Writing a Good Brief
If the success of a project could be linked to just one thing it would the quality of the initial brief. A lot of clients think that the role of a design professional is to find the best solution but in fact the role of a design professional is to find the best solution based on the requirements that you set.
Although your interior professional should be able to help you draw up a comprehensive brief it is your responsibility to make sure that everything you require has been noted if you don’t want to incur additional design fees.
Below we've listed some things to consider when compiling your brief but a picture tells a thousand words and to get your aesthetic requirements across it is advisable to pull together images of interiors that reflect the style and mood you want to emulate.
- Who will be the point of contact on the client side(It needs to be one person)
- Who will approve the design proposals? (It needs to be one person)
- What is the budget on the project?
- Who will approve the budgets?
- Do you want to be consulted on every design decision or are you happy for the design consultant to take a view on minor items
- Are consultations with landlords or tenants required?
- Are they’re any rights of way on the property?
- Who needs to be involved in the briefing process?
- What is the purpose of this project?
- Is there a particular reason why you’re undertaking this project now?
- What are your requirements in terms of future expansion?
- What is the intended lifespan of the building / interior?
- How much building work do you want to undertake?
- Do you want to go to tender on the project or negotiate with a contractor? The tender process takes time but it is the best way to get the fairest price. Negotiating with a contractor is quicker but if things don’t work out you might be left high and dry.
- Do you plan to appoint a main contractor to manage all other subcontracts or appoint them all separate and contract a foreman separately to co-ordinate their work?
- Have you identified any subcontractors that you would like to use at this stage?
- When do you want to start on site? Why?
- When do you want to complete? Why?
- Do you need to carry out the project in a phased basis?
- If you have an existing building do you know if it possesses any asbestos, wet or dry rot or woodworm?
- Are there any materials you want to include or exclude?
- List and prioritise what do you want to be able to do in the final interior? You more than likely won’t be able to do everything so you need to decide what’s most important
- When drawing up your wish list be being specific without being prescriptive, this will give the consultant an opportunity to be creative in how they address those needs.
- Are there any forms or styles you want to include or exclude?
- Have you any special requirements in terms of maintenance or cleaning?
- What are you requirements in terms of security?
- What are your requirements in terms of ventilation / air-conditioning / heating?
- What are your requirements in terms of audiovisual services?
- What are your requirements in terms of parking?
- What are your requirements in terms of data / information system?
- What types of storage requirements do you have?
- Do you want to use any existing furniture / fittings / equipment?
- Time, quality and cost are inextricably linked on a project and when one increases the other two must adjust to compensate, for instance if you're short on time are you willing to maintain quality by keeping to original manufacture times and paying extra to fedex items in. Every client has different priorities and you need to tell your consultants which aspect is more important to you
Commercial Projects Only
- What is your brand? ( You may need to consult with a brand strategist to answer this)
- Who is your target market? (You may need to undertake some market research to answer this)
- What activities of the business are dependant on one another and what is the sequence of dependency?
- What facilities do staff need?
- What are your planned procedures with regard to refuse collection or storage