Responsive workshop: 15/11/12

The Responsive workshop today was really useful in helping to identify just why we pick a brief and how to really unpick a brief to be able to maximise it to its full potential. I'm still a bit indecisive about what brief to go for, I think I may keep looking around and wait for the D&AD briefs to release next week.

As far as personal interest and concept goes, the British Eurosport brief is miles ahead of the others for me, I can really see myself researching and informing myself about European sport and the Tour De France and visually it can be very interesting, the deliverables put me off though as it's mainly video and animation such as TV spots.

For this reason, I opted to focus on the Fedrigoni brief for the workshop and still keep my options open for the next week or so before I knuckle down and get some stuff happening for the next session.

We answered some questions on the briefs, overall this is a pretty definitive list of questions. When/if I pick another brief I'll make sure I apply these same questions to it.

I think I have definite foundations for something unique and different for this brief, it's just a question of doing the concept justice and being interested enough in the subject to really enjoy myself, which is the main issue im unsure about, I just don't think I really care enough about different types of paper a company offers, as related to graphic design it might be.

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1. Why have you chosen this brief?
Rich history. I find appealling to the target market in a luxurious manner interesting and as soon as I read the brief I immediately had a bare bones idea of a pretty cool deliverable in mind which I could build upon. What draws me towards it is the fact it was established in 1717 and probably has a rich Italian history I can look into.

Common reasons:

  • Research opportunities
  • Agreed with the brand
  • Connected with the direction of the brief
  • Interest in the process
  • Open ended brief - can be a nightmare, you probably need to close this down ASAP (using these questions)
  • Familiar with audience
  • Challenge of the unfamiliar


2. What do you want to get out of it?
I want to gain experience and work a little bit out of my comfort zone but also somewhere I know I can still produce good quality work in. I also feel Fedrigoni will be a good contact to make when I win as I feel I'm headed towards design for print in the future and Fedrigoni could be a close and useful contact.

Common reasons:

  • Range of products
  • Develop our skills
  • Gain contacts WHEN YOU WIN
  • Knowledge of subject/brand
  • New directions in practice
  • Demonstrate your strengths


3. What do you want to do/make/propose in response to the brief?
It's still early stages yet but I immediately had the idea of a mail-out to printers away from the norm, showing Fedrigoni as a luxurious and classy firm but also accessible with a sense of humour. A suit and tie package which is made up of different layers of stock. Literally putting into play each stocks quality and feel. For example, some kind of soft silk stock could be used for the tie and pinstripe stock for the jacket and so on, creating a play on the reference to printers being suited and formal. It could also be sent in some sort of relevant package away from what the printers are used to, but being humorous and with a bit of personality too. Such as a tie-box to go with the suit idea maybe, as I said still early stages yet

Common reasons:

  • Mail-outs
  • Campaigns
  • 3D work
  • Packaging
  • Interactive
  • Branding


4. Why do you want to enter the brief?
To win. It's one of my aims to win a competition brief this year, either on my own or collaboratively. I feel I have definite foundations for something unique and different for this brief, it's just a question of doing the concept justice and being interested enough in the subject to really enjoy myself, which is the main issue im unsure about it.

5. What is the problem?
Misconceptions people have about Fedrigoni paper being unaffordable as it's luxury.

6. What is the brief asking you to do?
Eradicate any misconceptions of luxury paper being unaffordable, especially to printers througout UK by showcasing papers in a creative and original manner.

7. What is the brief trying to achieve?
The brief is trying to eradicate misconceptions and appeal to printers across the UK and make them more aware of the broad range of products they have on offer at a variety of budgets. To also maybe try add some personality to their brand and become more approachable to printers and their clients as paper merchants you can trust. Basically make Fedrigoni more money.

8. What are the 10 most important words in the brief?
1717, Italy, luxury, affordable, printers, originality, campaign, range, budgets, packaging

It's worth noting that the above words have nothing to do with the actual brief or company directly but still unpick the main issues of the brief. Very useful exercise.


