A lot of UGC briefs are written for content, not ads. They describe the product, list a few talking points, ask for "a fun, authentic video" and leave the rest to the creator. What comes back is pleasant to watch and hard to run: one long take, a slow opening, music baked in, captions you can't edit.
An ad brief starts from how the footage will be used. It will be cut into several versions, tested hook against hook, and sent to a landing page that has to continue the same story. The brief's job is to get you footage you can work with, not just one finished clip.
Here's what to put in it, followed by a template you can copy. If you already brief static ads, the same principles from how to write a creative brief apply. Video just adds a few more moving parts.
One angle per video
The most important line in the brief is the angle: the single argument the video makes. "Our moisturizer is great" isn't an angle. "The moisturizer for people whose skin feels tight by mid-afternoon" is.
One angle per video keeps the creator focused and keeps your tests readable. If you want to test three angles, send three briefs or ask for three clearly separate videos. Mixing them into one video makes it impossible to tell which idea did the work.
Tell the creator where the ad will send people, too. If they know the landing page leads with the same problem, they can set it up properly.
Hook options to film
Ask for several hooks per video, each filmed as a separate opening that leads into the same body. Give the creator the hook ideas you want to test, written as the idea rather than an exact line, and leave room for them to add one of their own.
Separate hooks are what let you test the opening while everything else stays the same. UGC hook formats covers the main types, from call-outs to objections.
Key points, not a script
Give the creator the three or four points the video must make, in order of importance. Let them say it in their own words.
Word-for-word scripts tend to sound read, which removes the main reason to use a creator in the first place. Key points keep the delivery natural while making sure the substance is there. If one exact phrase matters, like the product name or an offer detail, put it in the must-say list instead.
Proof to show on camera
Showing beats telling. List the moments you want captured as proof:
- Close-ups of the texture, size, fit or finish.
- The product working in real time, not just the end result.
- Packaging and what's in the box, especially anything that surprises people.
- Comparisons the creator can honestly make from their own use.
Be careful with before/after footage. It has to reflect what actually happened, and in health and beauty categories in particular it raises compliance questions worth checking with a lawyer.
Must-say and must-not-say
Must-say covers the few things that have to be accurate: the product name, the offer if there is one, and any specific phrasing you need for consistency with the landing page.
Must-not-say protects you both. At minimum:
- No claims the brand can't substantiate, including health, medical or results claims you haven't approved.
- Nothing the creator hasn't actually experienced. They should describe their real use, not invented results.
- No competitor names unless you've cleared the comparison.
- No pricing or offer details beyond what you've given them, since offers change.
If the creator has a material connection to the brand, which a paid creator does, disclosure generally applies when the content runs. The FTC's Endorsement Guides are the US reference point. This isn't legal advice, so check with a lawyer about your specific setup.
Shot list: A-roll and B-roll
A-roll is the creator talking to camera. It carries the hook, the argument and the call to action.
B-roll is everything else: hands using the product, close-ups, pouring, applying, packing, the product in its real setting. Ask for more B-roll than you think you need. It's what lets an editor cover cuts, shorten a version, or build a new ad without a reshoot.
Framing, light and sound
You don't need studio production, but a few basics separate usable footage from unusable footage.
- Vertical, filmed natively. Shoot upright on the phone at its highest quality setting. Don't crop horizontal footage later.
- Leave room at the edges. Platform interface elements cover parts of the screen, so keep the face and the product away from the very top and bottom. Check each platform's current safe-zone guidance.
- Face the light. A window in front of the creator works well. Avoid strong light from behind.
- Quiet room, close mic. No TV, music or echoey bathroom unless the setting is part of the idea.
Deliverables
Spell this out, because it's where a lot of UGC goes wrong for ads.
- Raw, unedited files for every take.
- Each hook as its own clip, plus the body as its own clip.
- All B-roll as separate files.
- No burned-in captions, music, filters or in-app text. You'll add those in editing so you can vary them.
- An optional rough edit if you want to see how the creator would cut it, delivered alongside the raw files, not instead of them.
Usage terms agreed up front
Before anyone films, agree in writing where the content can run (organic, paid or both), for how long, on which platforms, whether you can edit and recut it, whether it can run as partnership ads or Spark Ads from the creator's handle, any exclusivity, and who keeps the raw files. Sorting out rights after a video wins is slower and puts you in a weaker negotiating position than settling them first. UGC usage rights and disclosure walks through each term.
A template you can copy
UGC AD BRIEF
Product:
Landing page the ad will send to:
Angle (one sentence):
Who this is for:
HOOKS TO FILM
(Each as a separate opening that leads into the same body)
1.
2.
3.
Your own hook idea (optional):
KEY POINTS (your own words, in this order)
1.
2.
3.
PROOF TO SHOW ON CAMERA
-
-
MUST SAY
-
MUST NOT SAY
- Anything beyond your own honest experience
- Health, medical or results claims not listed here
- Competitor names, prices or offers not listed here
A-ROLL
- Talking to camera, eye level, vertical
B-ROLL
-
-
-
FILMING
- Vertical, highest quality setting
- Facing a window or soft light
- Quiet room, no background music
DELIVERABLES
- Raw files for every take
- Each hook as its own clip, body as its own clip
- All B-roll as separate files
- No captions, music, filters or text added
USAGE (agreed in writing before filming)
- Organic / paid / both:
- Duration:
- Platforms:
- Edits and cutdowns allowed:
- Partnership ads / Spark Ads:
- Exclusivity:
- Raw file ownership:
- Disclosure: creator discloses the relationship where required
The short version
- Brief for ads, not content: one angle per video, several hooks, raw files.
- Give key points in order, not a script, and list the proof you want on camera.
- Use must-say and must-not-say to keep claims accurate and substantiated.
- Ask for A-roll and plenty of B-roll, filmed vertically with decent light and sound, with nothing burned in.
- Agree usage terms and disclosure in writing before filming starts.