How a public buyer can procure design services: brief, selection criteria and acceptance

To procure design services successfully, a public buyer needs to describe a measurable result in the terms of reference rather than asking for beautiful design: the scope of work, file formats, the number of concepts and revision rounds, stage deadlines, requirements on rights and the acceptance procedure. The more precise the brief and evaluation criteria, the lower the risk of receiving work that is formally complete but unusable.

Design is a special procurement category. Unlike stationery or equipment, the result cannot be fully described by specifications, and quality depends heavily on the supplier's experience. Below are general principles that help an organisation prepare a purchase, compare proposals and accept the work. Specific procedures, thresholds and document forms are set by the current public procurement legislation and the organisation's internal rules, so they should be checked with lawyers and the procurement team.

Why design is hard to procure

The main difficulty is that design is creative and technical work at the same time. Buyers often run into the same problems:

• the brief is written in general terms and the supplier interprets it in their own way;
• the lowest bid wins and the quality turns out to be unusable;
• source files are not specified, and a year later the organisation cannot make even a simple change;
• rights to the result are not defined, which raises questions about its further use;
• acceptance comes down to a subjective like or dislike, which drags out the timeline.

Most of these problems are solved at the preparation stage, not during the work.

What to include in the terms of reference

A good design brief answers the supplier's questions before they ask them. A recommended structure:

1. Goal and context. Why the work is needed, who the audience is and where the result will be used: website, print, an event, social media.
2. Scope of work. A specific list, for example a logo in three layout versions, a style guide, document templates and website page layouts.
3. Input materials. What the buyer will provide: texts, photos, data, the existing identity and requirements for official symbols.
4. Number of concepts and revision rounds. For example, two or three concepts at the first stage and two rounds of revisions for the chosen one.
5. Technical requirements. File formats (vector sources, print-ready PDF, PNG and SVG for the web), colour models and language versions.
6. Accessibility and language requirements. Support for Uzbek Latin and Cyrillic, contrast and readability.
7. Stages and deadlines. With interim approval points rather than one final deadline.
8. Acceptance procedure. Who accepts the work, against what criteria and within what time frame they respond.
9. Rights and file handover. Which rights pass to the buyer and in what form the source files are delivered.

The basics of writing a brief are covered in detail in our article on how to write a design brief. For a public buyer, the brief becomes the foundation of the terms of reference.

How to describe the result in measurable terms

Words like modern, stylish and creative cannot be checked at acceptance. Use specifics instead:

• not develop a corporate identity, but develop a logo, colour palette, typeface set and templates for letterhead, business card, presentation and social media post;
• not a user-friendly website, but layouts of the home page and five inner pages in desktop and mobile versions, meeting accessibility requirements;
• not high-quality files, but vector sources, a PDF with bleed for the printer, and PNG and SVG for digital use;
• not within a short time, but first concepts two weeks after receipt of input materials.

If the buyer is unsure about the scope, it helps to do a brief market review before announcing the purchase: ask several suppliers to describe what such work usually includes. This helps produce a realistic brief.

Supplier selection criteria

Where the procedure allows, it is important to evaluate not only price but also qualifications for design work. Examples of criteria that can be used:

• Portfolio of similar tasks. Not the total number of projects but relevant ones: reports, identities, websites for organisations of a similar scale.
• Team composition. Whether the right specialists are available: an art director, designers, layout artists and developers if a website is involved.
• Understanding of the task. A brief description of the approach and stages, not just agreement with the brief.
• Timeline and realism of the plan. An unrealistically short timeline is as much a warning sign as an unrealistically low price.
• Experience with multilingual materials and accessibility requirements.

We discussed general principles for choosing a contractor in our article on how to choose a design agency, and they apply to public buyers too.

In design procurement, saving time on the brief almost always leads to rework: an hour spent describing the result precisely saves weeks of disputes at acceptance.

Stages of work and checkpoints

Breaking the work into stages reduces risk for both sides. A typical sequence for an identity or report project:

1. Kick-off. A meeting, clarifying the task, handing over input materials and agreeing the plan.
2. Research and concepts. The supplier presents several directions with a rationale.
3. Selection and refinement. The buyer chooses one direction and the agreed revision rounds take place.
4. Roll-out. Preparing all applications, templates and language versions.
5. File preparation. Assembling source files and usage guidelines, and a final check.
6. Acceptance and handover. Signing documents and transferring files and rights.

It is important for the buyer to appoint one person responsible for communication. When revisions come from five people at once and contradict each other, the project stalls with any supplier.

It also helps to agree on the format of interim reviews in advance. Concepts are better presented at a meeting or call than sent as a file without comment: the supplier explains the reasoning behind decisions and the buyer can ask questions straight away. After each meeting, decisions should be recorded in writing; a short note listing agreed revisions protects both sides from misunderstandings and endless returns to issues already closed.

Another common trap is the task changing mid-project. If it turns out halfway through that an extra application, another language version or a new website section is needed, this should be handled as a change in scope rather than as yet another small revision.

Accepting the work without subjectivity

Acceptance should rely on the brief, not on taste. A checklist that can be attached to the contract:

• all items in the scope of work have been completed and delivered;
• files in the agreed formats open and can be edited;
• fonts and images have confirmed usage rights;
• language versions have been proofread by native speakers;
• layouts meet the accessibility requirements stated in the brief;
• guidelines for using the style elements or templates have been delivered;
• comments from previous revision rounds have been addressed.

If the result meets the brief but is still disliked, that is a sign the brief was not specific enough, which is a lesson for the next purchase.

Rights to the result and source files

This point is often overlooked and later becomes the most painful one. The contract should state explicitly:

• which exclusive or non-exclusive rights pass to the buyer and for how long;
• whether editable source files are delivered, not just finished images;
• which fonts, photos and illustrations were used and under what licence terms;
• whether the supplier may show the work in its portfolio and with what restrictions.

For organisations with a steady flow of tasks, such as holiday cards, posts, handouts and small edits, it can be more convenient to arrange long-term design support within the permitted procedures instead of running a separate purchase for every small job. The Dasta Creative team works both on individual projects and in an ongoing support format.