After working with brands on a lot of projects, I've found that slow projects are rarely slow because the work is slow. They're slow because of waiting: waiting for files, waiting for answers, waiting for approval, and redoing work because people understood things differently from the start.
The good news is that most of the time lost to waiting can be fixed before the project begins. This article is what I wish every brand knew before hiring someone for a video or motion piece, no matter who they hire.
A good brief isn't a long brief. It's one that answers every question
A clear one-page brief beats a 20-page document that still leaves you unsure what to make. Try answering these 7 questions before you reach out.
| Topic | Question to answer | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Goal | What is this video for? What should viewers do after watching? | Get people to sign up for a free trial |
| Key message | If people remember only one sentence, which should it be? | "Do your bookkeeping in 5 minutes" |
| Audience | Who's watching, and what problem do they have? | Small business owners with no time for bookkeeping |
| Placement | Which platform, what aspect ratio, how long? | Reels 9:16, 60 sec + a 15 sec ad cut |
| Reference | Which work do you like, and what exactly do you like about it? | The cutting rhythm of video A, the color tone of video B |
| Deadline | The date you actually need it, not just the date you'd "like" it | Must post Dec 20 because it's launch day |
| Decision maker | Who gives the final approval? | The brand owner, alone |
The last one matters more than you'd think. Plenty of projects pass every round, then start over because the person with the real final say saw the work for the first time at the very end.
Put these files in one folder
Send everything at once and work can start right away, without chasing files one message at a time.
- Vector logo (.ai, .svg or .pdf), not a screenshot from your page
- CI or brand guidelines: colors, fonts and don'ts
- Product photos or app screen recordings in high resolution
- Script, or at least the text that has to be in the video
- Voiceover or footage already shot (if any)
- Licensed music, or a description of the style you want
During the project: do this and you'll finish sooner
Approve one stage at a time
Motion work moves in stages: brief → script → styleframes/storyboard → animation → finishing. Changing the script at the script stage takes minutes. Changing it after the animation is done can mean days of redoing work. The faster decisions are made in the early stages, the faster the whole project goes.
Collect feedback into one round, from one person
Feedback that trickles in point by point from several people sometimes contradicts itself and keeps the work going in circles. Have the team agree internally first, then send it as one set.
Give a timecode and a reason
"0:12–0:15, the text disappears too fast to read" can be fixed immediately. "It's not popping yet" means guessing what you meant first.
Separate "must fix" from "want to try"
Anything that differs from the brief should definitely be fixed. New ideas you've just thought of should be discussed separately, because they're usually extra work that affects both time and budget.
Things that slow work down without you noticing
- Briefing "make it look premium" or "something modern" with no examples, because the same words look different in each person's head
- Cramming everything you want to say into one 60-second video, until nothing stands out
- Sending files through chat one image at a time, at low resolution, and having to ask again
- Changing the key message after animation has already started
- The approver not being in the conversation from the start
If it's genuinely urgent
Tell us right at the start. Urgent work is possible, but other projects have to be rescheduled. At Dion Studio we charge a rush fee based on how urgent each job is, and the more complete the brief, the more realistic a rush job becomes.
Don't have anything yet? That's fine
Lots of brands come to us knowing only that they "want a video." That's completely normal. We can work out the brief together. Just answer as many of the 7 questions above as you can and send them to contact@dion-studio.com, and we'll fill in the rest.