Brief
How to write a UGC brief (with a template)
Updated 27 August 2026
A UGC brief says what to shoot, for whom, how the product ships and which usage is already included. If a block is missing, you pay for another round. Here are the six HICARI wizard steps and a filled template you can copy.
Why a weak brief costs money
One revision for a claim that was never written is another half-day from the creator and another day from you. If the file was already in paid, it is also wasted impressions. The cost is not “the template”: it is the second shoot.
The HICARI wizard asks for six blocks. Fill them with adjectives (“fun”, “premium”) and the creator invents. What they invent rarely matches legal. Write lines you can say out loud.
The six blocks of a brief
Each block asks the same three things: what you need, a filled example and the error that causes a revision. On HICARI the use already sits in the closed price.
1. Summary: what is shot and for whom
The summary is the line the creator reads on the metro. It says what is shot and for whom, in fewer than ten lines. If you write “fresh brand content”, the take comes out fresh and empty. Name the product, the size and what it is not. Name the buyer with age, city and one concrete pain. Name who speaks on camera: face or not, dry or warm tone, language. A usable summary fits in a paragraph you could dictate by phone. The creator will not guess whether your customer is 28 in Madrid or a parent buying online at 23:00. They will not guess whether the video goes on the PDP, the feed or Meta. Mix three audiences in one summary and you get a 14:00 ad-read. This block does not replace the whole brief: it is the door. If the door lies, the other blocks patch. On HICARI the summary travels with the closed price; it is not a teaser for “we will see”.
Example: Clear Cloud, 50 ml unscented cream. The video is for people who quit moisturisers because they sting. On camera: a 30-year-old in Madrid, no “hey guys”.
Common mistake: Writing only the brand name and “a lifestyle UGC”. The creator does not know what to show at second 3.
2. Logistics: product, shipping and dates
Logistics decide whether the take exists on Tuesday or on the 20th. Say how many units you ship, to which city, who pays postage and what happens if the parcel does not arrive. Give a shoot window: 48 hours from the jar hitting the table is a real date; “whenever you can” is not. Give the first-cut date and the time for the single revision round. The clock starts when the product is on the table, not when you post the search. If the product is perishable or needs a fridge, say it here, not in a Sunday voice note. If the creator must buy the SKU, say so and own the refund. On HICARI these dates travel with the brief; they are not invented in a group chat when the ad already has a flight date. Incomplete logistics are the dullest — and most expensive — reason for a 23:00 recut.
Example: We ship one tube to Madrid on Monday. Shoot within 48 hours of arrival. First cut in 5 working days. One revision against this brief.
Common mistake: Asking for a Friday delivery and shipping the product Thursday afternoon.
3. Video and distribution
This block locks the file, not the campaign dream. Seconds, aspect ratio, variant count, captions yes or no, music no. About 90% of commercial UGC is vertical 9:16 at 1080×1920. If you later want 1:1, say it now: a crooked crop in Ads Manager is not a deliverable. Say where it runs: brand feed, PDP, Stories, Meta, TikTok. On HICARI one year of paid already sits in the price; this block does not “open rights”, it makes the cut exist. A 45 s master with no cutdown and a brief that promises “for all networks” produce the same result: an intern crops it badly on Friday. Write whether a face must appear. Write whether an app UI is on screen. If you want several hypotheses, ask for several creators or several videos: volume is the number of creators, not a minutes ladder.
Example: 15 s, 9:16, one file. Brand feed and Meta Ads. Face yes. Readable label.
Common mistake: Asking for “several formats and a 1:1 just in case” inside the same 15 s video.
4. Usage and term: included rights
On HICARI this block is not a licensing table. The closed price includes unlimited organic on the brand’s channels and one year of paid. Do not ask for “worldwide all use in perpetuity” as if an annex were required. Do not leave the box empty “because legal will look later”. Legal looks at claims; it does not reopen the model. Write territory and language if they matter. Write whether the creator may post the take on their profile. Whitelist or Spark from their handle is not Standard: if you need it, this block names it as a different job. Off-platform each brand writes its own contract; here the use already travels with the €70 starting price. A brief that says “we will add paid if it works” is asking for a second job under another name.
Example: Included usage: one year paid + unlimited organic. No whitelist. No exclusivity.
Common mistake: Writing “worldwide all rights forever” as if the closed model did not exist.
