Gabriela Godinez

Optimizing an Advertising Campaign

Math 1010 Intermediate Algebra Group Project- You can work in groups of 2 or 3, but
you must do your own Reflective Writing (see #10 below). Your Reflective writing
MUST be typed. Your reflective writing will be graded for content but also for spelling
and grammar (so, please PROOF READ IT).

Background Information:
Linear Programming is a technique used for optimization of a real-world situation.
Examples of optimization include maximizing the number of items that can be
manufactured or minimizing the cost of production. The equation that represents the
quantity to be optimized is called the objective function, since the objective of the
process is to optimize the value. In this project the objective is to maximize the number
of people who will be reached by an advertising campaign. The objective is subject to
limitations or constraints that are represented by inequalities. Limitations on the number
of items that can be produced, the number of hours that workers are available, and the
amount of land a farmer has for crops are examples of constraints that can be
represented using inequalities. Broadcasting an infinite number of advertisements is not
a realistic goal. In this project one of the constraints will be based on an advertising
budget. Graphing the system of inequalities based on the constraints provides a visual
representation of the possible solutions to the problem. If the graph is a closed region, it
can be shown that the values that optimize the objective function will occur at one of the
"corners" of the region.

The Problem:
In this project your group will solve the following situation: A local business plans on
advertising their new product by purchasing advertisements on the radio and on TV.
The business plans to purchase at least 60 total ads and they want to have at least
twice as many TV ads as radio ads. Radio ads cost $20 each and TV ads cost $80
each. The advertising budget is $4320. It is estimated that each radio ad will be heard
by 2000 listeners and each TV ad will be seen by 1500 people. How many of each type
of ad should be purchased to maximize the number of people who will be reached by
the advertisements?

List the relevant given information:
60 total ads
Cost of each ad (radio $20 TV $80)
Budget in advertising ($4,320)
Listeners (radio 2000, TV 1500)

Restate the question in your own words-what is it you are trying to solve for?
How many ads should be purchased so that it reaches the maximum of people it is
being advertised too

Modeling the Problem:
Let X be the number of radio ads that are purchased and Y be the number of TV ads.

1.Write down a linear inequality for the total number of desired ads.
60 < y+x

2. Write down a linear inequality for the cost of the ads.
20x+80y< 4320

3. Recall that the business wants at least twice as many TV ads as radio ads. Write
down a linear inequality that expresses this fact.
y>2x

4. There are two more constraints that must be met. These relate to the fact that there
cannot be s negative numbers of advertisements. Write the two inequalities that model
these constraints:
x>0
y>0

5. Next, write down the function for the number of people that will be exposed to the
advertisements. This is the Objective Function for the problem.
P xy


You now have four linear inequalities and an objective function. These together
describe the situation. This combined set of inequalities and objective function make up
what is known mathematically as a linear programming problem. Write all of the
inequalities and the objective function together below. This is typically written as a list of
constraints, with the objective function last.
60 < x + y
4320 > 80y + 20x
Y > 2x
X > 0
Y > 0
P=2000x+1500y

6. To solve this problem, you will need to graph the intersection of all five
inequalities on one common XY plane. Do this on the grid below. Have the bottom left
be the origin, with the horizontal axis representing X and the vertical axis representing
Y. Label the axes with what they represent and label your lines as you graph them.






7. The shaded region in the above graph is called the feasible region. Any (x, y) point in the
region corresponds to a possible number of radio and TV ads that will meet all the requirements
of the problem. However, the values that will maximize the number of people exposed to the
ads will occur at one of the vertices or corners of the region. Your region should have three
corners. Find the coordinates of these corners by solving the appropriate system of linear
equations. Be sure to show your work and label the (x, y) coordinates of the corners in your
graph.

Point A: Point B Point C:

20x + 8y = 4320 y=2x x+y=60
20(60-y)+8y=4320 20x+80=4320 y=2x
1200-20y+80y=4320-1200 20x+80(2x)=4320 x+2y=60
60y =3120 180x=4320 3x=60
Y = 52 x=24 x=20
y=2(24) 20+y=60-20
X+52=60-52 y=48 y=40
X=8
(8,52) (24,48) (20,40)



8. To find which number of radio and TV ads will maximize the number of people who are
exposed to the business advertisements, evaluate the objective function P for each of the
vertices you found. Show your work.

P=1500y+2000x

A: P=2000(8)+1500(52)=94,000
B: P=2000(24)+1500(48)=120,000
C: P=2000(20)+1500(40)=100,000

9. Write a sentence describing how many of each type of advertisement should be purchased
and what is the maximum number of people who will be exposed to the ad.

If the company purchases 20 radio ads and 40 TV ads 100,000 people will be exposed to those
ads

10. Reflective Writing (This needs to be TYPED, SPELL CHECKED, and PROOF READ! It
should be written in paragraph form.)

Before doing this project, what was your opinion of how math could be applied in a business
situation? Be specific. If you were the manager of the business do you think linear programming
would be a useful skill? Why or why not? If you, as the manager, had an employee that claimed
to have the answer to the problem, to what extent would you want them to be able to justify their
answer? Can you think of any other applications, in business or elsewhere, for linear
programming? Be specific.

Did this project change the way you think about how math can be applied to the real world?
Write one paragraph stating what ideas changed and why. If this project did not change the way
you think, write how this project gave further evidence to support your existing opinion about
applying math. Be specific.
I knew math was applied in a business situation with advertising. Where I was, Park City
Performing Arts Foundation, we advertise upcoming shows and we pay companies to advertise
upcoming shows. We always have a budget on where we want to spend the most advertising. I
feel that if I were in charge of deciding where the advisements would go this same math
formulas provided in this project would help me with those decisions. If I was in charge of a
business, yes, I would need my employee to show where they got all the numbers from and to
justify everything they did. I would also think that in my job distributing money from donors (my
work in a non-profit) would become useful in a linear equation to either show them where we
use the money they donate.
This project did change the way I view math in the real world, especially with the ads we
promote at my job. I know how the money we receive is distributed amongst websites, TV,
radio, newspaper, etc. so this project gave me an idea of how some of our promotions work.