Start with the commercial question
Write down what must change in the business and why the decision matters now. Examples include choosing an initial customer segment, improving qualified sales conversations or resolving unclear marketing accountability. Explain the constraints instead of presenting a preferred channel as a settled answer.
Bring evidence and uncertainties
Include a few recent sales outcomes, customer comments and the current offer. Label assumptions clearly. If your company serves markets beyond the Bay Area, specify them; a local team does not necessarily have a local customer base. Avoid sharing sensitive customer records in an initial email.
Define the conditions for delivery
Name the sponsor, participants, budget boundaries and timing dependencies. State any workshop or on-site requirements and confirm them directly. Ask for an output your team can inspect and use, with a review process that allows evidence to change the plan. The downloadable consulting brief provides a working structure.
Put the decision into practice
- State the decision in one sentence.
- List evidence and assumptions separately.
- Describe customer geography.
- Name the sponsor and contributors.
- Identify timing and meeting requirements.
Experience and context
Read Nancy’s experience and results for the published business context. Contact Nancy to discuss which experience and working arrangements fit your situation.
Bring the business question, the evidence already available and the constraints that matter. Discuss your next step with Nancy Chou.
Write the founder’s decision in plain language
State what you must decide, why now and what changes if the answer is different from your current assumption. Add the customer evidence, constraints and unresolved questions. Separate a financing or board deadline from evidence of customer readiness. A brief that asks for growth without identifying the decision leaves providers to make incompatible assumptions.
Specify the operating support available
Name the sponsor, access to customers and records, implementation owners and approval process. State which work the founder can realistically contribute. A useful brief should let a provider distinguish a validation project, execution scope and ongoing leadership need. Use the interactive brief to capture the fields; this founder guide explains the trade-offs and readiness behind them. Marketing consulting brief template.