The Pitch Reflection

To begin our new unit in Language and Literature class, we were prompted to present a Pitch intended to advertise and persuade our audience to choose our advertising methods to promote their product. 

Sheherazade and I were given the product "the Casio Keytar, 80s UK", allowing us to narrow down a very specific audience and to understand the overall context needed to present our product. Our targeted audience was therefore interested in 80s British pop music and all the trends and stereotypes that come along with that. This pop music was targeted towards a younger audience, which fits nicely with the audience of the product. We then needed to convince Casio to accept our advertising method. 

The Casio keytar is a product that we knew would immediately spark laughter throughout the audience due to the silliness of it. We decided to use this to our advantage by choosing humour to be the main appeal throughout the pitch. As a result, we chose to act very enthusiastic about the product, including many jokes and slang throughout the presentation. There was also 80s pop music played in the background to complement the nature of the Casio keytar and attract our targeted audience. The concept of bandwagon was also clearly evident throughout our presentation as this appeal proves to be very effective among young adults trying to fit in. Rational was the final main appeal we chose to use as this promotes the product as a beneficial, advantageous product. 

The fifteen basic appeals were also considered while preparing for this presentation as they were essential persuasive techniques for our presentation. Testimonials from normal people and celebrities were included throughout the presentation to increase interest from the audience, such as "Pop stars from all over the world send us their reviews and appreciations, congratulating us for our professional and admired engineering." The concept of the key tar being brand-new was also encouraged in our promoting presentation as this attracts the target audience to take part in the bandwagon appeal. The key tar is affiliated to British 80s pop (including the Eurythmics, Depeche Mode, etc) an interest that the target audience will most likely respond well to. Rhetorical questions like "Are you tired of being called a lame hoser and a music loob?" or "You want to impress your posse?", were also frequently used as this technique tends to make the audience feel as bad if they do not buy the product. 

A variety of images showcasing the brightly coloured keytars were chosen to attract the viewer to the product in a positive way. The audience should see the keytar as a enjoyable product, associating it with happy times. There were also some images of 80s UK pop bands that the audience should associate with the keytar. A short clip of Annie Lenox saying things like "brilliant product" or "I enjoy this" was also included for this reason. These bands are also intended for the music taste of this young audience, which incorporates an element of celebrity into the presentation. 

I feel as though the overall presentation effectively promoted our product in a positive humorous way. The use of relevant music in the background of our presentation allowed our audience to remain engaged throughout the length of our presentation as the song changed each slide and the audience anticipated the next catchy song. Humour was also another important element of our presentation as it allowed us to connect with the audience. The preparation needed to present this advertising pitch was minimal, yet the overall outcome of our presentation seem to be very effective to promote our product. I feel very confident that I have an overall understanding in the basic outline of an FOA.