1. 7 Types Of Briefs
By Benjamin Tyrrell

2. Competition Brief What Is It? Positives: Negatives: Example:
A competition brief is when a client puts together a brief which has a specific set of rules and guidelines that are tailored to the clients need. Any production company is then able to access the brief and complete it should they wish to. After the deadline the client will go through all of the entries and choose the one that they considered to be the best in concern to meeting the brief. The winning entry will then be awarded a prize which would have been stated on the brief.
Positives:
The client only has to pay the winning production company.
The client is able to choose the work that they deem to be most successful from a variety of different professional production companies.
Negatives:
Even if a production company enters and correctly meets the brief, because they are competing against many other production companies, they are not guaranteed the contract/reward/prize money at the end of it.
Example:
This is an example of an competition brief as the client is tasking the entrants to complete a project for them in order to receive a reward.

3. Informal Brief What Is It? Positives: Negatives:
An informal brief is verbal and is not documented. It is when the client and the production company that they have employed verbally discuss the requirements of the project and come to an agreement of the making of the project.
Positives:
As a result of the client and production company verbally discussing the project in question, the company is much more likely to fully understand exactly what the client is asking for, allowing them to meet the clients expectations much more easily.
Negatives:
As a result of there being no written documentation or contract, specific details may not be fully clear to the company such as the deadlines.

4. Tender Brief What Is It? Positives: Negatives: Example:
This is when the client advertises their brief and then any production company that sees it and is interested brings a proposal that they will pitch to the client. The client will then listen to all of proposals that are pitched and then choose the pitch that they think will work best and be the most successful in accordance to the clients brief.
Positives:
The client is able to see multiple different production ideas.
Negatives:
If a production company pitches their personal idea and it gets rejected then it could severely affect the company’s business.
Example:
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This is an example of a tender brief as the client is advertising the work that the company would be doing and it is accessible to anyone who would be interested in the work.

5. Formal Brief What Is It? Positives: Negatives: Example:
This is when the client specifically outlines what they want to be made. The brief will only give enough information to make the product, so if the company has any queries then they will need to discuss them during the negotiations with the client. During the negotiation the client and production company will formally agree on the project..
Positives:
This type of brief allows the company to talk over any issues or ideas that the production company comes up with.
Negatives:
Due to the limited amount of information offered by the client the production company might not feel that they have enough information and details to go on to make the product to the standard that is expected.
Example:
This is an example of a formal brief as the client has clearly stated what the project is, what the company would be required to do and even set out a list of questions and answers at the bottom of the brief in case the company had any queries on the project.

6. Contractual Brief What Is It? Positives: Negatives:
This is when a client employs a media production company to complete a project within specific guidelines that have been set to the brief. The company has to then follow these guidelines exactly otherwise it would breech the contract and they could fact legal actions against them.
Positives:
It is good for the media company as they will know exactly what they are being asked to do, and the specifications cannot be negotiated or changed.
Negatives:
If the media production company think that there are issues in the brief and decide to work their own way to resolve these issues, then the client will be able to take legal action as they did not meet the clients brief.

7. Commissioned Brief What Is It? Positives: Negatives: Example:
This is when a large media production company employs a smaller independent media production company to create the product for them. The larger company is then able to use that product for an external client.
Positives:
By using this kind of brief the larger company does not have to do all of the hard work themselves, making it easier for the company. The product made would also be able to be sub-contracted allowing both of the companies to receive money from the client.
Negatives:
As a result of two different companies working on the same product and the client not being negotiated with in the brief, the overall end product might not meet the client’s standards.
Example:
This is an example of a commission brief as company working for a client is openly asking another smaller company to help them out with some of the work, and is providing some of the general information about the project and what they would be doing.

8. Negotiated What Is It? Positives: Negatives:
A negotiated brief is when two side are putting forward conflicting ideas, and that need to meet in the middle somehow. The two conflicting ideas usually occurs between clients. The final brief, which is the negotiated brief will have compromised on both sides ideas and requirements.
Positives:
As a result of the multiple points and ideas having to be negotiated over, the project is more open and susceptible to multiple perspectives and new ideas, which could in turn lead to the project being a lot more successful overall.
Negatives:
Negotiating the brief could also unnecessarily waste a lot of time if pointless issues are brought up.