Reflective Introspective Reflections

Hello once again audience!

I return to you a man who has tried his hand in advertising and was left unperturbed yet adversely with a insatiable desire for more.  The aforementioned may be a slight exaggeration however I did really enjoy the task we just completed in class. And just like an IB thinker who is also inherently reflective, I am here to reflect on the experience.

However, before we venture into that meaty subject its time for our WOW word. The word obfuscate funnily enough connotes exactly what we see it as, an overcomplicated weird word. The word as I mentioned so wittily means ‘overly complicated” and can be used to get out of obfuscating situations as using it will obfuscate whomever it may concern diverting and extenuating the situation! The more you know!

For the task itself we were given a product that we were meant to sell. Essentially we were meant to convince the respective product’s company that our vision/sales pitch was the way for them to maximize their profits. My group was given the product of Portable Conflict Zone Shelters. These shelters are ideal for countries witness to wars and other dire circumstances that have a potential toll on its inhabitants. These shelters serve as a home away from home and a key in preserving those who are caught in the cross hairs of a war that does not concern them. An apt example of this would be the Syrian refugee crisis.

Within the instant of receiving our product I knew that our main appeal would be pathos as the one thing that can be evoked by war is emotion. As a result my overbearing personality took over as once I have a vision I have this intemperate drive that doesn’t take to well to constructive criticism. That being said, I felt that we use persuasive techniques should appeal to the need for protection and guidance, as humans are intrinsically resilient and have an ingrained desire to help wherever they can. Therefore a product that has the potential to ameliorate an already terrible circumstance in harmony with this appeal would leave an indelible impression on any viewer, effectively cajoling them into donating.

The persuasion techniques actually included within the presentation can be found in the accompanying PowerPoint, which included evocative images of war and angst with bold, hyperbolic words. These words in either red or white against this black and white background help set an atmosphere which was meant to be supplemented by emotional music as that would truly create an effective tone convincing the company and essentially the target audience if chosen. The script itself draws inspiration from the Don Draper sales pitch from Mad Men as it uses stats and effective circumlocution to create a scenario and provide a solution.

In terms of the actual presentation, I felt it went really well in spite of the fallibility of technology. The slideshow worked effectively and the script worked well however I was disappointed by my lack of tone as actually operating the slideshow sidetracked me. Additionally I feel it would have been beneficial for my group to actually explain the reason and features of our pitch. Aside from that I felt we worked effectively.