template to help you get started:

1. Objective: What are your marketing goals? Be as specific as possible.
2. Target Audience: Who are you trying to reach with your marketing efforts? Be sure to consider demographics, psychographics, and any other relevant factors.
3. Key Messages: What key messages do you want to convey to your target audience? These should align with your brand and your marketing objectives.
4. Tactics: What tactics will you use to deliver your key messages to your target audience? This could include social media marketing, email marketing, content marketing, and more.
5. Budget: How much are you willing to spend on your marketing campaign? Be sure to consider all potential costs, including advertising, content creation, and marketing automation tools.
6. Timeline: When will your marketing campaign start and end? Be sure to allow enough time for planning, execution, and evaluation.

In episode 2 of Digital Marketing Bear, James creates this sample digital marketing brief for his own use which is a “Talent Update List” but using Russel Brunson’s formula for SecretsofSuccess.com

A VSL (Video Sales Letter) is a video designed to sell a product or service to the viewer. A VSL uses the same principles that a written sales letter does to persuade its audience, but in video form.

Example of a Digital Marketing Brief

Secrets of Success VSL Brief

What is the timeline?

2 week

Day 1 - Research

Day 2 - Copywriting

Day 3 - Copywriting & Compliance

Day 4 - Recording (Production)

Days 5-9 - Editing / Post-production, Tech/Production

Day 10 - Distribution

What is the goal / objective?

Our goal is to develop a powerful VSL for our Talent Update list. Going to use the formula that Russell Brunson uses in SecretsofSuccess.com.

Examples if the goal / objective is achieved?

The best example is the video on the Secrets of Success Bibliomania sales page - https://www.secretsofsuccess.com/bibliomania

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(See raw notes at the end for the specifics that I liked and want to see in our version of this video.)

Who is it for?

[tag the audience brief document]

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@copy brief

What resources are needed to accomplish this task?

Landing page

Thank you page (or upsell here if possible)

VSL

Images (photos and graphics from production)

Copy for the VSL

Copy for the landing page

Copy for ads

Copy for email auto-response sequences

What resources are available to accomplish this task?

Copywriter (2 days)

Legal/Compliance (Est 2 hours)

Producers (1 day)

Spokespeople / Talent for the video production

Post-production (Video Editors)

Page builders

Ad Managers

What are the roadblocks or potential roadblocks to completing this task/project?

Time

What are the steps to take to accomplish this task?

VSL

Video Producer (name) will fill this out and I will audit before launching into it.

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We’ll follow the process:

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Research > Copywriting > Compliance > Production > Distribution > Optimization

Notes

#### Raw notes as I watched the video ####

The entire video is in a documentary style format with interviews of the spokesperson and other key people

The headline in the landing page matched the headline in the video

The initial intro real moves fast, a few seconds between each different clip, with quotes from real people inside and old news reel style

Who might we bring in as an endorsement or testimonial or credibility builder (like Tony Robbins did for Russell)?

On the story side I see Russell (spokesperson), endorsements (Tony Robbins), smell of books, old antique books, and 3rd party valuation quotes/experts, pop culture references from popular pawn shop shows, (we can use this layering to target but also to tell our own story)

Music background

ASMR type edits

Unboxing of the product(s)

References to hoarding (popculture), collecting (appeals to collectors and antique shoppers), team members and that adds a layer of authenticity beyond Russell’s own authenticity

Clearly a passion behind this video (MUST have passion in our own video)

Russell introduces an authentic ‘straw man’ - Kevin Trudeau - who also wants the Napoleon Hill collection / 1st edition book

Going to great lengths to achieve the objective of getting an entire Napoleon Hill collection - meaning renting an entire jet, possibly committing to $5+ million of collectors items, and more

I love the whole deep behind-the-scenes view of what it took to get this collection together; things never before seen on film or rarely experienced by others

“You know how funnels work” - speaking to marketers who know / like / trust Russell or have used or been impacted by ClickFunnels (or anybody who is familiar with sales funnels)

Russell ends the video with “To be continued” and the email address submission option to see what happens next

Discussion Questions (ideas for testing - or how might we feel about our audience’s experience and what might we change from the Russell VSL) :

Who can relate? Who can truly understand spending millions of dollars on books?

Who can understand renting a private jet?

Who might want exclusive access to this investment - or rather the result of the investment?

How might we be able to relate more to our audience specifically? We want to make sure we have a “we’re just like you” part of the video and go through the 15-20 things we DID before discovering “the magic pill” that changed our way of thinking…

FAQ Section

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1. Question: What should I avoid when creating a digital marketing brief? Answer: Avoid being too vague or too detailed in your brief. It should provide clear direction without limiting creativity. Also, avoid setting unrealistic goals or timelines.
2. Question: How often should I update my digital marketing brief? Answer: Your digital marketing brief should be updated as your business goals, target audience, or marketing strategies change. Regular reviews can ensure it remains relevant and effective.
3. Question: Can I use the same digital marketing brief for different campaigns? Answer: While some elements might be similar, each campaign has unique goals and target audiences. Therefore, it’s best to create a new brief for each campaign to ensure effectiveness.
4. Question: How detailed should my digital marketing brief be? Answer: Your brief should be detailed enough to provide clear direction, but flexible enough to allow for creativity and adaptation as the campaign progresses.
5. Question: What if my digital marketing brief isn’t working? Answer: If your campaign isn’t achieving its goals, it may be time to revisit your brief. Consider whether your objectives, target audience, or tactics need to be adjusted.
6. Question: Who should be involved in creating a digital marketing brief? Answer: Ideally, all key stakeholders should be involved in creating the brief. This can include marketing team members, executives, and even representatives from sales or customer service.
7. Question: How can I measure the success of my digital marketing brief? Answer: Success can be measured by how well the campaign achieves the objectives outlined in the brief. This can include metrics like increased brand awareness, lead generation, or sales.
8. Question: Can a digital marketing brief help with cross-team collaboration? Answer: Absolutely! A well-crafted digital marketing brief can ensure all team members are on the same page and working towards the same goals.

Conclusion

In conclusion, digital marketing briefs are a powerful tool that can significantly enhance your online marketing efforts. They provide a clear direction for your marketing campaign, ensuring that you stay focused on your goals and target audience. By using a digital marketing brief, you can streamline your marketing efforts, enhance your brand consistency, and allocate your resources more effectively.

Now that you understand the importance of digital marketing briefs and how to create one, your next step should be to apply this knowledge to your own business. Start by identifying your marketing objectives, defining your target audience, and outlining your key messages and tactics. Remember, a well-crafted digital marketing brief is not just a document, but a strategic tool that can propel your business to new heights.

As you start your own digital marketing brief, keep in mind the words of Peter Drucker: “The aim of marketing is to know and understand the customer so well the product or service fits him and sells itself.” A digital marketing brief is a tool that can help you achieve this understanding.

Finally, if you need further assistance in creating a digital marketing brief, hiring a qualified digital marketing specialist, or any other aspect of digital marketing, don’t hesitate to reach out to Specialist PH.

Our team of specialists are here to help you navigate the digital marketing landscape and grow your online business.

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