Content writing brief template: give your writer a clear handoff

Download the Markdown file, duplicate it in your own writing tool, or copy the fields below. Leave a field marked ‘needs research’ when the answer is unknown. An honest gap is more useful than an invented product specification.

# Content writing brief

Working topic:
Reader and situation:
Decision this page helps the reader make:
Primary keyword and related questions:
Keyword difficulty, provider, market, and date checked:
Live search result observations and why this target is attainable:
Search intent and observed result types:
Existing page to update, or proposed URL:

## Answer promise
In one sentence, what will the reader be able to decide or do?

## Evidence and factual constraints
- Source URL, relevant fact, owner, and date checked:
- Product specifications and exact product URLs:
- Claims that need review or must not be made:

## Outline
- Opening answer:
- Section 1 and its purpose:
- Section 2 and its purpose:
- Section 3 and its purpose:
- Questions that are out of scope:

## Reader's next step
Relevant product, collection, or supporting guide:
Why this link helps:

## Publishing details
Page / SEO title (include the primary keyword):
H1 (include the primary keyword, with its own wording):
One useful H2 containing the primary keyword:
Slug (primary keyword with hyphens):
First sentence (answer directly and include the primary keyword):
Article summary / excerpt:
Meta description:
Author and tags:
Image direction, source, and alt text:

## Review and measurement
Reviewer:
Publication checklist:
Query/page baseline, if updating:
Change log and follow-up review:

Describe a situation rather than a broad demographic. ‘A runner deciding between merino and synthetic socks for their routine’ tells a writer more than ‘people interested in fitness.’ Then state what a good answer will let that person compare or do.

Check the search results for your primary query and describe the result types you see. A comparison article, collection page, and how-to tutorial may use related words while answering different needs. The brief should explain your chosen format instead of treating a competitor’s outline as a specification.

If the page assignment is still unclear, finish your keyword and intent map first. A precise brief cannot rescue a topic that has no clear role on the site.

Give the writer the source and the constraint together. A product URL is helpful, but ‘use this page for the listed fiber percentages; checked by the merchandising team’ explains how it should inform the article. Keep dates, model names, units, and exceptions attached to the relevant fact.

When a claim changes, update the source of truth and note which articles use it. Do not rely on the writer remembering a previous draft or an AI model repeating the same number in every article.

For every proposed heading, add a short purpose. ‘Care requirements: compare the instructions for the products in this article’ tells the writer what to verify. ‘Everything you need to know’ does not. This is also where you can remove a stock introduction or irrelevant authenticity checklist before drafting starts.

1. Opening: answer the core comparison directly and explain what the choice depends on.
2. Criteria: compare the verified product details that affect the decision.
3. Examples: show how different use cases change which features matter.
4. Practical checks: tell the reader what to inspect on the product label or page.
5. Next step: link to the relevant products or a narrower supporting guide.

Use length as a planning constraint only when it helps the assignment. Google explicitly says it has no preferred word count in its people-first content guidance. A section earns its space by answering something useful, not by helping the draft reach an arbitrary total.

List a relevant destination next to the sentence or section where it belongs. For a product recommendation, include the exact product URL and the reason it fits. For further reading, explain which remaining question the supporting article answers. The writer can then place links naturally instead of scattering them through the draft.

Keep four publishing fields in the brief: SEO title, H1, summary, and meta description. They may overlap in subject, but their jobs differ. The summary helps someone choose an article from your own feed. The meta description describes the page for a potential search visitor. Drafting both separately avoids accidental copy-and-paste publishing.

For a search-focused article, choose one primary keyword after checking difficulty and the live results. Include that phrase naturally in the page title, H1, one relevant H2, and first sentence; use its hyphenated form as the slug. The H1 and page title can have different wording around the same phrase. Keep other headings specific to their sections instead of repeating the target everywhere.

Include an image direction that serves the subject. Specify whether you need a product photograph, a diagram, or an editorial illustration, and identify source material it should follow. Review product accuracy and write useful alt text. For Shopify delivery, record a suitable crop and export preset using the blog image-size guide.

Name who reviews the article and what they are checking. A product specialist can verify specifications; an editor can check the argument, sources, links, and publishing fields. ‘Looks good’ is less useful than confirming that the article answers its promised question and every material claim has support.

• The opening answers the brief’s main question.
• Every section advances the reader’s decision.
• Numbers, dates, product details, and caveats match the approved evidence.
• Links reach the correct live products, collections, and supporting articles.
• The title, H1, summary, and description accurately represent the finished page.
• The live page is readable on a phone and its images load.

For an update, attach a search-performance baseline and a change log. For a new article, record the query group and planned destination. Use the blog post checklist to verify delivery, and the content decay guide to investigate a later decline without assuming a specific edit will improve rankings.