How to Write a Video Editing Brief Your Editor Can Actually Follow

Most revision rounds don't happen because an editor lacks skill. They happen because the editor didn't know something the client assumed was obvious. A good brief removes those assumptions before editing starts.

Here's how to write one, plus a template you can copy for every client account.

Two kinds of brief

Agencies need two documents, not one:

1. The account brief: written once per client. It covers brand, style and rules that apply to every video.
2. The video brief: a few lines per video. It covers the goal, the story and anything specific to that piece.

Keeping them separate saves time. You write the account brief once and never repeat it. The video brief stays short enough that people actually fill it in.

What goes in the account brief

Brand basics

• Logo files (light and dark versions)
• Brand colours as hex codes
• Fonts, with the files or links
• Words and phrases the brand always or never uses

Visual style

• Caption style: font, size, colour, position and an example screenshot
• Pacing: fast and energetic, or calm and premium
• Colour: natural, warm, cinematic, high-contrast
• Graphics: lower thirds, emojis, zooms, sound effects, or none

Sound

• Music style and energy
• Licensed music sources, or a rule like "royalty-free only"
• Whether to add sound effects

References

Two or three videos the client loves, with a note on what they love about each. "This one, for the captions" is far more useful than a link on its own.

Things to avoid

This is the most valuable section and the one most often skipped. List anything the client has rejected before: a music style, a transition, a colour, a type of joke.

What goes in the video brief

Keep it short. Five lines is enough:

1. Goal: what should the viewer do or feel?
2. Platform and length: for example, Instagram Reel, 30–45 seconds.
3. Hook: the moment or line to open with, if you know it.
4. Must include: product shot, offer, call to action, logo.
5. Deadline.

A copy-ready template

ACCOUNT BRIEF: [Client name]
Logo:          [link]
Colours:       [hex codes]
Fonts:         [names and links]
Captions:      [style + example screenshot]
Pacing:        [fast / medium / calm]
Colour look:   [natural / warm / cinematic]
Graphics:      [which ones, or none]
Music:         [style, where it can come from]
Sound effects: [yes / no]
References:    [link]: what they like about it (x3)
Avoid:         [everything the client has rejected]

VIDEO BRIEF: [Title]
Goal:
Platform and length:
Hook:
Must include:
Deadline:

Tips that cut revisions

• Show, don't describe. A screenshot of the caption style beats a paragraph about it.
• Name the first second. Most short-form performance comes down to the opening. If you know the hook, say it.
• Update the brief after every rejection. When a client rejects something, add it to "Avoid" so it never happens again.
• Give timestamped feedback. "0:08, cut the pause" is fixed once. "Tighten it up" may take three rounds.
• Keep one owner per brief. One person on your side updates it, so it never contradicts itself.

Why it matters even more when you outsource

An in-house editor can ask the person at the next desk. An outsourced team relies on what you write down. A strong account brief is what lets a white-label team keep each client's style consistent, even when different editors work on the same account. It's the first thing we set up when an agency starts working with us, as part of our white-label editing onboarding.

Write the brief once, keep it updated, and you'll spend far less time on revisions and far more on growing the account.