Rhetoric:
Logos is part of it because the main character moved from Verizon to Sprint and told that Sprint saved 50% and only had a 1% difference. They also brings back the 1% difference to make the argument to switch. It also uses Ethos because of the main character, he was a know representative for Verizon, but switched to Sprint and he thinks everyone should switch with him. He made the switch and millions more.
Overall Message:
The commercial takes place walking down a city street, with Paul, a former Verizon representative, talking about Sprint. He is trying to sell Sprint's reliability and service. Paul is a well know face and while walking, you can tell it is a city and has tables, extra people, and vehicles. He eventually gets in a car at the end of the commercial.
Production:
The overall messages is that Sprint is on the same level as Verizon. Sprint is trying to convey that it has the same service at a cheaper price. The main character is depicted as an everyday man, who made the move from Verizon to Sprint and others should follow.
Distribution
This was on daytime tv on a local channel on the weekend. I also saw it on several other channels at several different times of day. The audience is for people who own cell phone plans. Specifically those who own Verizon. The show that was on was a documentary on TLC, and I believe that the target audience for the show would be adults. I think that they wanted wide exposure and placed it on local channels that adults would watch, in order to obtain their target audience.
Persuasive Techniques
The visual techniques that the cameraman used was movement and framing the shot. The movement I think was important to create a visually appealing commercial, even though he was just talking. By moving the camera and actor it helped set the scene and make it more entertaining. As for framing the shot, the main focus was on the actor the whole time. This made the audience focus on his clothes and the words being said, and then it zooms out to show him getting in the car. It was made to feel as if it was a casual encounter.
Reflection
I think that it was interesting to learn about how advertising agency pitch commercials and products to the public. It is important to be aware of there techniques to make you a smarter buyer and consumer. I think our students need to be aware and smart about the way they view advertisements. I think this is an excellent assignment for an English class, however I can't think of a good way to use it in a math classroom. I do think that students might be able to find a math idea in a commercial or advertisement, and write or describe where statistics from the commercials come from.