Resumes and Wikifun!

In "Writing Resumes and Letters in the Language of Employers", Munschauer asserts that our resumes and cover letters should be tailored to the specific jobs that we are applying for.  Just like our technical and business writing should be written with a specific audience in mind, so should our resumes and cover letters.  He outlines many resume writing tips that we have heard before, such as the proper use of headlines.  A resume should lend itself to scanning as employers read so many resumes they need to be able to find important information quickly, without having to read the entire resume.  

Most importantly to me, Munschauer discusses a functional resume. While I have heard of this type of resume, I had not been taught the benefits of this type of resume. A functional resume allows you to develop a different message for each job you are applying for. Different functions can be highlighted based upon the specific job requirements for the position you wish to acquire.  While I can currently highlight my experience effectively in a conventional resume, a functional resume might serve my purpose well in the future.

For our Wikipedia assignment, I chose to edit the page for Dan Byrd.  I originally wanted to contribute to the LOST page, I found that it was complete and could not find any information that was missing.  Dan is a childhood friend of mine (actually lived down the street from me growing up) and is now an actor.  I found that while he has been in quite a few films and television shows, his page was missing quite a bit of information.  Some of this information only someone who grew up with him would know (e.g. where he went to school) and other information was on the web, but not included on his wikipedia page. 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dan_Byrd

Multimedia and such

A few posts down is the inspiration for my iTiger commercial that will serve as the multimedia component of the project.  Aside from the premise of the commercial, here are some other things that I DO know:

1. I will use iMovie to edit and create the movie. I have used this software before (briefly), and I have the software on my Mac currently, so it makes sense. From  what I remember it is pretty intuitive as well.

2. I will be making my directorial debut, which is exciting to me. 

3. This needs to be shot either next week or the short week after fall break, which does not give me much time at all, but I am going to work my a** off to make this happen. I believe this is the most important part of my project.

What I DO NOT know:

1. Sill have not heard back about getting into the stadium, although I can certainly make due with another location.  I don't want to, but getting it done and to IPTAY in time for the Carolina game is more important.

2. Who will be in my advertisement...I am the director; you scratch my back, I will scratch yours.

3. Work the video camera. I need to familiarize myself so that when we do film, it will not take very long.

4. Dialogue that will be in the commercial. Anyone with ideas comment on the blog and let me know.

I think that is all.  I hope I can pull this off because if I do, it will sure be something!

Ad Tagline and Slogan Ideas

Print Advertisement:

Solid Orange. Solid Innovation.

Solid Orange meet(s) Solid Innovation.

The Only Thing You Can't Do Is Call the Plays Yourself.

Slogans/Themes:

iTiger. The Future is Now.

iTiger. Don't just be a fan, be a part of the game.

Beyond Fan Involvement. iTiger. The Mobile Fan Experience.

Divine Design

The two articles for this week make the same basic argument, that even the simplest design elements, e.g. font type, font size, etc., should be carefully considered. Petroski asserts that a clear and effective design can help to lead the audience toward your destination or message. You must plan your writing well, being proactive and anticipating any possible problems that may arise in your writing. Kostelnick describes the importance of connecting your visuals and verbal. He asserts that all visuals must be placed into a context in your writing, otherwise they add nothing of substance to your writings. He also reminds us that just because it may be easy to BOLD a heading does not mean that it should be used to fix a problem; a problem may not even exist.

In my project, I have two different opportunities to use design to improve my writing. When writing my PR plan for IPTAY, I need to be cautious of the design elements and visuals that I use. For instance, the visual that shows all of the elements of the iTiger plan is a good use of a visual to complement the text. Just because that visual works in that context does not mean my PR plan should be inundated with visuals; they may not serve any purpose for the rest of the writing. When creating examples of flyers, news releases, etc., visuals will play a larger role. These documents are intended for a different audience with the purpose being to inform and persuade them. Flyers will look like print advertisements, so they should be visually appealing, and the news releases should be easy to follow and should employ "supra-textual cues" to add coherence to the document.

Idea for iTiger Advertisement

I think it would be cool to make a teaser ad for iTiger to show at the last home game this season (Nov. 27th vs. USC). It would have a similar format to the ad above but in addition would have a final shot that said something to the effect of "Coming Fall 2009" A tiger paw would be underneath and the website underneath that. Teaser ads are very effective and would attract a lot of traffic to the website where they could find all the information they need about iTiger.

Ewing, Strategies of Persuasion

David Ewing asserts that there are rules that every persuader should know. But it is not as simple as following a few rules of persuasion when you write; a good writer adapts their approach to each different situation. He then gives 11 rules that should be followed when trying to persuade. These are all rules that we have undoubtedly heard before, but he puts them into a context, where it is important to know your audience before you begin writing. Last, he presents some questions to ask about your audience's situation and relationship to you:

Deeply or only mildly interested in the subject of your communication? IPTAY is deeply interested in my subject. The wheels are in motion for the iTiger project and they need recommendations for marketing and PR.

Familiar or unfamiliar with your views, competence, and feelings about them? Here, they are mostly unfamiliar with my views and competence. They are somewhat familiar with my feelings toward the project; they have seen my enthusiasm toward this opportunity in meetings we've had.

Knowledgeable or ignorant of your authority in the area discussed, your status, and your associations of possible importance to them? I would say before I sent my proposal to Mr. Match, they were ignorant of my authority in the area, but they have some background now as to my qualifications on the subject.

Committed or uncommitted to a viewpoint, opinion, or course of action other than the one you favor in your report? I do not believe they have any ideas or opinions on the matter at this point. This needs to be researched further.

Likely or unlikely to find your proposal, idea, finding, or conclusion threatening or requiring considerable change in their thought or behavior? Very, very, very unlikely.

Inclined or uninclined to think and feel the way they do about the subject because of identifiable reasons, prejudices, or experiences? I would say they are probably inclined to feel the way they do about iTiger because of identifiable reasons, such as there commitment to the university and athletics.

Associated formally or informally with groups or organizations involved in some way with the idea or proposal you deal with? Umm, yeah, Clemson, IPTAY.