How Watching 'Mad Men' Helped Me Ace My Marketing Foundations Class

A Personal Narrative

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 Upon my roommate's suggestion, two years ago I gave Mad Men a shot by watching the pilot on Netflix . Even though I liked it, I didn't think I was in the right frame of mind to digest another serious drama, already having Breaking Bad and Dexter among many others to deal with. However, the following summer, after the conclusion of yet another magnificent season of the Game of Thrones , I found myself once again flicking through the endless suggestions on Netflix . Squeezing in several British sitcoms here and there -- Extras, Plebs, and the IT Crowd in particular -- I finally came across a billboard on the NYC Subway which contained an enticing silhouette of what was to be Don Draper, the protagonist or antagonist of Mad Men -- to be argued. Thus began my endless sessions of watching the plethora of egotistical talks from men in the '60s.

Don Draper's character stuck on me, as it did on millions of other viewers. Such was his grace and eloquence while conversing that it made me want to be him. I bet all young, unskilled men of my demographic quietly wish they grow into a life like Draper's. However, Pete Campbell -- a young, ambitious, and talented novice at the advertisement agency -- was the character that I associate myself with the most.

As I sat there among the many uncomfortable faces on what was the first day of Market Foundations 3000, I doubted whether my Mad Men moments would have any relevance at all, on the accelerated summer course. This was only until the professor, a stout, charismatic though unattractive version of Draper himself, started to glide over the introductory slides. Then we hit a poster of what seemed to look like Draper, Campbell, Peggy, Joan, and Sterling, all staring deep into my soul.

The Professor asked, "Who's seen this show?" I immediately raised my hands, more out of impulse than anything. I was surprised to find that mine were the only ones up waving. I had an "Oh Shucks" moment, finally realizing my peers were all busy, business school New Yorkers who had no time for television. "It's Mad Men, sir," I replied. He smiled, although I bet he was relieved that at least one person watched the show he loved so much that he included it in an academic presentation.

"Do you know why the show's called Mad Men in particular?" he asked, his eyes twirling with cockiness. I hesitated and then spilled out, "Mad Men was a term used to describe the advertising agents of Madison Avenue in the '60s. It's a term they coined themselves," I added. "Very good," exclaimed the professor and there it was; I was, at least in his sub-conscience, his favorite student.

As the course progressed, I found myself to be very adept at quickly understanding new terms introduced in the Marketing Foundations class. Not only did Mad Men help me understand the basic terminology of what traditional marketing terms like "Positioning," "Target," "SWOT," "Slogan," and "Segmentation" meant, but it also helped me grasp the understanding of the various stages of the marketing process. Watching Draper work his magic, ever so closely, every episode, I realized that I organically developed an understanding of certain marketing/business etiquette. Through the span of the semester, I was also able to appreciate the marketing campaign and strategies of the mammoths of companies that Coca Cola, Nike, and Apple to name a few were, and I also impressed my fellow group members with my ability to quickly come up with marketing slogans, jingles, and positioning statements for our brand in the group presentations. Mad Men, unintentionally, helped me and I'm sure it did many others.

I did eventually get an A+ in that class. Now let us move on the story of how watching Top Gear helped me ace my Automotive Engineering Class.
 

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