1. Advanced portfolio Evaluation
Serena Moriarty

2. In what ways does your media product use,
develop or challenge forms and conventions
of real media products?

3. In many ways all media texts can be seen as highly conventional, employing
conventional advertising techniques, and taking inspiration from the
conventions of real media products. Partly, this was because I wanted to use
dairy conventions to position DairyFriend as a dairy product in the eyes of
the consumers, who would see these conventions and understand the
product better.
Main adverts
my choice of music was based purely on - Click to listen to the chosen soundtrack, “come
research into the conventional dairy back” by Rosie and Me.
advert. I found that dairy adverts primarily
use upbeat, feel good music. This is
therefore something that helps the
audience distinguish them as dairy. I
therefore recognised the soundtrack as
an important aspect of the advert, both
positioning the product and setting the
right mood and tone for the ad. I think
the track I used, “Come Back – Rosie and
Me”, had the conventional positive,
upbeat tone that I was looking for.

4. Beginning I also employed a very conventional narrative
in the main adverts, described in my
earlier research as “the exemplary story”,
this is a conventional ad style that shows
a strong narrative In which the product is
placed in a situation where it is needed
or necessary. It also has a distinctive linear
middle narrative, of beginning, middle, end,
which in itself is conventional. However, I
do feel although I employed a
conventional narrative, I didn't use it in a
stereotypical, or overtly conventional
way.
end

5. However, the ad’s are not aesthetically conventional, containing no imagery of cows or
real milk, which for a dairy advert is uncommon. This is a convention I chose to
challenge, as I felt it was over used, and too obvious. I thought the mise en scene
used connotes a dairy product, and that I didn’t need these overtly conventional
images to establish the product. However, in my audience feedback, it became
apparent that some of the audience were confused about what the product was,
and this may be down to the lack of conventional imagery. If they were to see cows
and puring milk, they would immediately establish the brand as a dairy product. I’m
therefore not convinced that challenging this convention has paid off.
This is very conventional screenshot from
a muller advert, featuring both milk and
the cows in the background, set in the
country.
I chose to not to feature
Such conventional imagery, but
still set it in a country
background

6. Although I steered off overtly conventional imagery, I did adhere to some basic dairy
advert conventions. This includes the countryside setting and the milk van in the mise
en scene, but also the slow paced editing and the connotations of natural, fresh and
healthy. These were basic conventions I chose to incorporate into my ad’s. When
researching into dairy ad’s I found the countryside setting, which held fresh and
natural connotations, was key to all the products.

7. I decided this was an
important convention
to incorporate into my
advert, as part of
repositioning the UHT
milk was to show it as
fresh and healthy,
which it is currently I incorporated elements I also made a very basic,
not known as. Part of such as the brick pattern, traditional looking car.
using this countryside the chimney, the white This was similar to dairy
setting included the framed windows and ad’s I had seen which use
tree’s and the river, the picket fence to give older looking, more
but also using a off these conventional traditional vehicles that
traditional looking connotations. If I were to hold these conventional
home and a basic car. create a more modern connotations.
I found in Dairy looking house, this
advert’s, the mise en wouldn’t have the same
scene always had effect.
traditional, homely
connotations.

8. Sponsorships
My sponsorships were slightly unconventional, Footage that was
and didn’t fit neatly into the set of conventions I removed – I tried
found when researching. They contained a to put too much of
strong narrative, in keeping with the main a narrative into
adverts. I found in my research, conventionally, them originally, and
they tend to have more of a loose narrative, had to simplify and
working on branding and association with the shorten them. I
programme, rather than portraying a strong think I was trying
message. I deliberately chose to challenge this to challenge the
convention, as I felt the narrative was an convention too far..
important concept to the idea of the ad
campaign, and that the product and brand
didn’t stand alone without it.
I also didn’t incorporate the programme into my
sponsorship, which is often common as it
creates an association between the product
and programme for the viewer. This is mainly
because I chose to sponsor a strand of TV,
daytime, and therefore kept the sponsorship
very open to appeal to different audiences,
rather than tailoring it to a specific programme.

9. I did however incorporate arguably the most important convention, and this was the
strong branding. I noticed in my research that each sponsorship sequence
portrays a strong brand image, through the use of colour, logo’s etc. This is due
to the time restraints and the purpose of a sponsorship. Unlike main adverts, they
don’t try to sell the audience a product, as much as try and remind them of it,
and build up an association in their minds with the programme. A successful
sponsorship sequence should help the viewers connect with the product, and
this can be done easily through branding
Iconic
Iconic
characters
colours
Company
slogan name/logo
I used branding in my sponsorship by
featuring the logo on the van within the
sponsorship, and by featuring the van itself,
which I believe would become iconic of the
brand. I also positioned the DairyFriend logo
at the end, along with the ITV logo, to help
the audience associate the two.