Common Problems:

  • People don't understand us
  • People keep stealing our customers
  • We are old fashioned
  • We are pretty crap at what we do
  • We confuse people
  • We did it first but nobody knows
  • People don't know what we do
  • Nobody buys enough of our stuff
  • We are losing money
  • We're about to go bust, i.e. UGG
Common aims
  • Increase awareness
  • Maintain market share
  • Get people excited
  • Make things clearer
  • Target younger/new audience

9. What is the message/concept/idea?
  • People think they're expensive
  • People don't use them enough
  • Printers aren't aware enough
  • People don't realise how varied their range is
  • Want a campaign to showcase paper to printers
10. Who is the audience?
  • Professional printers
  • Clients of printers
  • Designers
  • Business professionals
  • You
11. What is the context?
  • A campaign
  • Fedrigoni want more customers and contact with printers
  • Want to have more personality in their brand
  • Showcase paper to printers
  • UK market isn't aware enough of Fedrigoni
12. What products do you associate with them?
  • Paper
  • Sample packs
  • Mail-outs
  • Publications
  • Packaging
  • Student YCN entries

13. Identify what you have to do? (actual mandatories)
  • Create a campaign
  • Target printers
  • Showcase paper varieties
  • Communicate range of products and services
  • Create a fun, tongue in cheek approach to boring printers
14. What do you need to do? (To pull it off)
  • Research and become informed on Fedrigoni and their history
  • Look into their current product range
  • Look at previous entries and what's already out there and been done
  • What would brighten up a printers day
  • Find out what the budget is
  • Understand and maybe talk to target audience
  • Look into suit tailoring
  • Look into origami
  • Look into suit and tailor stores, the packaging, the style, the vibe
15. What can you do?
  • Talk to printers
  • Talk to paper suppliers
  • Look into postage limitations
  • Look into suit tailoring and apply to paper
  • Research

16. Speculate what you could do?
  • Send a man round to every printers dressed in a suit, James Bond?
  • Create videos and interactive products such as apps
  • Turn brief on its head and make products for Fedrigoni from the perspective of the printers
  • Look into suit tailoring and apply paper to it
  • Create a full body suit out of paper, along with tie and handkerchief



17. INNOVATE - What hasn't been done before?

18. What do you know already?

  • I have a basic knowledge of how paper is made and recycled
  • I know a little bit about what kind of papers they offer, I've ordered paper samples before and seen some of their catalogue 
  • I know they have a YCN brief every year
  • I know it's a very popular brief every year for Graphic Design students
  • I know they have an aura of being luxurious and expensive
  • I know they're probably pretty old fashioned and could do with a good rebrand to add some personality, the name itself is pretty classy and old fashioned but keeping classy and old-fashioned doesn't have to be a negative thing



19. What do you need to find out?

  • If I'm interested in this and something sparks anything off and gets me into the subject
  • Their paper catalogue
  • What's already out there
  • What previous YCN Fedrigoni entries have been like
  • What other briefs are out there to keep my options open for the next week or so
  • Check D&AD's new briefs


20. What's stopping you doing it?
At the moment I'd say time is stopping me from fully nailing down a brief to work on in the workshops as a main brief, I think I'd prefer to work on one main brief and the rest are numerous one-day turnouts and very much a quick-fire response I always enjoy quick briefs where I can devote a day or afternoon to putting something together.

Also need to research into Fedrigoni and see if something sparks off any kind of inspiration or potential enjoyment, I can see myself getting fairly into the making part and into the history of Fedrigoni etc but the research and development of paper styles and stocks could get stale quick. I'll have to see how it all pans out for now


Plan moving forward is to keep an eye out on new briefs and keep looking for the next week or so and consider options and potential aims, I'll consider these questions when looking at competition briefs from this point onwards. I need to be prepared and ready to go for the next session

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