Heather Lomas

Briefs

Briefs are important these days as they give information to a client or person about a specific thing. For example if you were applying for a job, the job application would come with a brief describing to you what they hope for you within the job and also what they expect from you. A brief is important to have when applying or entering something, and it is also important to give a brief if you yourself are creating something as it tells the client what you are going to do and what is going to be created overall.

Negotiated Briefs

Negotiated briefs are important when it comes to creating a video as we need to take into account talking to the client and sorting out any differences there may be. Also negotiated briefs are important for as well as negotiating different points with the client; we also need to get an understanding from them as to what they want. Being able to negotiate fairly with the client can give us a well-known idea about the kind of picture the client is trying to paint about the course. For example the client may prefer specific colour schemes and layouts, I would need to take this into account but also it would give me the view of what they want such as if they wanted the college colours as the main background I’d understand that they want the college colours to be used throughout.

Competition

Competition briefs tell you what they are aiming to do. Within a competition brief you are finding out everything you need to know. The creators of the competition will include a bit about the company that are selling the competition, they will also include what it is about but also give you a detailed bit of information on what is going to be the outcome. They also state a deadline date in which the completion closes which is important for you to know. Online I found a competition set by Nikon who are a camera company based all around creating the best shot within photos and videos. Within the brief to begin with they have included who can enter, they also tell you exactly what they want from the competition telling you that they require a portfolio of 5-12 of your best digital images taken by yourself. They also state within the competition brief that the applicant needs to treat this competition like a job application and include a cover note of 500 words explaining why the competition should be won by them and why they are entering.

Here I have screen printed a typical meeting with a team. As you can see this is the perfect example of a negotiated brief as they are discussing and negotiating the subject at hand.

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As you can see above I have taken a screen shot of the brief provided by Nikon. In this you can see what they are talking about and how they have laid out their competition brief. The layout of this is perfect for the clients to read about and it is very professional.

It states within the brief what you have to do and also what additional bits of information they are after.

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I went onto finding another competition through The Suns website. I found one all about an oppurtunity to win a flight to Las Vegas. You get an option of 5 different hotels to stay in so you could win any. They give you details about each one so you can easily research on the internet to see if the hotels are the thing for you. After this you can easily enter by entering your details into the fields displayed. It also asks you to give an option of three answers to enter the competition. As you can see it is briefing you into when the competition closes and the limits that come with the competition.

Co-operative Brief

This is where you work alongside someone to create a brief. When working with someone you are co-operating with them and discussing the points written down on the brief. By being able to co-operate with one another you are able to discuss the points given and get an in depth opinion off one another to change the brief for the better.

Formal Brief

Formal briefs are a lot more rigid when it comes to the clients. Clients have to stick to the brief and not change it. A formal brief includes everything you need to know to stick to the brief. These include all the correct components and instructions that the client needs to know. By having a formal brief this means the client is more likely to stick to it and make the company seem a lot more professional and direct with their approach to the client views.

Contractual

A contractual brief is where you are placed in the position of being told what to do. A contractual brief involves a client and you. The client offers you the brief and you have to stick to it. Contractual briefs are used in many different various places around the world. The most common would be a

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new job. New jobs offer a brief of what they expect out of you as the worker. You are not able to change what they have written and when signing the contract brief you must stick to it.

Informal

In formal briefs are completely opposite to other formal briefs. The difference is that formal briefs are all the more professional and proper whereas informal is completely different. Informal is less of a brief but more of an open conversation. By having an informal brief you are allowing yourself and the client/ proposer to negotiate with each other what is going to be said. You can also change/ edit anything one another has come up with and come to a decision together.

Commission

Commission briefs are the process of being commissioned. When creating a brief like this it is what you are telling the organisation to do. For example the BBC can offer to commission a short film or program. You have to send them the details of what this will include such as budget, deadlines, audience etc. So overall you are sending a proposal type document to the company and then they decide whether they want to commission you.

Tender

A tender brief is a type of brief that you would get when being new to an organisation or job where you can discuss your ideas amongst the other members of the team. When doing this you can then go onto leaving the company to decide for themselves whether they want to accept you as their client or not. There is a disadvantage that you may not be asked to be the client but a tender brief is less strict overall.

In the screen shot it shows the process of a tender brief. As you can see it states that I am the main proprietor and creator of the brief. I have to give all the information to the company whilst keeping a copy. I also need to make sure I have researched into every area properly finding out all the necessary information.