5. Script and references
Say the hook out loud. “If it stings after two minutes, it is not hydration” can be shot. “Communicate freshness and naturalness” cannot. List the leftover message at second 15: size, benefit, daily use. List what cannot be said: cures, miracle, chemical-free, best on the market, unaudited savings. Legal wants that list on Tuesday, not in revision four. Add two or three tone references (links), not a twenty-screenshot moodboard. The creator is not your creative department: if you want evidence, ask for evidence; if you want a voice-over, write the voice-over. Hybrid is written down. On HICARI the script travels with the brief; the claim is not “tweaked” on WhatsApp after the ad is spending.
Example: Hook: “If it stings after two minutes, it is not hydration.” Close: “unscented, 50 ml.” Banned: cures, miracle, the best.
Common mistake: Sending only a Pinterest board and hoping the claim appears on its own.
6. Creator level
Level is not a compliment. It says whether you need a face, an accent, a city, a language and evidence of a concrete format. A Standard on-camera dry tone is not an expert walking through a twelve-line INCI. It is also not an 80,000-follower profile. If you ask for “first-time mum” and the portfolio is skate, it does not fit: change the filter. On HICARI you pick on evidence, not fame. Campaign volume is more creators, not a “gold level” with another price list. Write if hands-and-product only is fine. Write if a second language is a separate job. A brief that asks for “good energy and obvious love for the brand” is not a level: it is an adjective. Replace it with three portfolio links that would actually work. The €70 is the brand price of a Standard 15 s video, not a figure to argue in this block.
Example: Standard. Product evidence by second 3. No follower count required.
Common mistake: Asking for a “top creator with a large following” for a file the brand will publish itself.
UGC brief template
Copy the text, swap the product and post it. It is filled on purpose: an empty template gets adjectives. The live search lives on HICARI, not on this page.
PROJECT Brand: Clear Cloud Product: 50 ml unscented face cream for sensitive skin Goal: one Standard 15 s video for Meta Ads and the brand feed WHAT TO SAY Problem: “I have not found a cream that does not sting.” Message: hydrates, does not sting, daily use. Not an anti-ageing cream. Banned: “cures”, “miracle”, “best on the market”, “chemical-free” VIDEO AND DISTRIBUTION Length: 15 s · 9:16 · one file Where it runs: brand feed + Meta Ads On camera: face yes. Hands and label readable. LOGISTICS Ship to Madrid. Shoot within 48 hours of the tube arriving. First cut: 5 working days. One revision round against this brief. USAGE AND TERM Included on HICARI: one year of paid plus unlimited organic on the brand’s channels. No whitelist. No category exclusivity. SCRIPT AND REFERENCES Hook: “If it stings after two minutes, it is not hydration.” Close: show the tube and say “unscented, 50 ml”. Tone: dry, no “hey guys”. CREATOR LEVEL Standard. Product evidence in the first three seconds. No follower count required.
Full example: from brief to video
The Clear Cloud brief above is the level of detail we ask for. The 15 s take below is the result: product early, clean audio, a close that can run as paid.
What NOT to put
- Tone words like “fun” or “premium” with no example line.
- “All use” or “forever”: on HICARI usage is already defined.
- Health claims copied from the landing page (“cures”, “chemical-free”).
- A delivery date before the product arrives.
- Eight hooks inside one Standard 15 s video.
- “We will add paid if it works” written in pencil on the same Standard.
From the brief to publishing on HICARI
When the six blocks fit on one page, post the search. The creator sees the same text. You approve the profile, the product arrives if needed, the take lands, one round, and the file goes on your channels with usage already included.
Do not wait to “close rights with legal at another table”. If a claim is banned, ban it here. If the video goes on Meta, say so under video and distribution. How to hire UGC is the three-step hub; this page is the paper those steps need.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need a brief if I only want one video?
Yes. One video still has a length, a claim and a usage term. A short brief exists: one page, six blocks.
Can I send a moodboard instead of text?
As an extra, yes. As the only brief, no: a moodboard does not state dates or banned lines.
Are rights discussed in the brief?
Not on HICARI. The closed price includes one year of paid and unlimited organic. The brief names that usage; it does not reopen it.
Where do I publish the brief once it is written?
On HICARI. This page is the guide. The signup button opens the search with the same six blocks.