What happens when I submit my brief?
After you have submitted your brief to the Creative Services Exchange, we will ask you to verify it. This process is really important as it confirms that you have submitted it, that it has been received and that you have a genuine creative requirement. It also activates your account on blur Trading, which is how you can monitor the progress of your brief through to delivery.
At the next stage you'll be contacted to go through some of the details of your brief before it is published on the Creative Services Exchange (Design, Marketing, Media, Art, or Innovation) to ensure that you get the best results from the world's finest creatives.

And after it's been published to the Exchange?
You can follow the progress on your personal account on blur Trading. On the pitch due date, up to three pitches are selected for you to review. (Three has proven to be the ideal number to give you a sensible choice, but if relevant we include a couple more. )You can do all this through your account online. We like to set up a call to go over the pitches with you after you've viewed them, so you can get any questions answered. When you've selected your favourite pitch we organize a kick-off call between you and the creative before you start working together.

How do I get a blur Trading account?
You will automatically be assigned a blur Trading account when your brief is verified. You'll receive an e-mail with your login details, username and password that is unique to you. You will also be able to view all projects that are currently live on the Exchange at trading.blurgroup.com

Do I have to pay anything upfront?
It costs nothing to submit a brief. When everything is confirmed and it's published on the Exchange the brief is 'live'. Once you've selected your favourite pitch you will be invoiced for the entire project. 50% payment is due immediately before the creative work is started unless alternative arrangements have been made in advance. When the project is complete the second 50% payment is due.

Please note that the total budget includes blur Group's fee - the creative will receive the total price less 20%.
After your account has been set up, a processing fee of £250/$375 or 10% of the maximum budget (ex VAT) whichever is greater, is payable. The processing fee is deducted from the final cost of the project.

How long do I have to choose my prefered pitch?
Pitches remain available for selection up to 30 days from when our shortist is published in the client view. After 30 days the pitches expire and you will need to re-brief the exchange.

I've already submitted my brief to my usual agency. Can I still submit it here?
Of course, but we will be vigilant in how you use the pitches and reserve the right to charge a processing fee if you don't select from the Exchange. The best solution here is to ask your agency to join the Exchange before you brief them, so that they can pitch competitively for this work alongside the Exchange creatives, as well as for other opportunities.

Do I have to register anywhere to submit a brief?
There is no requirement to be an existing blur Group customer. When you submit a brief you become a user of the Exchange and will get your account details for blur Trading, which is your view of activity on the Exchange. Because this is an Exchange there are no retainers: you simply submit a brief each time you want a new project.

My procurement department insists that even for small contracts we have to use an approved supplier. Can you do this?
blur Group is happy to work with you so that the Exchange can become an approved supplier to your organisation. As most businesses experience cost savings of up to 50%, procurement departments are pleased to use the Exchange.

I'm not sure how to describe my requirement?
Don't worry - the brief form is designed to give you the chance to give a short outline of your requirements that we can develop with you. You specify just what you want: this isn't about trying to persuade you that you really need something else, or have to spend more money.

Can I ask for work to be done in a country away from where I'm based?
When you submit a brief, anyone on the Exchange can respond from anywhere in the world so you have the chance to get work sourced from anywhere for anywhere. If you prefer the creative to be from a certain location we can make sure of that as well.

Can I keep my brand information confidential during the briefing process?
Some brands do not want their information published as part of the briefing process; this is particularly the case for new product launches.  We can run a closed pitch on the Exchange where we pre-screen potential creatives and let you review them in advance so that you can approve who is aware of your brief, rather than having a public view.

I like some of the suggestions in the pitch process? Can I give these to my own designers and just pay you for ideas?
In order to protect the Intellectual Property of the creatives on the Exchange, we ask that they do not provide final deliverables or detailed ideas during the pitch process but instead use outlines, angles and mood boards of their suggested approach. If you require concepts that your in-house team can deliver then you need to specify this in your brief.

Can I submit more than one brief?
There is no limit to the number and types of briefs you can submit.