Through the course of being in the environment in a
world run by technology, campaigns, and target markets, there are various
images that could possibly persuade the viewer to go against their current
position. With the current three selections that are listed below are the most
current forms of persuasion that I have come in contact with while being here
at Kutztown these last two weeks and my finals days around the Hershey,
Harrisburg area.
During the opening of the college football season
this weekend there were plenty examples of persuasion. The most pertinent of
these being the pregame show that happened before the day of hard-hitting
football. This television program showcases various sports anchors and
professional analysts that discus the pending match ups that were occurring
throughout Saturday. These analysts argued numerous points and tried to prove
which one was right by bringing up stats, player profiles and key match ups to
give the viewers reasons why they should go with this or that team come kick
off. Lee Corso, Kirk Herbstreit, and Desmond Howard provided their option by
using observation of what they've seen on the field during practice and mini
camps, considering it was the first week of the season. Going off straight
opinion, they formed arguments based off what they’ve seen and how they believe
about a given game around the nation. These forms of persuasion are targeted
mostly to men of all ages who enjoy the competition of Division I college
football. The reason I believe the target is a man is because the art of sport
is mostly more appealing to the male population.
Commercials are a powerful form to reach the
majority of Americans locally, nationally, and even sometimes globally.
Messages can be broadcasted from Atlantic to Pacific and most of these
commercials have turned to mudslinging on occasion to get this message across.
For instance, The DirecTV commercials who features Deion Sanders and usually a
Manning brother focuses on why a person should choose their product over the
competition. These commercials consist of mostly "what we have is
better" cliché that has a one sided stat that gives the illusion that
their product is THE choice. In my opinion I believe that these DirecTV
commercials that do this are the best at it. With the overwhelming credibility
of the Hall of Famer Deion Sanders, defending Super Bowl champion Eli Manning,
and possibly the best quarterback to ever play the game in Peyton Manning to
convey that message is very powerful. So when these athletes who are flying
around "ordinary people" throwing out phrases like "see every
game with DirecTV, cable doesn't do that" in a humorous manner that could
potentially persuade people to make the switch over. As a man who that would
appeal to, it really makes me take a look at the Service Elect package a little
bit closer and wondering if I'm getting what I pay for. Comparing them to the
other forms of "corporate commercial mudslinging" is home phone and
cell phone carriers. It seems like every time I flip on the television there is
a new alarming one sided stat that either Verizon or AT&T tries to bribe on
the fence customers with. Instead of having a celebrity do it they do solid
proven facts that are commonly projected through charts and percentages. This
gives the literate the knowledge of what each phone carrier can do for you no
matter where one would think of traveling to. Other examples of this form of
persuasion include but aren't limited to car insurance agencies, Internet
providers, and local car dealerships ranging from all different types of target
audiences.
In the shadow of Hershey Park, right next to the
sounds the roar of roller coasters and the laughs of children and adults alike there’s
the nationally known, Chocolate World. In Chocolate World there is a ride that
explains the concept of the process the Hershey Company uses to make their form
of chocolate. Not like the craving for chocolate isn't hard enough to fight.
The Hershey Company takes the ride to that next level that could even make a
dog salivate. After the ride comes to a complete stop and before a rider can
even view their photos snapped on the ride they are handed a free sample of
usually some new or unique chocolate. Now how does this tie into persuasion? It
tries to persuade a potential customer why they should go downstairs after the
ride is finished, and buy some of the millions of packaged button-buster,
hip-enlarging but delicious candy treats that are made by Hershey's. It also
gives encouragement to walk around and explore the various types of candy that
Hershey has to offer. With the universal product of something like candy it
gives an unlimited target market because even grandma sneaks candy bars every
once in while. Even though it doesn't come out and say this is way a chocolate
lover should chose Hershey's but offers credibility, history, and a sample of
the product all tries to persuade a consumer to think Hershey's when they think
chocolate.
