What is a brief?
A brief is a set of instructions given to a person about a job or a task. Within different criteria,
there are many different types of brief.
A contractual brief is an easy brief to tell apart from the others. This is a brief that you will have to sign. It's different to the others because it involves a lot of description. It involves things like a time frame, pay, deadlines and job requirements. This type of brief is often used when big amounts of money is involved, or if there is a lack of trust between the client and employee. If you were to sign a contractual brief, you are agreeing to all terms that have been stated in the brief. If any conditions were to be broken in the brief, you could face legal action.
A negotiated brief is a brief that is all controlled by the employees. This brief can give a person more ways to get around the brief as they can change any aspects of the brief. This means you can use more of a creative vision. A negotiated brief can be used when a person doesn't exactly know what they want, so it's left up to them to work it out.
A formal brief is a well structured, and neat document that has specifications of a product or service. It uses formal language so there is no slang. It should be well explained to the employees so they know exactly what they are doing. It uses a client logo to look more professional.
A informal brief is different to the formal one as, it isn't long. This brief can be a short piece of text or it can be verbal. It can be used in social situation like making arrangements with friends or family. It's written in informal language and slang can be used. It's basically someone asking someone else to do them a favour.
A commission brief can be used when a client wants to commission a company. It is usually used it the clients has some kind of relation with the company. It's used so that it doesn't have to go to tender because the client already know what they want. You don't have to waste anytime when using this brief as you can go straight to the company.
A competition brief is a public brief. It allows anyone to be a part of it and have full access to the terms for free. Being a competition brief, only the winner will get the full benefits of the prize, so that less money is spent on a prize. The Sundance London short film is an example of a competition that used a brief.
A tender brief is similar to a competition brief. Some companies use this brief to pitch to clients to fights for work. The best pitch will be selected by the clients which will develop their ideas.
A Co-operative brief is where 2 or more companies are contracted to work on the same assignment. It is used for multi-tasking, for example in movie making.
When reading a brief you need to make sure that you understand what type of brief you are reading. You also need to make sure that you are paying attention to final dates, timescale and what it is that is required of you. When negotiating a brief , it's best to always read it before you make any movement on it. Negotiation can be crucial when it isn't plausible. For example, if you were filing a f=movie, you may have to do some negotiating when it comes to the location.
There are many opportunities when it comes to a brief. Some opportunities are:
- Getting new skills
- Multi-tasking
- It could increase you CV
- Meeting new people in different industries.
