The Brief Basics – Vici Richardson; HBF (Perth)

Summary

Vicki, Head of Growth and Go-To-Market at HBF, shares her extensive experience in the healthcare and marketing industries. Having worked in roles spanning disability care, aged care, and health insurance, she emphasizes the importance of clear, concise marketing briefs for successful campaigns. She details HBF’s growth, recent expansions into dental and physiotherapy services, and its community involvement. Vicki discusses the critical process of briefing, aligning stakeholders, and avoiding common mistakes, offering advice for students and new graduates on effective communication, relationship-building, and learning from others within their organizations.

Takeaways

• 😀 Vicki has been with HBF for 5.5 years, currently working as the Head of Growth and Go-To-Market, focusing on acquiring new members and expanding the business into new health services like dental and physio.
• 😀 HBF is a not-for-profit private health insurer with over 80 years of history, offering private health insurance across Australia, with a strong focus on serving its members' needs.
• 😀 HBF recently launched eight dental centers in the Perth metro area and acquired a physio business, Life Ready Physio, as part of expanding into broader health services.
• 😀 Marketing briefs are crucial for providing clear direction and information on business initiatives. They should outline the problem or opportunity, brand objectives, target audience, and key messages in a concise format.
• 😀 Vicki emphasizes the importance of brevity when creating marketing briefs. A brief should be no longer than 3-4 pages, and excess information should be kept in an appendix rather than in the main document.
• 😀 In marketing, there are different types of briefs, including creative, media, acquisition, engagement, retention, and cross-sell briefs, which cater to different business goals.
• 😀 A marketing brief should include clear details on project goals, timelines, target audiences, objectives, key messages, deliverables, and mandatory elements like legal requirements and disclaimers.
• 😀 HBF has a defined process for creating and reviewing marketing briefs, involving key internal stakeholders such as legal, product, and compliance teams, with market testing and concept testing included in major campaigns.
• 😀 One of the biggest challenges in brief writing is ensuring clarity on the problem being solved, as misalignment within teams can lead to poor outcomes.
• 😀 Vicki advises students to understand the briefing process within their organizations and stresses the importance of building strong relationships with internal stakeholders, which can be valuable for future collaboration and problem-solving.

Q & A

What is Vicki's role at HBF?

Vicki is the Head of Growth and Go-To Market at HBF. She leads a team focused on acquiring new members for private health insurance, as well as overseeing HBF's dental and physio businesses.

What is HBF's core business and how long has it been operating?

HBF is a private health insurer that has been operating for over 80 years, offering private health insurance to Australians. It is a not-for-profit organization that focuses on using premiums collected from members to pay out claims.

What new services has HBF recently launched?

Recently, HBF has launched its dental business with eight new centers and acquired a physio business, Life Ready Physio. These services aim to offer additional health support to their members.

How does Vicki describe a marketing brief?

A marketing brief is a clear and concise document outlining the initiative's problem or opportunity, objectives, target audience, and deliverables. It should be brief and engaging to excite the reader and align the team on the project.

What types of briefs does HBF typically work with?

HBF typically works with external briefs such as media or creative briefs. These briefs may focus on acquiring new customers, engaging existing ones, or upselling products to current members.

How does Vicki structure a marketing brief?

Vicki structures a marketing brief by first outlining the project name, dates, problem or opportunity, objectives, and clear propositions. She also includes audience demographics, psychographics, key messages, deliverables, and mandatory elements like legal disclaimers.

What common challenges does Vicki face when working with briefs?

Vicki identifies challenges like misalignment within the team, unclear objectives, lack of ownership, and forgetting to refer back to the brief throughout the process. These can lead to confusion and off-track deliverables.

What advice does Vicki have for students learning to write briefs?

Vicki advises students to understand the process within their organization for writing briefs. She stresses the importance of being clear, concise, and aligning all stakeholders on the objectives. Additionally, she recommends refining and editing briefs for clarity and brevity.

What does Vicki consider important for new marketing graduates?

For new graduates, Vicki recommends building strong relationships across various departments in the organization. Engaging with different stakeholders, including legal and product teams, can provide valuable insights and help in navigating the marketing process.

What does Vicki think about the future of marketing briefs?

Vicki believes the focus on the quality of marketing briefs will continue to grow. She notes that HBF has invested in training its team to improve brief writing, and this trend will likely spread across the industry as companies recognize the importance of well-crafted briefs.