Free Tool
Content Brief Builder
A brief is a contract with the writer: the question, the reader, the angle and the evidence. This builder turns those into a document — and prices the article in the second mode.
Runs entirely in your browser. Nothing you type leaves your device, and nothing is stored or sent anywhere. The output is a planning aid built from the figures you enter — check the results before relying on them.
What this tool does
Enter the audience, the target query, the angle that makes this piece different, the word target, the headings and the sources the writer must check. The builder formats a brief the writer can follow without guessing — and guessing is where thin, generic articles come from.
The cost mode prices the article before it is written: your hours at your hourly value, plus any freelancer or tool costs, gives the cost per article and the monthly content budget. A brief without a cost is a plan without a price; the cost mode adds it.
Try it
Waiting. Fill in the brief, or switch to the cost mode, then press Calculate.
How it works
The brief is built in order: audience, target query, angle, word target, headings, sources and notes. The headings are the article’s skeleton — a writer who follows them produces the article you planned, and a writer who does not is visible at a glance when you check the draft against them.
The cost mode is a sum: your hours multiplied by the value of your hour, plus freelancer cost, plus tool cost, gives the cost per article. The monthly budget is that figure multiplied by the articles per month.
Assumptions and limitations
A brief guides a writer. It does not write the article.
- The angle must be real. “Better than the competition” is not an angle; a different method, a different audience or a worked example is.
- Sources must be checkable. A brief that lists no sources invites the writer to invent the figures — and invented figures are the fastest way to lose a reader’s trust.
- Word target is a guide, not a quota. An article that answers the query in 900 words should not be stretched to 1,800, and one that needs 2,500 should not be cut.
- The cost mode prices your time at the value you enter. Use the minimum rate from the hourly rate calculator, or the rate the same hour would pay elsewhere.
Worked example
Example (illustrative inputs, not a real brief). A brief for beginner freelancers on raising rates:
| Item | Figure |
|---|---|
| Target query | how to raise freelance rates |
| Word target | 1,800 words |
| Headings | Why rates stall — The maths of a raise — How to tell the client |
| Cost per article (6 hours × 25 + 5 tools) | 155.00 |
Frequently asked questions
What makes a brief different from an outline?
A brief adds the audience, the query, the angle and the sources to the headings. An outline says what the article covers; a brief says who it is for, why it is different and where the facts come from.
Why does the brief need an angle?
Because an article without an angle repeats what already ranks. The angle is the reason this piece deserves to exist: a different method, a worked example, a narrower audience, a correction. Without it the writer produces a summary, not an article.
How do I price my own time in the cost mode?
At the value of your hour — the minimum rate from the hourly rate calculator is the honest floor. Time spent writing is time not spent on client work, and the article has to earn it back.
Should the writer follow the headings exactly?
Largely, yes — the headings are the plan. If the draft shows a heading is wrong, change the brief and say why; do not silently drop it. The brief is a record of the decision, not just a suggestion.