Week 10/29: Ch. 10 Question 3

The concept I found most interesting is the section on the SWOT model. SWOT stands for strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats and is used in evaluating companies. It can be used to decide on a marketing strategy or even for making decisions. In analyzing a company, we first evaluate the strengths it has which are defined as their “assets and core competencies.” An example given is Walmart which is a large corporation that provides low prices for their customers. The weaknesses of a company are also evaluated in the SWOT model. This can include inadequacies like “lack of expertise, insufficient information, limited financial resources, or poor location.” It is important for a company to also acknowledge its weaknesses and not just advertise based on its strengths. That way, they can find problems and therefore find solutions for them. Opportunities can include “new technology, increases in consumer spending, and untapped markets.” For instance, a company that used to focus on adults can take advantage of also attracting teens in some way. Threats include inevitable problems like natural disasters, slow economy, government rules, etc. The housing market is a great example of this because of the economy; people were foreclosing their homes therefore the values of houses also dropped. Overall, this section was really helpful, not just in studying marketing but also in making decisions.

Week 10/29: Ch. 10 Questiion 2

This was a hard choice for me. I think Liodice’s opinion on freedom of speech in advertising makes much more sense than Wootan’s proposition of those strict guidelines. However, I favor Wootan’s way of arguing more than Liodice. 

One thing that makes Liodice’s way of arguing less persuasive is his excessive use of rhetoric. Liodice used the word “free” five times in the first few sentences of this article. He also uses the first person point of view throughout some parts of the article. Instead of focusing on the facts and evidence, he involves his emotions and opinions on the topic. For instance, he states “I am rather stunned…” and “We won’t be intimidated!” (He even uses an exclamation point, twice actually). He also uses adverbs like “extraordinarily overreaching regulations” and “ridiculously restrictive.” His choice of words is quite exaggerated and unnecessary. He also doesn’t provide hard evidence for some of his claims. For example, he states that “other countries have attempted to ban…children’s advertising” and they were not effective, but he doesn’t provide a specific statistic or example of a country. He also states that companies are now “reformulating products to be lower in cholesterol, fat, and calories” but again, he doesn’t provide specific evidence.

Although I think that the guidelines Wootan talked about are unrealistic, I think the way she argued by not using a lot of emotive words and rhetoric is more effective. I totally agree with Liodice that it’s just not that easy to provide guidelines and reduce obesity, but his way of arguing did not convince me.  

Week 10/29: Ch. 10 Question 1

The marketing strategies I saw this past week are the use of celebrities, cute animals and babies, bizarre stories, songs, testimonies, bargains or deals, etc. For example, I saw a Chanel No. 5 commercial with Brad Pitt saying a philosophical spiel. It was effective in that I remember the commercial, but then what the heck does Brad Pitt have to do with a woman’s perfume? Sex appeal? I guess. But I’m not sold. Another commercial I saw was for a 3D game where the people playing the game are suddenly in the game, because you know, it’s 3D. I thought it was effective because it was humorous and “out there” that it became memorable. I’ve seen a bunch of commercials (sorry, I’ve been watching some TV) with people testifying to that company or product (weight loss miracles, for instance). Those throw me off because who knows if they really used those products or were just paid to be in the commercial. Many advertisements also use catchy songs or jingles that are quite nice to hear. I think those are effective because they’re not obnoxious and you don’t have to pay attention to long, details about a product. You just watch and listen and enjoy it. Adverts also include babies and other cute stuff that just make you go “aw.” Who wouldn’t squeal over babies? But then again, sometimes when a toddler or a cute animal is in the advertisement, I kind of neglect what the ad is really about. Overall, I think that cuteness, humor and the use of jingles/songs are effective. The use of celebrities and testimonies aren’t always.

Week 10/15: Ch. 4 Question 2

Condon argues that the study of UFO reports will not lead to scientific productivity. He mentions how nothing regarding UFOs has been discovered in the past 21 years, suggesting that scientists therefore cannot go forward with their studies. He also says how some “may have expected in the way of psychiatric problems” when they find “UFO” craft, and this would advance the social and behavioral sciences instead. He also mentions how the government isn’t in secrecy concerning UFO reports. 

Hynek argues that “investigations…have sought to disprove” the rigorous scientific studying of UFO reports which is why nothing has been really proven yet. He states how the reports can be managed by looking at the statistics by comparing “large groups of sightings of a particular category with a much larger population of the same category,” and by the thorough examination of “individual multiple-witness cases.” He mentions how UFO reports are global, suggesting that it’s not just the people of this country that have “witnessed” UFOs. 

I think Paynter makes the best argument. He argues that so far we really don’t know if UFOs are real, because we don’t have physical evidence. Nobody has really found legitimate evidence and so until someone does, we can’t be sure that aliens are real but according to Hynek, it’s still acceptable to believe in them. His article was also the easiest for me to grasp because he states his opinions simply and straightforwardly. It’s brief, but it’s the most powerful out of the three.

Week 10/15: Ch. 4 Question 3

The concept I found most interesting is the section on social errors and biases. This section explains different ways we perceive different groups of people. The section on the “one of us” or “one of them” error discusses how we tend to respect people who are similar to us as opposed to those different from us in terms of “race, sex, religion, political party, age, or nationality” (118). Sometimes, we just do that unconsciously. The section on societal expectations refers to how we expect certain groups of people to act and we conform to how they act. An example given in the book is the Salem witch trials where people of that time really believed in witchcraft just because most believed so.  The section on group pressure and conformity discusses how being in groups can influence our individual decisions. For example, if the whole group of friends you’re with wants to watch a chick flick while you want mystery, you’ll just settle for chick flick as well because that’s what everyone else chooses. Diffusion of responsibility refers to how we don’t take responsibility when it’s not our problem. In the book, Boss gives an example when an injured man on a busy street in Connecticut was ignored by bystanders after he was struck by a vehicle. He later died from his injuries.