|
HTML Site::FAQ
Frequent Questions
Who do you work for?
We work for record labels, motion picture studios and, in some cases, directly for artists and public
figures. We never work for individuals, unsigned musicians, jobbing actors or organisations outside
the entertainment media industry. We are usually contracted by labels or studios at the inception of
a project or when a new artist is first signed, and provide consultancy and advice on how to manage
the developent of an online presence system from the outset.
No, I mean WHO do you work for!?
Part of the way we do business is that we never let it be known who our clients are. It increases
security and also ensures that labels or studios can preserve the impression of in-house delivery.
On some rare occasions we become 'visible', but even our clients don't know who else we talk to! Does
that make it hard to get referrals? No, not really. It just makes our clients look good.
What is 'e-presence'? More stupid marketing-talk, I guess.
In today's world, the image and appearance of a public figure, artist or motion picture on the Internet is
often more important than the 'real world' presence we used to rely on. The public expect to be able to
find information on new songs, movies or the latest gossip at the click of a mouse, and they also turn
to the Net for the dark side of fame - rumors, illegal filesharing, misinformation and invasion of
personal privacy. e-presence is the 'online life' lived by a project or an artist, and
includes everything from buying the right domains to securing private emails, copyright surveillance,
press control and interaction with fans. At BF@D we have our own unique take on how to deliver this, a concept
called Third generation presence - 3GP.
OK, I get it - you're an advertising agency
No. Most of the other people in our field concentrate on designing a sexy website, signing up an army
of e-teamers, street-teamers and teamsters, then plaguing forums and radio stations until their client is
famous for having annoying fans. We really don't care for all that, and steer clear of teenagers with
more time than sense. What we do is behind the public face of 'promotion'. Labels and studios can easily
handle the basics of publicity (if not, they don't last long) - we make sure a guitarist can access their
studio securely from a tour bus in the Ukraine, and that while she's on the road nobody is covering the
planet with MP3s of her last gig.
I'm in a band, I want a website. Will you make me one?
Not unless the request comes via your record label. The services we offer are only realistically
applicable to signed musicians, and before then you can get a website design for a few dollars from
one of the millions of bored teenagers with Dreamweaver. We charge a lot for what we do, and unless you
are protecting revenue from CD sales across a continent, we're not worth it.
You think you know it all, don't you!
No, but we think we know most of it. We started doing this work in 1988, and for those of you old enough
to remember that far back, you'll know it means we were pretty much in at the get-go. The people who
work within BF@D all have experience of the music or movie industries, from stadium tours to animation
CGI. We know that when we say an idea is bad, it's because we've seen it done and watched the result.
We can frankly take work or leave it, and so when we join a project we do so because we believe we can
make a difference. All you have to do is let that happen.
This artist I have is going to be a sensation. Can you handle it?
We handle projects with more combined inbound links than Microsoft, so yes, if your artist, album or
movie seems to be getting the interest of the Great Purchasing Public, then yes, we're OK with that.
Equally, we can provide services for smaller clients, even if it's only consultancy at the outset. We
are more than happy to advise a client if we feel we're not the best people to help.
Can't I do all this without paying some outfit like you?
Sure you can, a lot of what we do is easy enough for your webmaster intern to handle. Providing they
have resumes that include internet law, protocol-layer security, server scaling, typography, flash
design, mobile device delivery and advanced use of an espresso machine. Usually however, you'll only
see the last one. If your in-house team is built from square-jawed-but-sensitive superhumans drawn
from across the planet and want to handle everything yourself, then that's fine. Just remember that we
will take pleasure in telling you the truth instead of preserving a company parking space.
Will you look at our website or talk to our people?
Yes, and no, maybe. We will take a look at anything, but we usually charge for a full review. Not a huge
sum, but people have to wade through your junk and we are required by law to give them bread and water
while they're chained to their desks. Oh, and we don't do talking. We email. We IM chat. We even
remote-desktop. We don't arrive in a Chevvy and drink your mocha.
What? You don't have.. offices? People that come to meetings? Company limos?
We don't need any. What we do is design and build your world on the Net, and that is where our offices are.
Meetings in rooms require us to charge you for time, travel and a decent suit. We do all of our work
via the Net because we always have, and always can. Our people live all over the world, and we've survived
the dot.com rollercoaster by not investing in some glass-fronted cube in Santa Fe. Does that make us hard
to deal with? No. Just different.
|
