Working to a brief in the Creative Media Sector

In this blog I am going to explain the 5 different types of a client brief and to show the different techniques of working to a brief in the media industry. These are the 5 different types of a client brief:

Informal - A casual meeting with the client, this could be discussed over certain ways such as phone call, webcam, Facebook or even over food at a cafe. The advantage of this brief is that it’s more of a relaxed approach to a brief and isn’t as stressful, the disadvantage of an informal brief is that you could put a lot of work into it and the client could say they don’t want to do it anymore, this could mean that you waste time and money and effort put into the brief, this type of brief isn’t professional.

Formal - A serious meeting with the client, this is usually a face to face interview which is normally discussed in an office or at a board meeting. The advantage of this type of brief is that it’s more professional and more likely of the work being put ahead. The disadvantage of a formal brief is its more stressful and could stop you from using your creativity in the brief.

Negotiated - A meeting with the client where the producer might discuss the terms in the brief and the client would negotiate of things he likes and dislikes and how they can change it to be suitable for both the client and the producer.

Contractual - A legal and binding contract between the client and the producer, There are certain targets to be made by the end of the task giving such as the deadline if they aren’t met then the producer could take legal action towards the client.

Tender - a brief which is sent off to several employees via E-mail or post, and is an informal type of brief. It can be a competitive type of brief as it sent to other potential employees, and unfortunately a waste of resources if the client doesn't choose you to complete the brief. You will usually be asked to provide related ideas to the brief in order to be selected by the client to complete the brief.


If you were given a brief you would respond to it by reading through it checking to see which type of brief it this is so you know exactly what you are doing. The key information you need to take from the brief is the date for the deadline and to create a timescale/Gantt chart to help and to be organised, then what they want and the price. For example if you were asked to create a design for a big video organisation you should get told on the brief what the design must include etc. i think if you were giving this brief a formal brief would be most suitable because it will tell you all the specific details. There are constraints to working to a brief because people could be absent, something could go wrong with the product or design and you could be busy on the deadline date this is why its best to negotiate with the client in case you have any problems and too keep in touch with them by email in case anything comes up.

Opportunities you can gain from working to a brief from a client is you can build up your reputation so clients will want to work with you more. And you get to work with different people, get new ideas, create new things, and make your skills better. The skills you gain when working on a brief are creative skills, communication skills and it could help with team building some people might not have experience in working in a team so that would be useful also it could also improve you work ethic.