ENGL 420: Business Writing

This week there really wasn't any readings assigned besides the papers and handouts that groups gave out during their presentations. Both days we just watched group presentations about the different products that they came up with. I thought that all of the groups did a pretty good job of presenting to the class and acting like the class was the client. I also thought the products were all really professional and appropriate too. It seemed like all the groups put a lot of time and effort into their projects and they all turned out great.

This weeks reading was all about oral presentations, which makes sense because we spent all of this week presenting our final products for the service learning project. This PowerPoint presentation, even though it was just review, proved to be very helpful as I prepared for my speech this week. One thing that I had not thought about is how far I will need to stand from our client as I present the brochure to him. Standing too close could make him feel very uncomfortable, while standing too far away from him may seem impersonal or make him lose attention.

This week we didn’t have any readings because we had our client based service learning project presentations. It was an easy week and a nice way to wrap up the semester. Presenting came pretty easy for my group; we knew our topic very well and were comfortable discussing what we had done for the class. We went first, so after that we were just able to sit back and relax. It was interesting to see the other groups present, as I noticed that all but one group made a brochure, and the group that didn’t do a brochure did a mailer. My group did both a brochure and a mailer.

The end of the year has finally come. It’s hard to believe that we have made it to week 15, and the semester’s end. I really enjoyed this class because it actually taught me something. Usually in most classes, you don’t take any of the information with you after the semester, but this class definitely helped prepare me for the real world. I never knew how to create a resume or white paper before this class, and it feels good to now be pretty good at it.

This is the last week of the semester. Our final projects were due and we gave our last presentations. It was interesting listening to what the other groups created for their clients. There were many great creations that all seem beneficial for the organizations the class worked with. You could tell everyone put a lot of work and effort into making something for their client. I was happy with how our own brochures turned out and am excited to show our client what we created. No readings were assigned this week.

We reviewed the flyers and brochures for the final presentations this week. It was very helpful when going over these guidlines because our group decided on making a flyer and a brochure for Purdue Innovations, which was the easiest way of advertising. In a way it helped us decide on what template we were going to use because we did not want to get too carried away with a lot of information on one flyer. We wanted it to flow and have information, we just did not want it to be too overwhelming.

Well, this week has come to a hault. The only thing we have read about is presentations and how each group is going to present. It was interesting to see the different ideas of advertising. I really enjoyed the business letters today and how they were going to send out a template for the group to continue to use in the future. It makes the sponsorship that much more important with a personalized thank you letter. I also really enjoyed the brochures that everyone did, because they all had a lot of good information and designs to them.

This week we did not read anything new but instead we watched presentations of all of the groups. I really thought the group that did the tax flier for LUM did a wonderful job. Their presentation went really well and they presented their document in a very professional way. Overall, I think all of the groups did a decent job and the documents they produced were also very well done. Some were simple and some were complex but overall everyone did a good job.

I suppose that the reading this week consists of the documents that the groups produced and the forms that we filled out for the project. I felt that the documents that the groups made were very professional looking. The health and safety manual that one group made was an ambitious project and they obviously spent much time on it. Some of the questions in the Collaboration Evaluation and Project Assessment documents really made me think about this final project and what we were supposed to learn from it. For example, the question about what we learned from the client.

Well, really not much reading this week except for that of the stuff the different groups were passing out to each other. I guess all I really have to say is thanks to a wonderful final semester. Hope everyone enjoys the rest of their lives. And last but not least

Peace! I'm OUT!
ZD