Describe the feeling, then the notes
The most useful briefs open with intent: who is this for, where do they burn it, what should the room feel like. Note lists alone are ambiguous — 'sandalwood' can be creamy, smoky, dry or sweet depending on the direction you take it.
Give references, even imperfect ones
A scent you already sell, a fragrance you admire, or two candles you want the character to sit between are worth more than a page of adjectives. References cut interpretation, and interpretation is what causes extra rounds.
What a strong brief contains
- Intent
- Audience, occasion, room, and the emotional register you want.
- Direction
- Note families to lead with, plus notes that are off-limits.
- References
- Comparable scents, and what you like or dislike in each.
- Performance
- How strong the cold throw on shelf and the hot throw in a room need to be.
- Format
- Whether the same scent has to work in a diffuser, a room spray or a roll-on too — they behave differently.
- Constraints
- Target cost per unit, quantity, launch date, and any claims or ingredient restrictions.
Expect to smell it in wax, not on paper
A fragrance is evaluated in the actual product: same wax system, same vessel, burned. Judge cold throw on the unlit candle, then hot throw in a room of realistic size, then re-check after the candle has burned a few cycles — fragrances shift as the candle ages.
Multi-format lines need planning up front
If a scent has to carry across a candle, a reed diffuser, a room spray and a roll-on, say so at the start. Each format needs its own version of the accord to smell like the same scent, and that is far cheaper to plan than to retrofit.