Banner briefing checklist: the details that speed up production.

A good brief reduces avoidable questions and prevents technical constraints from appearing only at the delivery stage. In many cases, a few clear inputs are enough.

1. Campaign objective and core message

What should the creative achieve and what needs to be understood within a few seconds? A clear primary message helps prioritise copy and motion. If every message is equally important, the banner quickly becomes crowded.

2. Audience and context

Demographics alone are not enough. It is also useful to know the context: B2B or B2C, complex product or short-term offer, awareness or direct conversion. These factors shape tone, information density and CTA.

3. Format list and platforms

The format list should ideally come from the media plan or publisher requirements. Responsive ads need assets by aspect ratio rather than a fixed banner size. That distinction should be clear in the brief.

4. Available assets

This includes logos, key visuals, product images, brand guidelines, fonts, colour values and existing campaign artwork. Files should ideally be production-ready and cleared for the intended use.

5. Technical specifications

• Maximum file or ZIP size
• Permitted duration and loop count
• clickTag or exit requirements
• Allowed libraries or hosting rules
• Backup or fallback creative
• Naming and handover rules

Set internal priorities

If not every format is required at once, prioritise the most important sizes. The master creative can then be approved in representative formats before the full set is produced.

6. Deadlines and approvals

Campaign launch is only one date. Internal approvals, publisher QA and possible correction rounds matter too. Production becomes easier to plan when it is clear who approves the visual, copy and technical versions.