10. • I re edited my sponsorship sequences to fit tighter with the conventions I had seen. My
first cut’s included too much information in the end title, which I found to be un
necessary, and too much for the length of time, sponsorships conventionally give a short
quick message, but do not provide much information about the product. This led me to
change the end titles.
EXAMPLE
I also added the ITV logo to position alongside my
branding, for the association purposes. Lastly, I swapped
the closing sponsorship around, so the title came first, this
was a convention I found in my research, but initially chose
to ignore.

11. How effective is the combination of your main
and ancillary texts?

12. I recognised the importance of creating synergy between all five media texts, so they
could be viewed as a cohesive advertising campaign, however, would still be
understandable and effective standing alone.
The main way I created synergy was Old web pop up –
through the continuity of the mise too dark and
en scene throughout all five texts. I chosen footage
used much of the same props, such doesn’t denote the
as the lorry, which is clearly visible in brand
each text. This was something I
recognised as important, as my New pop up –
original web pop up didn't feature Much more in
the same lorry, or similar aesthetics keeping with the
and colours, and so looked far too rest of the texts,
separate from the other texts. featuring the
iconic van
The lorry becomes iconic of the brand within
each text, and ties them all together.

13. I also made each text similar aesthetically, using only paper constructed elements, and
keeping each to a similar colour scheme. I think this was an important aspect to consider,
as I want the paper constructed elements to become symbolic of the brand, much like
the plastic figures in Cravendale's ad's have become symbolic of them
Screenshots from each text, showing the similar colours and aesthetics
My pop up, featuring stop motion
The paper construction elements, compared to a conventional
is something I pop up. I used the same
continued throughout stop motion style to
all texts, despite it being create synergy
unconventional of web between the
pop up's, which tend to pop up and
be digitally produced the rest of
the texts.

14. I also re used prop's from the different texts, so they each featured some of the same
props, and so were similar in mise en scene. This was obvious in the two ad's and
web pop up, where I used the same house and many of the same tree's.
However I also re used them more subtly.
The same props – house, tree„s, van,
milk bottles.
The car from advert one reappears as opposite traffic in advert 2, this
was a deliberate move to spark a memory in the audience, from ad
one.
Similarly, in the closing
sponsorship ad, I used the tent
from advert 1, again for the same
effect. I think this would help
viewers to recognise all texts as
part of the same campaign, and
also help them to remember back
to the other texts.

15. I continued the soundtrack throughout four of the texts, with the two main adverts
having exactly the same soundtrack, and the sponsorship sequence using an
instrumental version. This means the tune follows on throughout all four, and would
become a recognisable tune, symbolic of the brand. The viewer would associate the
tune with the brand, and immediately recognise it as a DairyFriend ad, no matter which
text they were watching.
I also continued the font throughout each text, and in fact the logo. It is a stylised font,
that would become part of the brand. It is seen at the end of each advert and in the
sponsorship sequence, with the font colour mirroring the colours of the logo, in order
to achieve a consistent brand image
I also used it in the web pop up, - Text and logo
and feature the cow from within
the logo, either side of the text. featured in each text,
This was an added choice to creating a consistent
incorporate part of the brand brand identity
identity into the pop up, and
would once again make it easily
recognisable as part of the brand,
and part of the same campaign.

16. I asked in my audience feedback whether the audience thought all five texts
worked together as a cohesive campaign, and the results were extremely positive,
with the majority of viewers answering “yes”, and the rest answering “to some
extent”, with no negatives responses. This suggests to me that the effort I have
taken to make each text contain similarities and look like part of a campaign had
paid off, as the audience received them as cohesive and united.
In all, think all five texts support it each other, particularly the sponsorship sequences
and the main adverts, as they both take a slightly different stance on the same narrative.
The main adverts feature a conventional linear narrative, which
describe the product attributes, and then the sponsorship
sequence builds on this, showing the extent of the products
usability. Each text is understandable separately, but if
viewed together, the sponsorship sequence and main
ad's support each other, and build up a strong picture
of the brand.

17. What have you learned from your audience
feedback?

18. I first posted my adverts on facebook, to see how my friends responded, but soon realised
this was pointless, as it gave me vague directionless feedback that wasn’t of much value.
I then created a questionnaire on Google Docs,
including some closed questions for data analysis and
some open questions to gain the audience’s opinions. I
circulated this online to my target audience, males and
females 20+, who were fairly middle class. I chose to
base my questionnaire around my aims, what I set out
to do with the ad’s, to see if the audience think these
have been achieved. These were aims such as
repositioning UHT milk as a premium product, and
creating an advert that would be enjoyable and
memorable. I wanted to see how far I had achieved
these aims, and so how successful my campaign has
been.

