Recall new weighting: 100 points total, written and oral presentation.  Each of the three projects will now be worth 100 points.

Create a mock-up of a single-page Web ad that would be used by a local full-service tire retailer to gain a Web presence.  Specifically, the message must:

1. elicit keyword hits from search engines
2. cause the visitor to immediately call the business for more information or visit to make a purchase

Note that in this case, a Web visitor is already in a high involvement mode by virtue of the fact that s/he got to the page via an online information search.  We are not interested in advertisement that generates top of mind awareness - the client already does television, billboard, and newspaper advertising for these purposes.  We are interested in causing the page visitor to stop the search either to immediately call the business for more information or to immediately visit the business to make a purchase.

Students in the marketing principles course have already conducted a situation analysis for the business.  All students were of traditional age and overwhelmingly recommended that the business needed a Web presence in addition to a yellow pages presence.  These students also overwhelmingly recommended that the business needed to emphasize its distinctive competitive strengths:

• It sells a wide range of passenger car and light truck tires, including:
  • domestic brands, premium imports, low-cost imports
  • standard tires, high-performance tires, luxury tires, SUV tires, etc.
• The retail store is the front building of a wholesale supplier to retailers in the four states area; the retail store has access to an on-premises inventory of the entire four states warehouse.
• The shop is equipped to provide a full range of automotive maintenance services.
• The shop prides itself on high quality work.  For example, lug nuts are hand-torqued, and the torque is double-checked by a second technician.
• The waiting area is unusually neat, clean, comfortable, and welcoming.  It includes TV, coffee, donuts, and a clean carpeted play area for children.

Note that this business requires a multi-segment strategy.  In designing your message, carefully consider different segments with regard to level of involvement (high, low) and issue knowledge (high, low).  Also be sure to consider situational influences (e.g., task definition).  Be sure that you discuss these sorts of issues with regard to message content, message layout, and issues of voluntary, selective, and involuntary attention.

In addition to proposing a Web page, you are also to propose meta tag keywords that would be used for indexing this page with search engines.  For more favorable search engine placement, the most crucial keywords should additionally be within the text that is visible on the page.  You must also propose a persuasive meta tag description that would be displayed by the search engine.

Your page mock up is to fit on a single horizontal 11" wide by 8.5" high sheet of paper (i.e., sideways).  Everything that is on this page should be visible on a browser screen without any scrolling.

There are five parts to this project:

• Create the mock-up.  Your mock-up will include some combination of graphics and text; message as well as placement are important.  Do not spend time to create professional graphics - just provide enough direction so that it is clear what you mean so that the professor and the client would understand and so that a professional illustrator would understand what to create.  Content and strategy guided by theory is what is important; taking the time to create slick graphics will not earn a better grade.

• Create a list of meta tag keywords to be used by search engines to maximize hits that turn into purchases.  Note that the text of your message should include the most important of these keywords.

• Create a meta tag description that would be displayed by search engines to maximize hits that turn into purchases. 

• Prepare a two page (max) proposal, single spaced, to explain and justify your your proposed mock-up, keyword list, and description.  (The keyword list would be within this proposal.)  The proposal must be in layperson terms that our client would understand.  It must explain your assumptions with regard to potential segments and theory with regard how the message is expected to work.

• Make a formal presentation to the client on Wednesday, 17 OCT.  You are expected to provide the client (and the professor) with a copy of your mock-up and your report.

Your report should follow the general outline of:

• client objective, report objective
• situation analysis: facts, assumptions
• general message strategy, meta tag keyword list, meta tag description
• justification of message and meta tag strategy with regard to supporting theory

You may work in teams of as large as two, as small as one.  The written report and mock-up are due in class on Monday and will be marked on that afternoon (50 points).  Provide some means for the provision of feedback (pick up the comments or leave an email address) so that your mock-up, written proposal, and presentation are spotless in the presentation to the client on Wednesday (the other 50 points).

Neatness in all parts of the project is considered a minimal requirement in grading.  Neatness is defined here to include grammar, spelling, typos, correct use of paragraphs, and such.  Problems with these would not be acceptable in "real" promotional copy and are therefore not acceptable in this assignment; shoddy work will receive a failing grade.  Note that neatness as defined here does not require that you have access to any special sort of equipment or software applications; you are merely creating a mock-up, but do be careful with pencil smudges and such.

Please do not use any kind of report folders.  Just use plain white paper with a single staple in the top left corner.

You are encouraged to visit the professor outside of class to discuss your ideas.