If hiring a freelancer feels like ordering from a restaurant menu, then your brief is the waiter taking your order. And just like saying “I’ll have food” won’t get you the dish you want, giving freelancers a vague project description won’t get you the results you’re looking for.
The truth is: the quality of your brief determines the quality of the work you’ll receive. Buyers who take the time to craft a clear, structured, and engaging brief often get better results, fewer revisions, and faster turnaround. Let’s break it down so you can start winning with your freelancer briefs.
Why Most Briefs Fail
Many buyers think, “If I tell them what I want, they should know what to do.” The problem is freelancers aren’t mind-readers. A poor brief usually fails because:
- It’s too vague (“Make it look professional” doesn’t mean the same thing to everyone).
- It skips context (freelancers need to know why you want something, not just what you want).
- It’s incomplete (forgetting details like tone, format, or deadlines leads to endless revisions).
As one seasoned freelancer once said: “Bad briefs create bad projects — every single time.”
What Goes Into a Winning Brief
Here’s the formula that top buyers use when posting on eFrelance:
- Clear Objectives – Spell out the goal. Do you want sales, awareness, or engagement?
- Detailed Deliverables – Describe exactly what you expect: format, style, tone, number of pieces, length, etc.
- Background Info – Share context about your business, audience, and industry. It helps freelancers tailor their work.
- References & Examples – If you like something, show it. A picture, link, or past sample saves hours of guessing.
- Realistic Timeline – Don’t set deadlines that require freelancers to perform miracles.
- Budget Clarity – Be upfront about what you’re willing to pay. It saves time for both sides.
The Results of a Strong Brief
When buyers invest in writing a strong brief, here’s what happens:
- Projects move faster because freelancers have fewer questions.
- Work quality improves since the freelancer fully understands your vision.
- You avoid misunderstandings that cost time, money, and energy.
Think of it like this: a good brief is not just a project description, it’s a roadmap to success.
Pro Tip
When posting on eFrelance, you can save your briefs as templates. This way, you won’t need to rewrite them for every project. Smart buyers use templates to scale projects and keep consistency across multiple freelancers.
Final Thought
If you want winning results, start by writing a winning brief. After all, a freelancer can only deliver as clearly as you describe. Or as the old saying goes: “Garbage in, garbage out.”
So next time, don’t just post a project. Post a project that’s impossible to misunderstand.
