Plan a product launch with an asset matrix
TL;DR
A product launch asset matrix connects each audience, question, visual and delivery requirement in one place. Build it before the shot list. It gives the Creative Director a reason for every frame and gives the marketing team a way to spot omissions while they are still easy to resolve.
A launch can have a finished hero film and still be missing the one image the sales team needs. Usually, the problem starts in the brief. Someone asks for a film, a few stills and social versions. Nobody writes down the questions those assets must answer.
A product launch asset matrix connects each audience, question, visual and delivery requirement in one place. Build it before the shot list. It gives the Creative Director a reason for every frame and gives the marketing team a way to spot omissions while they are still easy to resolve.
Start with the question in the buyer’s head.
Imagine a premium air purifier approaching launch. This is an illustrative brief, not a client result.
A person discovering the product wants to know why it deserves attention. A retail buyer wants to understand its footprint and range.
Someone comparing products wants to see how the filter is accessed. Your sales team may need all three stories on the same day.
“Make the product look premium” cannot resolve those differences. “Show that the filter lifts out without moving the unit” can. It names a visible action the film must explain, subject to engineering confirmation.
Write one question per row. When two rows ask the same question, you may be able to share a shot. When one row contains five questions, split it.
Copy this launch asset matrix.
Scroll sideways to read every column.
| Audience and moment | Question to answer | Visual evidence | Deliverable | Approval needed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| First website visit | What is this, and why should I care? | Product, setting and one defining feature | Hero film and poster still | Brand and product |
| Detailed evaluation | How does the mechanism work? | Reviewed internal assembly or operation | Technical sequence | Engineering |
| Retail presentation | How does it fit into the range? | Consistent scale and finish views | Presentation stills | Product and sales |
| Social discovery | What should I notice immediately? | One recognisable action or detail | Individually composed short edits | Brand |
| Launch press | Which image can we reproduce accurately? | Clean product view with caption | Approved press still | Communications |
The table is a starting point. It is not a requirement to commission five separate productions. A Master Asset can support multiple outputs, but each output still needs composition, checking and a defined purpose.
Add delivery details before anyone starts animating.
Give each deliverable a destination, shape, length where relevant, owner and deadline. “Social” is not a destination. A portrait placement with interface overlays is a different composition from a wide launch-page film.
Record where text will sit and whether it must change by market. A logo or claim baked into every frame makes later localisation harder. Ask for the required textless versions at the briefing stage.
For website assets, agree a poster still and the behaviour before playback. For films containing speech, plan captions and a transcript. The W3C guidance on accessible media is a useful reference when defining these deliverables.
For uploads to YouTube, hand the current official encoding recommendations to the delivery owner. Platform requirements should be verified when the files are exported.
Choose the smallest set that tells the whole story.
Prioritise the assets without which the launch cannot explain the product. Then add the useful extensions. If every row is marked essential, ask what would happen if it were removed.
A film that introduces the product, an image that proves the defining feature and a clear technical explanation often do different jobs. Ten nearly identical beauty shots may do only one.
This also gives you a sensible response to a late request. A new asset should have a new audience need or a clear delivery requirement. Otherwise, it is probably another version of work already planned.
Give approval its own column.
A brand lead can approve the visual language while an engineer checks the mechanism. Those decisions should meet before the final frame is rendered. One nominated person should consolidate the response so the studio receives a single direction.
Write the required evidence beside the approval: current CAD revision, finish reference, approved wording or screen specification. “Approved” becomes useful when everyone knows what was checked.
Use our CGI briefing guide to assemble the wider brief. For a launch spanning film, stills and product explanation, tell us about your brief and bring the matrix. A partially filled table is enough to make the first conversation concrete.
See the asset mix in practice.
Our AUAR MicroFactory project brought together a hero animation, website loops, stills and supporting motion assets. The published case study lets you inspect those outputs together. Use it as a reference for the different jobs within one launch, then build the matrix around your own audience.
Start the conversation
Have a product worth showing?
We reply to every brief personally, usually within one working day.
Start the conversation
Got a product worth showing? Let’s talk about what it needs to do.
We reply to every brief personally, usually within one working day.