Define the Strategic Core of Briefs with 4 Points Strategy
Defining the strategic core of briefs feels like trying to find a pulse in a pile of corporate documents that were clearly dead on arrival. They’re bloated, contradictory, and usually written by someone who thinks 'synergy' is a personality trait. The 4 Points Strategy Framework is the industrial-strength BS-filter you need to strip away the corporate fan-fiction and find the actual soul of a brief. It’s four boxes. If you can’t fit your 'world-changing' strategy into four boxes, you don’t have a strategy; you have a collection of expensive hallucinations. This guide is for the strategist who is tired of seeing creative teams roll their eyes at a brief that says everything and means nothing.
The TL;DR
Stop writing 50-slide briefing decks that nobody reads. Identify the human mess (Problem), the uncomfortable truth (Insight), your one actual weapon (Advantage), and the singular battle plan (Strategy) that gives the creative team a fighting chance.
Why This Stops Your Brief From Being a Total Waste of Paper
Most briefs fail because they're too polite to the client's bad ideas. This framework forces you to be honest, which is usually painful but always more effective than 'leveraging brand equity.'
PROBLEM
Don't give me 'low market share' or 'brand awareness.' That's your problem, not the customer's. What is the actual annoyance, fear, or hurdle in their life? If there's no human tension, your brief is just noise.
INSIGHT
This is the Insight. It’s not a data point; it’s a 'why.' Why do they do the weird things they do? What's the secret belief driving their choices? If it doesn't make the client slightly uncomfortable to hear, it's probably not a real insight.
ADVANTAGE
Stop lying. Is your product actually better, or just cheaper? Do you have a legacy or just a big ad budget? Your advantage must be the specific tool that solves the Problem you identified. If it's 'innovation,' start over.
STRATEGY
This is the Strategy. It’s the bridge. It connects the Problem, Insight, and Advantage into a single, aggressive sentence. It’s a marching order. If it's more than 15 words, you're still rambling and the creative team is already ignoring you.
PROBLEM
Don't give me 'low market share' or 'brand awareness.' That's your problem, not the customer's. What is the actual annoyance, fear, or hurdle in their life? If there's no human tension, your brief is just noise.
INSIGHT
This is the Insight. It’s not a data point; it’s a 'why.' Why do they do the weird things they do? What's the secret belief driving their choices? If it doesn't make the client slightly uncomfortable to hear, it's probably not a real insight.
ADVANTAGE
Stop lying. Is your product actually better, or just cheaper? Do you have a legacy or just a big ad budget? Your advantage must be the specific tool that solves the Problem you identified. If it's 'innovation,' start over.
STRATEGY
This is the Strategy. It’s the bridge. It connects the Problem, Insight, and Advantage into a single, aggressive sentence. It’s a marching order. If it's more than 15 words, you're still rambling and the creative team is already ignoring you.
Ways You'll Probably Screw Up the Brief
(And waste everyone's time)
- ×Defining the 'Problem' as the client's lack of money (narcissistic and lazy)
- ×Confusing a 'Fact' with an 'Insight' (Facts are boring; Insights have teeth)
- ×Claiming your Advantage is 'Quality' (it's not, that's the baseline for entry)
- ×Writing a 'Strategy' that is just a list of channels like 'do a TikTok dance'
- ×Ignoring the Insight because the client thinks it sounds 'too negative'
- ×Making the Strategy so vague it could work for a bank or a brand of cat food
- ×Failing to connect the four points (they aren't separate ideas; they're a chain)
- ×Trying to solve three problems at once because you're afraid of a focused brief
Briefing is about sacrifice. If you aren't leaving 'good' ideas on the floor to find the 'great' one, you're just making a mess.
Real Examples
High-End Fitness Apps
Briefing for a premium workout app in a world of free YouTube videos.
PROBLEM
People feel like failures because they buy gym memberships they never use, creating a cycle of guilt.
INSIGHT
They don't actually want to 'get fit'; they want to stop feeling like the kind of person who quits things.
ADVANTAGE
A 'streak-protection' feature that prioritizes showing up over the intensity of the workout.
STRATEGY
Position the app as the 'Anti-Guilt' coach that celebrates the bare minimum to keep the habit alive.
PROBLEM
People feel like failures because they buy gym memberships they never use, creating a cycle of guilt.
INSIGHT
They don't actually want to 'get fit'; they want to stop feeling like the kind of person who quits things.
ADVANTAGE
A 'streak-protection' feature that prioritizes showing up over the intensity of the workout.
STRATEGY
Position the app as the 'Anti-Guilt' coach that celebrates the bare minimum to keep the habit alive.
Enterprise Cloud Security
Briefing for a B2B security firm targeting stressed-out CTOs.
PROBLEM
CTOs are paralyzed by the fear that one junior dev’s mistake will end their career on the evening news.
INSIGHT
They aren't looking for 'innovation'; they are looking for a way to sleep through the night without checking their phone.
ADVANTAGE
An automated 'Kill Switch' that isolates threats before a human even sees the alert.
STRATEGY
Market the platform as 'Professional Life Insurance' for the person whose head is on the chopping block.
PROBLEM
CTOs are paralyzed by the fear that one junior dev’s mistake will end their career on the evening news.
INSIGHT
They aren't looking for 'innovation'; they are looking for a way to sleep through the night without checking their phone.
ADVANTAGE
An automated 'Kill Switch' that isolates threats before a human even sees the alert.
STRATEGY
Market the platform as 'Professional Life Insurance' for the person whose head is on the chopping block.
Sustainable Cleaning Products
Briefing for an eco-friendly soap brand that actually needs to clean things.
PROBLEM
Eco-conscious consumers secretly suspect that 'green' products don't actually work on real dirt.
INSIGHT
They want to save the planet, but they’re more afraid of their house smelling like a wet dog when guests arrive.
ADVANTAGE
A proprietary plant-based enzyme that outperforms bleach in independent lab tests.
STRATEGY
Weaponize the 'Science of Nature' to prove that being green isn't a compromise on being clean.
PROBLEM
Eco-conscious consumers secretly suspect that 'green' products don't actually work on real dirt.
INSIGHT
They want to save the planet, but they’re more afraid of their house smelling like a wet dog when guests arrive.
ADVANTAGE
A proprietary plant-based enzyme that outperforms bleach in independent lab tests.
STRATEGY
Weaponize the 'Science of Nature' to prove that being green isn't a compromise on being clean.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I have two Problems in one brief?
No. Pick the one that’s actually the biggest barrier. If you try to solve two problems, the creative team will give you two half-baked ideas.
What if the client says they don't have an Advantage?
Then they shouldn't be in business. Dig deeper. If their product is identical to the competition, your Advantage has to be the brand's voice or a specific service hook.
How do I know if my Insight is 'uncomfortable' enough?
If you present it and the client says 'We can't say that out loud,' you've found a winner. Now find a way to say it that doesn't get you fired.
Is the 'Strategy' just a shorter version of the brief?
No, it's the tip of the spear. It's the one thing that must happen for the campaign to succeed. Everything else in the brief is just context.
Why can't I just use the client's business goals as the Problem?
Because 'increasing ROI' doesn't inspire a copywriter to write anything worth reading. Humans don't care about your ROI; they care about their own lives.
Generate a Framework for your Product Launch Strategy
Use our framework generator to generate various Get Who To By, 4C, 4 Points Strategy, and other frameworks — all in one place and directly to editable Google SLIDES!
Go to Framework Generator