Unit 2
- 1. Unit 2: Communicating and Presenting Ideas in the Creative Media Sector 1.1 Describe several communication techniques and explain their appropriate application E-mails – Allow you to send messages to people, letting them know any ideas or information they may need. Can also use e-mails to request any information you may need yourself. E-mails are a widely used form of communication, meaning they are good for businesses or freelancers as you can contact pretty much every company via E-mail. It also allows you to contact someone when they may be busy, so they can read the e-mail later. You can also add attachments to e-mails, meaning videos and pictures can be sent. However, it is risky to use when you need information urgently as it may be too late by the time the e-mail is read. Text – Similar to e-mails. Texting allows you to use your phone to send messages and photos. It is a better way of getting a back and forth conversation as people are more likely to text back quicker than they would check an e-mail then reply to it. However, texting can be deemed as a rather informal form of communication so it may not be best used for important business. Phone calls/video calls – Phone calls allow you to contact a person and have a verbal conversation with them. This is the best way to contact someone if you need something urgently. It may also be considered to be the best way to form a business relationship as you are speaking to each other rather than sending an e-mail. Video calls work in a similar way but allow you to see the other person, or anything you may need. These are commonly used to present an idea to someone who is far away as you can show them things such as presentations. Face to face – The best and most formal way of communication, but something that is done less often now due to the increase in using technology to communicate. Having a face to face conversation with someone allows you to make more of a personal connection with them, which is very important when trying to secure work with a client as they will be looking for someone they think is trustworthy. 1.2 Compare a range of techniques used for influencing and persuading others and their application When you are communicating with someone to try and persuade them into something or influence them, it is best that you do this face to face. Initial conversation can be started via e-mail or phone call to organize a face to face meeting, but the persuasion should be done face to face. This is mainly because you want to establish a personal connection with the client. Make sure the client knows what the meeting will be about, so give some brief information of the idea in an e-mail. Once you get to the face-to-face meeting, make sure one of the first things that you do is formally introduce yourself and any other people who may be involved. It is important that when trying to pitc h an idea that you are c onfident, as if you aren’t confident then how can the client be. You will also most likely have to agree to some sort of c ompromise. Don’t get too attached to your idea and try not to argue with the c lient’s opinion. Instead, if the c lient doesn’t like something, either see if you c an persuade the client to get on board with it or c hange it slightly to adjust to the c lient’s needs. Everything you may say in a face-to-face meeting can be sent in an e-mail or a text, or desc ribed over a phone c all, but it is harder to persuade someone who isn’t sat opposite to you.
- 2. 1.3 Describe how to give and receive constructive feedback It is important that you don’t get too defensive when rec eiving c onstructive criticism as you then risk seeming arrogant, which will immediately put off any client. Instead, it is best that you listen to what is being said to you and try to take it on board, whether that means completely changing an idea or coming up with some sort of compromising. This is especially important when a client gives constructive criticism as it is the client you are trying to please not yourself so you must be able to cater to their needs. You should also take the criticism on board and use it to better yourself in the future. 1.4 Describe methods used to communicate technical and specialist issues within and across teams When communicating specialist issues, it is important that you know what level of knowledge the person you’re talking to is at. For example, if you are talking to somebody who has just got into the creative media sector they will probably not know a lot of the jargon yet, so it is best that you describe things without using much jargon so they can understand. However, if you are talking to someone who is well established in the industry, it is best to use jargon as it makes you seem more professional and it shows that you know what you are talking about. 2.1 Describe examples of effective presentation techniques It is important to make sure that everything is clear when you are trying to present an idea. The most common thing to do when presenting is to have a slideshow. This will allow you to give the audience some visual aid, which will make everything clearer and prevent boredom. It also allows you to break up your points much easier and clearer, again making everything easier to understand. However, when using a slideshow, it is important that you use as little amount of text as you can as this will just distract the audience from you as they will be reading what is on the slide. Instead, you should use images, possibly with annotations, and key words/phrases in big, c lear to read text. This helps to aid what you are saying so people don’t lose focus from what you are saying. 2.2 Select and justify appropriate presentation techniques for a specific creative idea When trying to present an idea for a new event that a charity can hold, it is important that you: Use visual aid e.g. a slideshow. This will allow you to add important figures onto the sc reen suc h as budgeting. These figures would just go over people’s heads if it was just spoken so it is best that people can read them. Know your idea and be c onfident in it. If you aren’t 100% sure what your idea is and how it will be done, it will be very hard to convince someone to take the idea on board. Provide as much information as possible. When pitching an idea for an event, it is important that you provide a lot of information, such as what it is, exactly how it will plan out, expected budget and profit and any risks involved with the idea. Provide hand-outs. Hand-outs can be useful in this case as you can give the audience something such as an example of a poster you will use to advertise it. This shows that you know what you are doing and makes it easier for the audience to understand what you are trying to get across. Be careful with hand-outs though as they can become a distraction.