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.