How to brief an AI ad: what to send for best results
The quality of an AI video ad is heavily influenced by what the client sends before production starts. A vague brief produces a vague ad. A specific brief produces something you can actually run.
This is what we ask for, why it matters, and what a good version of each looks like.
The six things every good brief covers
1. Your product and what makes it different
Do not just name the product. Tell us what it does that a competitor does not. Is it the formula, the texture, the convenience, the price point? The ad needs a reason to exist, and that reason should come from you, not from us guessing.
Weak: "It is a serum."
Strong: "It is a peptide serum that absorbs in under 30 seconds, no sticky feeling. That is the main thing we want to show."
2. The feeling you want to create
Lifestyle and cinematic ads sell emotion first, product second. Tell us whether you want the viewer to feel aspirational, comforted, energised, or impressed. Words work. Reference images work better.
If there is an ad you have seen that got the tone right, send a link. We will not copy it, but we will understand your direction immediately.
3. Who is watching
Age range, lifestyle, what they care about. A skincare ad targeting women in their 40s looks different from one targeting university students. The scene, the model energy, the pacing, and even the colour palette shift.
4. The platform and placement
TikTok and Instagram feed ads are vertical. YouTube pre-rolls are horizontal. Meta stories are vertical with safe zones at the top and bottom for UI overlap. An ad that is not built for the right placement wastes production effort and performs worse. Tell us where you are running it.
Aspect ratio is the most common thing clients forget to mention. It determines everything from composition to text placement. Always include it.
5. Any copy or audio direction
Do you want on-screen text? A voiceover? Captions? Music with a specific mood? None of these are assumptions we make by default. If you want them, say so. If you do not want any text on screen, say that too.
6. What you want the viewer to do next
The end card or final moment of the ad should point somewhere. Shop now. Visit the link in bio. Use the code. If you have a discount code or specific CTA, include it in the brief so it is baked into the edit, not added as an afterthought.
What to send as assets
- Product images: Clean, already cropped, high resolution. Not screenshots of a product listing.
- Logo file: PNG with transparent background if you have one.
- Brand colours: Hex codes if possible.
- Reference ads: Anything that gets the tone right, even if it is from a completely different category.
What you do not need to send
You do not need a finished script. You do not need to know what AI tools we use. You do not need to specify camera angles or technical production details. That is our job. Your job is to tell us what the ad should feel like and who it is for.
A brief that works, in practice
Here is what a usable brief actually looks like for a Quick Cut order:
"We sell a travel-size dry shampoo. Target is working women, 25 to 38, always on the go. Want the vibe to feel clean and quick, like a power move before leaving the house. Vertical for Instagram stories and TikTok. White and nude colour palette, nothing too high fashion. End with our logo and the text 'Ready in 30 seconds.' No voiceover needed, just music."
That brief takes three minutes to write and saves two revision rounds.
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