It's not what you do that counts. (It's also the way that you do it.)

Before engaging on the creative aspects of corporate literature, it's essential to get the basics in place. And that, argues Paul Ayling, is all a question of process.

No-one would contemplate asking an architect to design a building to fit internal colour schemes which have been already selected. Instead, interior designers - or, more commonly, decorators - are only set to work once the basic structure of the building is agreed.

It's not hard to see the logic of this approach. And it's a logic that can be equally applied to any marketing communications; don't concern yourself with the décor until your blueprint has been agreed.

So then, what is the marketing equivalent of a good blueprint?

In our experience, there are two or three key planning phases that really have to be addressed before splashing the paint on. For example, businesses need first of all to be able to answer the question "why are we spending money on this project?" They should also be able to identify the central message that the piece should convey. And in many cases, it proves more than worthwhile to devise an outline structure that can provide the foundations for the creative work.

This is an approach that has borne fruit time and time again in my experience, and it reflects the distinctive requirements of business-to-business collateral as opposed to the consumer world. Branding consistency and effective design are vital in the business-to-business world, but they cannot lead the process. Instead, organisations must ensure that the design reflects and reinforces the most important element of the piece of collateral: the message.

So let's return to phase 1: why are you spending the money? More importantly, why have you chosen to spend the money in this way? Creating a brochure - for example - often means dedicating several thousand pounds and a lot of your time. Is it the most effective vehicle to achieve your goal?

The result of this phase should be a clear statement of objective. For instance, the reason for creating a brochure might be to introduce your company's services to a particular market, and communicate a key value proposition. If that were the case, it would have a clear impact on the type of writing required (evangelical, inspirational) as well, of course, as the production values.

Having pinpointed the objective in this way, it is now time to identify the message. A message should encapsulate your proposition in a way that makes it extremely compelling to your audience. That means knowing who your audience is and knowing what will appeal to them. It should also differentiate you from competitors, and reflect the company's wider identity both above and below the line.

These two processes are, I believe, absolutely essential before the more creative aspects of any marketing communications project can begin in earnest. Once these phases are complete, the next process is to develop the blueprint itself: a structure that can provide a fundamental element of the creative brief. This structure reflects both the goal and the message, but also gives some idea of what elements will be included - and where.

The ideal candidates for creating such a structure are your writers, accustomed to building logical arguments that present your message in a way that fulfils your objective. Writers can give you a good understanding of how the piece will fit together. It is up to you to agree the structure, naturally, and a certain amount of restructuring can be expected.

Once it is complete, however, you have a full blueprint for your collateral, something that will give the designers and the copywriters a focus for their creative energies. More importantly, it is something that will give your corporate literature the firm foundations it requires.

Paul Ayling is MD and Head of Writing at Writing Machine