19. What is your view of the product, based on the ad„s?
I felt this was the most important question, and so placed it first, as the main aim of the
ad’s was to erode any negative stigma around UHT milk and to evoke a positive view
of the product from the viewers. The results were very good, and all viewers agreed
on a positive view of the product, with 100% answering 3 or over, which is towards
the positive side of the scale. The majority of viewers answered 4 on the scale, which
is not extremely positive, but comfortably. This assures me that the advert connoted
the right values about the product, and that the audience picked up on these
connotations. I paid specific attention to what I was connoting throughout all five
media texts, wanting the audience to understand the product as positive, fun, exciting

20. I then asked the audience to add any additional comments on their view of the product.
Here I was looking to see if they had responded to the text the way I had intended, and
had understood the connotations the way I had hoped. The results were very positive,
with many people using the exact words I had hoped they might, such as convenient,
nature friendly, healthy and fresh. This has confirmed to me that the advert’s connotations
were received by the audience, as they had effectively perceived the product as i had
hoped. I also feel with these positive comments and viewpoints on the product, I must
have achieved my objective of effectively showing UHT milk in a positive light.
“Very good product, convienient, good new option for going out places” – This was the main
narrative of the ad campaign, and I am pleased it was well understood.
“made you think of outdoors, fresh air and things that are healthy, which in turn makes you
think of the product as natural and healthy” – I included aspects of the mise en scene
such as the tree’s and the river to evoke this reaction in viewers. It is conventional of
dairy advertising and I hoped it would help the viewers to understand the product
as fresh and healthy.
“The handcrafted props for the ad, help make the product seem wholesome and natural”– once
again the product was received as natural and healthy, with this viewer commenting
that the paper stop motion itself has natural and healthy connotations. When I chose
this style of animation for my advert, I knew it would help me position the product as
home made and down to earth, and i’m glad it has been well received.

21. Did you find after watching the ad's that the product, logo, slogan was memorable?
This was a simple question to see if my audience thought the advertising campaign was
successful in terms of its branding. The results were pleasantly positive, with 42% and 45%
answering 4 or 5 respectively, where 5 is the top of the scale in terms of how memorable
it is. This suggests that the advert effectively communicated the necessary details of the
brand. This was useful feedback as it confirms the Ad achieved the most important aim,
which is to communicate a memorable brand.

22. in your opinion, did the ad's effectively position DairyFriend as a premium "High end" product?
Part of repositioning a UHT milk product was establishing it as a premium product,
therefore I set out to position DairyFriend as a premium “high end” product, that
audiences would be willing to pay more for. I wanted to see if audiences felt I had
successfully achieved this aim.
The answers were very mixed, with the audience answering across the
board. The majority of the audience answered “yes” or “to some extent”,
indicating that most found interpreted it as a premium product to some
degree. 35% of the audience agreed that it did establish the product as
premium, however, 30%, almost a third of the audience, voted “not really”.
This is a disappointing result, as such a large percentage didn't interpret the
ad how I had hoped, and don't feel I achieved what I had aimed to do. I
knew the question would generate a mixed response, as when I reflected on
my work, I realised they didn’t fully address this aim, and this was something I
perhaps overlooked.

23. What feelings/mood did you gain from the adverts?
This was a simple question in order to evaluate whether my main adverts had connoted
what i had hoped for the viewer. I was hoping, if the ad had successfully portrayed the
product and given the right connotations, the answers would be words like happy,
relaxed, upbeat etc. This would be largely based on the soundtrack and the mise en scene
in the ad and their connotations.
The results were brilliant in this question, suggesting to me that the audience had received
the ad’s in the exact way I had wished, and that they understood the connotations I had
built into the ad’s. The most used word’s were cheerful, uplifted, happy, peaceful and calm.
Larger answers suggested, as I had hoped, that the mixture of the soft but upbeat music
and the aesthetics of the countryside were the reasons for these feelings.
Scenes like this gave helped establish a cheerful but calm mood.

24. “The advert made me
feel calm and at peace This information was invaluable to me, as it
with myself, because of reassures me, along with question 1, that the
the use of the gentle messages of the advert were clearly received
and understood by the audience. It was
music and slow moving, imperative to the success of the advert that
simple images” contained the right connotations, as much of
the power of the ad is in the mood created
by it. This in turn helps the audience to
connect with it, and associate it with positive
feelings.
“The advert gave a
calm, happy and relaxed
feeling due to the
soothing music”

25. Did you find the ad's interesting and engaging? For example, If you were to see them on TV, would you want
to watch the whole 30 seconds?
This was simply to find out, if The results from this were also positive,
viewed on the TV, if they would with the majority voting 4 or 5 on the
be willing to watch it the whole scale, indicating that they would be
way through. I thought if the thoroughly engaged. No one voted less
answers to this were mostly Yes, than 3, also indicating that nobody was
then my advert’s must have disinterested in the ad, and that it wouldn’t
been successful, as this is the prompt them to change channel. This was
main aim for most adverts, to a useful piece of information to gain, as I
engage and interest the viewer now know my ad’s were received well by
in the ad, and subsequently in the viewers, who enjoyed them and
the product. became fully engaged in them.

