Clarify What Success Actually Means in a Brief using Get Who To By
Most briefs are basically a collection of buzzwords held together by hope and a prayer. If your 'strategy' is a 50-page deck that no one reads, you’re doing it wrong. The Get Who To By framework is the slap in the face your project needs. It forces you to stop hiding behind vague goals and actually define what success looks like before you waste the design team's time. It's about getting real about who you're talking to and why they currently don't give a damn about you.
The TL;DR
The GWTB framework stops you from launching a campaign that 'builds awareness' (marketing speak for 'we failed'). It forces you to define a specific target (GET), their annoying habits or barriers (WHO), a clear message (TO), and the actual mechanism you'll use to make them move (BY). It’s strategy for people who actually want results.
Why This Framework Beats Your 40-Slide Deck
Because most campaigns fail not because of 'bad creative,' but because the brief was a mess of conflicting priorities and delusional expectations.
The Four Steps
GET
Who exactly are you trying to reach?
Not 'Millennials' or 'Decision Makers.' That's lazy. Define the smallest, most winnable group that has a specific problem your product actually solves. If you can't describe their bad day, you haven't gone deep enough.
WHO
What is their current behavior or barrier?
What are they doing right now instead of buying your stuff? Are they using a competitor? Are they ignoring the problem? Are they stuck in a 'good enough' loop? This is the 'why' behind their apathy.
TO
What is the one thing they need to hear?
This isn't your mission statement. It’s the message that makes them stop and think, 'Wait, they're talking to me.' It should make the desired action feel like the only logical next step.
BY
How are you actually going to make them act?
The mechanism. The nudge. The bribe. Whatever it is, it’s the bridge between 'I like this' and 'I'm doing this.' Don't just leave it to chance; build the path for them.
Ways You'll Probably Mess This Up
(Don't worry, everyone else does too)
- ×Defining the 'GET' as 'anyone with a credit card'
- ×Writing a 'WHO' that is just a list of demographics instead of a behavior
- ×Making the 'TO' message three paragraphs long
- ×Forgetting the 'BY' and just hoping people 'engage' with the content
- ×Using marketing jargon that makes your target's eyes roll back into their head
- ×Mistaking a feature for a behavioral insight
- ×Trying to solve three different problems in one GWTB statement
- ×Assuming the audience cares as much about your brand as you do
If your brief feels like it's trying to please everyone in the boardroom, delete it and start over. GWTB is about focus, not consensus.
Real Examples
B2B SaaS Strategy
A campaign for a project management tool targeting burnt-out agency leads.
GET
Agency project leads who spend 3 hours a day manually updating spreadsheets.
WHO
They know their system is broken but are too busy 'putting out fires' to learn a new tool.
TO
Your spreadsheets aren't organization; they're a technical debt that’s killing your weekends.
BY
A 1-click import tool that migrates their mess into our system in under 60 seconds.
Direct-to-Consumer (DTC)
Selling high-end coffee beans to people who usually buy the cheap grocery store stuff.
GET
Home-office workers who drink three cups of 'whatever's on sale' every morning.
WHO
They think 'good coffee' is a pretentious hobby they don't have time for.
TO
Your morning ritual deserves better than burnt beans and bitterness.
BY
A 'Taste the Difference' starter kit with a 50% discount on the first bag.
Brand Refresh
Re-engaging former gym members who quit during the 'new year' rush.
GET
Former members who haven't scanned their badge in 90 days.
WHO
They feel guilty about quitting and think going back requires a 'heroic' effort they can't sustain.
TO
Forget the 90-day transformation; just show up for 15 minutes today.
BY
An 'Anti-Guilt' pass that waives re-enrollment fees and offers a '15-minute workout' guide.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I have two 'GETs' in one brief?
No. Pick one. If you have two distinct audiences, you have two distinct campaigns. Trying to hit both in one go is how you end up with a message that nobody cares about.
What if I don't have a 'behavioral insight' for the WHO?
Then you don't have a campaign yet. Go talk to a customer or look at your churn data. If you don't know why they're saying 'no' right now, you can't make them say 'yes' later.
Is the 'TO' just my tagline?
Rarely. The 'TO' is the core argument. Your tagline is the pretty bow you put on it later. Focus on the argument first; the copywriting comes second.
What's the difference between 'BY' and a Call to Action?
A CTA is a button that says 'Click Here.' The 'BY' is the strategy behind the button - the reason they actually bother to click it, like a specific offer or a unique tool.
Why is there no 'Strategy' box in this framework?
Because the entire GWTB statement *is* the strategy. If you can't fit your strategy into these four steps, it's probably too bloated to work anyway.
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