Product brief template in Markdown

A .md file ready to fill in: goal, background, scope, metrics, tasks, risks and decisions. It opens in any editor and shows up formatted in Marko.

Download the template (.md) ↓

Would you rather see a finished brief? Download the example.

Why a brief in Markdown

A product brief exists to get everyone aligned before the first line of code. In Markdown, it is a plain text file: it opens anywhere, on any Mac, with no proprietary software and no locked format. You keep it next to the repo, you track its versions with Git, and you see in black and white what changed between two reviews.

What each section is for

Nine sections, in the order a team reads them.

• Goal: one sentence on what the project should change. If you cannot hold it in one sentence, the brief is not ready.
• Background: why now, what we already know.
• Who it affects: who is concerned and what these people need.
• Scope: what is in and, above all, what is out.
• Success metrics: a table with today’s state and the target.
• To do: tasks as checkboxes.
• Risks: what can go wrong, its impact, the mitigation.
• Decisions: what was settled, by whom, when.
• Open questions: what is left to resolve.

How to fill it in

1. Download the template, then open it in Marko (right-click, “Open With”, “Marko”) or in the editor of your choice.
2. Replace each sample line. Delete the sections you do not need: a short brief gets read more carefully.
3. If you already have notes or an AI answer, paste them in Source mode, then move each idea into its section.
4. To send it to someone who does not have Marko, use “Export as PDF…” in the File menu.

From an AI first draft to a structured brief

When you ask an AI for a brief, you often get a block of text that reads fine but has no shape: paragraphs, little structure, sections mixed together. Paste it into the template in Source mode, then move each idea to the right section. What was a summary turns into a run of decisions, tasks and risks the team can track. Marko shows the result formatted while you reshape it.

What the file looks like

# Brief title

**Goal:** one sentence on what this project should change.

## Background

Why now? What we already know, what happened.

## Who it affects

Who is concerned, and what these people need.

## Scope

**In**

- First item

**Out**

- First item

## Success metrics

| Metric | Today | Target |
|---|---|---|
| First metric | | |

## To do

- [ ] First task
- [ ] Second task

## Risks

| Risk | Impact | Mitigation |
|---|---|---|
| First risk | | |

## Decisions

> Decision: what was settled, by whom, when.

## Open questions

1. First question

Tables and checkboxes show up formatted in Marko and in most Markdown editors. A plain text editor shows the symbols as they are.