26. I lastly asked the audience to leave any additional comments they had on anything that was
particularly successful, and equally anything they thought could be improved upon
Many people made the comment that the purpose of the advert was sometimes unclear, and that
at points, the product being advertised wasn’t necessarily clear either. I think I incorporated the
purpose of the product into the narrative, but didn’t show it as obviously as often happens in
adverts. As they are so short, ad’s usually provide a lot of information upfront and easily, rather than
giving the audience something to process. In hindsight, I could have put more information
regarding the product into the ad, through titles or a voiceover.
One person made a particularly interesting comment:
“the approach is reminiscent of Postman Pat TV programmes and may well
appeal on a subliminal level to twenty or thirty somethings who grew up with
PP.”
I hadn’t thought of this
previously, but my target
audience would have grown
up with stop motion childrens
Tv programmes, as these were
popular back then. This would
make the stop motion format
familiar and enjoyable, and they
may connect with it better
because of this.

27. How did you use new media technologies in the
planning and research, construction, and
evaluation stages?

28. Planning and research
My planning and research was a crucial part of the process, as it
allowed me to fully understand the codes and conventions of
both advertising and stop motion. I used youtube to research
into advertising, looking at past adverts and analysing them.
I then used vimeo to look deeper into animation, as it provided a
wider range of video’s than youtube. This also allowed me to
analyse them, and embed them into my blog, to comment on
and compare against.
I also used programmes such as flash and
photoshop for my early experimentation
into rotoscoping and animation, as part of
my research. This was imperative, as it
helped me choose a path for my advert,
after I decided I preferred to work with stop
motion. I was then able to mimic and
develop existing texts I had found online,
making a pastiche of their work. This
allowed me to analyse it deeper, and
understand the processes better.

29. Construction
The construction of my texts predominantly involved adobe flash CS 5.5 and premier pro
CS 4. I chose these versions of the programmes as they allowed the best creative control. I
pieced together the separate images in flash cs5.5, as I found this easier to edit and
change, and then exported them as quicktime movies, to edit in premiere into one
sequence. I also created the end titles in flash, so I could get effects such as the logo
fading in, and the typing effect on the slogan. I also had more control over the placing,
timings and aesthetics of the end titles in flash. For my web pop up, the use of flash was
imperative, as it was the only program in which I could create a button with a hyperlink,
to give a realistic, working web pop up. I also used youtube again at this point for
guidance and support on making a working button in flash.

30. I used other technologies too in the Lastly, I used photoshop in constructing
process of filming, such as an SLR my paper props, such as the DairyFriend
camera and an edirol. The SLR was van and the car. I originally tried to make
important, as it gave me full control over them by hand with a ruler, but realised
the photo’s I took. This meant I could creating them digitally and printing them
control the aperture and shutter speed, gave me more accurate measurements.
meaning I could make sure they were
the same in each photo, whereas a
standard digital camera would have
adjusted accordingly, and given me
photo’s in a different light. I could also
have full control over the focus of the
photo, choosing to use the manual
setting, so I could focus on different
aspects of the mise en scene, and leave
some in soft focus. . I used an Edirol voice
recorder to record my
voiceover, which gave me
a quality sound, as i could
position it close to the
person speaking, and it
was a quality sound
recorder.

31. Evaluation
I used technologies right through to the evaluation stage, uploading my videos to both
youtube and vimeo. This is because they reach slightly different audiences and would
allow me to gain different feedback. I then posted the links from these onto my facebook
page, to get some basic feedback from friends and family.

32. Lastly, I used GoogleDocs to conduct my audience feedback, this is because it was an
easy tool for creating a questionnaire, that was easy for people to fill in online. This meant
I could email and facebook it to people I know, and prompt them to circulate online to
anyone they knew, meaning I could easily and quickly gain a large amount of audience
feedback.
It was also a very convenient tool, placing my results into charts and graphs for me to
analyse, and presenting the results in a format that was easy for me to understand. Had i
done this manually, printing paper copies of a questionnaire, analysing the results would
have been time and consuming and difficult. It would also have been hard to circulate to
an audience. I was also able to post a link to all five texts on the questionnaire, to watch
before they answered, which would have been impossible in paper form.