Power Points

Team Tufte wins my vote in todays election on views on PowerPoints.  Tufte is absolutely correct when saying that content is the key to a presentation and that we as people have been getting lazy at presenting information.  I see it all of the time in school.  Teachers put up words and a picture or two to try to get the audience's attention, when all they are doing is presenting something lame and the pictures are the only things that we tend to remember, if at all, in the presentation.  Instead of only learning the software, it is important that we as individuals learn how to present our ideas to people so we can make the content enjoyable.  Don't get me wrong, I like seeing visual aids when I am learning about something new; however, these pictures have to serve a purpose and they can't just be put in because it is funny or so it catches people's attention.  When we learn how to incorporate pictures, fun fonts, etc. in our powerpoints while deliverying our presentation masterfully, this is when lecturing becomes a fun and interesting way to learn.

Tau Kappa Epsilon Website for Shepherd University

So we have to choose a topic for class for a website.  Being in a fraternity and knowing how expansive social networking and the internet is, I am passionate about trying to educate people who do not know about our fraternity.  Discussing what us frraters partake in is important because there is more to a fraternity then just parties and having fun.  Having a website that shows what TKE represents will help not only our brotherhood, but it would be helping others get a feel for what a group of young men can do with a social background. 

Semiotics

We have been learning about semiotics and our assignment is discuss five characteristics of semiotics and discuss them fully in the advertisement of our choice.

1.  The signifier is the boxing ring.  And it signifies a person actually boxing.  A boxer is a figure of strength so in this case the women is the boxer and the picture gives her an appeal of strength and being the main focus of this advertisement.

2.  The signifier is the bottle of schnapps.  It signifies alcohol.  People use alcohol for various reasons.  One association is for partying and having a good time.  In this case for the advertisement I believe that it is used to not feel pain.  Alcohol is sometimes used so that it depresses the nerves so that an individual feels less pain.

3.  The signifier is the color orange.  It signifies healing.  The boxer may need help with healing power because they may have been hurt. 

4.  The signifier is WAKE UP.  It signifies someone being awake and aware of what is going on.  The boxer needs to be aware of the situation around to be prepared.


5.  The signifier is the necklaces/bling.  It symbolizes urban culture.  It also represents awards or accomplishments.  People wear jewelry to represent something about themselves. 

improvements to advertisements

It is important to look at your own projects and ctitique them and try to do the best work possible. 
When you can fix your own pieces of work you learn and grow because you realize what flaws you may have.  After having a class discussion, I realize that I could change some of the advertisements to make them better.  I really thought that our campaign was a good one, trying to appeal to the magazines that we were putting them in.  The one advertisement that I really thought that I needed to change was the advertisement for the boys phone in the gamer magazine.  The advertisement was pretty plain and it didn't really go well with the other ones we had created.  There was nothing that caught the attention of the audience.  The phone was a little hard to see and there was no action.  We could definitely put a person in the magazine because people really enjoy seeing expressions and sense of realism in something that they are interested in purchasing.  Also, we could change the overall campaign ad to Gotcha Freedom.  Being a phone for tweens this would appeal to them because its the age where they are about to become a teenager and expressing their individuality is what many kids that age are trying to do.  So Gotcha Freedom would be a great way to get tweens attention.  I thought the other two advertisements were done quite nicely.  People really enjoyed them.  The color choice was a positive one, using bright colors to get the attention of the audience.  Overall, our campaign was a success.  Now we just have to tweek somethings here and there to make it a campaign that can rival those at a professional level

Women Icons for Music Videos

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4ldjbjwim4k

This music video is one that does not show women as sex icons in a world where women are used all the time for this implications

Forbes Blog

The way in which an advertisement is created can have a huge impact on people who viewed and took interest in the advertisement.  The advertisement being created has to appeal to the audience and has to get their attention so that the product or company being displayed can get people to become interested.  However, different advertisements appeal to different people and the way an advertisement portrays itself has different meanings.  It doesn't matter how prolific a person's job title is, or if a person belongs to a well known advertising company.  Views on what makes an advertisement good or successful varies.  Looking at new ways to try to get customers to buy products is the name of the game so learning from other successful advertisements and using different means to advertise is the name of the game.  The internet is a huge area where advertisement companies can get their names out their through popular websites that people visit.  The main idea however is to interest the consumer and get their attention.

Personally sports advertisements in general seem to get my attention, especially the ones that deal with soccer because that is my favorite sport.  The one advertisement that comes to mind is the write your future Nike commercial.  

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dBZtHAVvslQ

This advertisement catches my attention because it shows how any moment the future can change with one action a player makes.  This shows that anyone can change their future for the better if they work hard enough.

My favorite advertisement

Advertising appeals to different types of people.  Depending on the audience that the advertisement is designed for, the advertisement can and will need to be altered to make those individuals interested in the product.
I can recall a specific type of advertisement that I enjoy because the product that is on television is something I would be interested in because I am an athlete.  This advertisement brand is Gatorade and their G-series.  This is their three different types of drinks.  The first drink is to take before a game or practice so that an athlete can get an extra energy boost.  The second drink is for during the activity.  It replenishes electrolites and hydrates the athlete.  The last drink is a recovery drink so that muscles can heal and become stronger after the physical activity.  I enjoy this because I am already a fan of Gatorade and I use it a lot.

Comm 406- Advertising and Imagery

What am I hoping to learn from this class?  Well... the possibilities are endless.  I do not know exactly what to expect.  So, here is what I am hoping.  Let's learn how to make good advertisements that could possibly be used on television or in a magazine.  That is the first thing that came to mind.  Other than that, I really do not know what this class has to offer.  It will be a good experience hopefully, I would not expect anything less ( I mean I am paying for this class, so I hope to gain something from it).  My expectations for myself are vast and wide, but i would love to get a good grade; therefore, I will have to try very hard because grades are earned and not given.  Lets have a good semester yeah (laugh out loud).