PITCH REFLECTION

The main appeals that were used in the pitch was the need for affiliation and the need for aesthetic sensations. The reason why these appeals were used is that, when worked together, they were quite  affective in appealing to an audience who were in need of something. What is meant by this is that, the product was advertised as being very well-created, which would lead the audience into believing that their other friends would be getting it as well. And, the aesthetic appeal was obviously very important in making the product seem popular as the design of the website (colour, text type, chosen images, etc...) was key in convincing the audience. Therefore, these two appeals were used when advertising the product as this would assure that, along with the features working on the online shopping website, it would also be eye-catching (the two most important parts of a product). Furthermore, the persuasive techniques used was humour (in presentation format), association (relating to home-life), warm and fuzzy (in both text & imagery), nostalgia (using pathos), simple solution (when explaining the website), and of course charisma (in the speaking of the pitch). One important thing my group wanted to do was to assure that we not only promised these persuasive techniques when advertising the website to our target audience, but also used it in our pitch so that the judges could get a sample of what was being sold. As to our overall approach, an awareness of our audience (families, but mainly the general public) and context (online shopping website) helped as we could brainstorm and then orientate our ideas around those two areas. For example, it was decided that we would include pictures of families and friends on the presentation in order to add a 'colourful foundation' for what was being said in the pitch, yet also supported it as it gave the judges a sort of evidence of how shopping makes people happy. In terms of the effectiveness of the presentation, I think this activity helped as it laid down what the best strategies to use were during an FOA so that we are more prepared (and generally more comfortable) the time we do the one that counts.