Reflective Writing for Optimization Project

In this project I was given information from a local business looking to advertise their

product. The goal was to reach as many individuals as possible given a couple constraints. The

constraints given by the company are as follows: 1. No more than 60 adds in total. 2. A budget of

$68,000. 3. Three times as many Television ads than radio ads. Having the needed information, I

was able to graph each of the company’s constraints to find the best outcome that would satisfy

the business’s demands and give an accurate answer to how to wisely use their budget to reach as

many individuals as possible. Working in advertisement I knew the number of listeners and

viewer’s reached using multiple forms of media. In this instance, knowing the forms of media

were radio and television I could easily plug in the information into multiple linear equations.

With these combined linear equalities and my objective function, I was able to solve a linear

programming problem. Leaving the client more than satisfied being able to not only give them

the numbers they wanted but also being able to have a graphed visual representation of how and

why their budget was being used.

The linear programing model has a vast array of applications. An example would be a

company that makes 2 separate products. We can call them product A and product B. Product A

takes twice as long to produce then product B. However, B is much more popularly demanded

than A. Given the company’s production rate and the client’s needs, based on how many A and

B in total need to be produced for a given client. I would be able to graph the most time efficient

way for the company to go about construction of the products while simultaneously being able to

show the best way to maximize profits. I would just need a couple of pieces of information from

the company to figure out its constraints. I would need to know how much it cost to make

product A and B and also the total profit from each product. Given this information I can simply
come up with a linear programming problem that once graphed shows the most efficient uses of

the client’s time/budget (resources) allowing them to maximize profits.

Working in advertisement the linear programming model is beneficial to clients for a

number of reasons. It is clear and concise while being backed up with visual representation via

my graph that illustrates for the client why this solution is better than another. Each one of the

clients’ constraints is graphed as a linear equality that is very easily explained in laymen terms to

the client. This makes the client feel comfortable and confident in my decision because I am able

to walk them through each constraint to show them how I came to the best possible conclusion.

The linear programming model is also very adaptive, say the client has a change in

budget or number of ads they are willing to run. All one would need to do is swap out constraints

i.e., the budget is now $100,000 and now a total of 75 ads. No problem, simply update the

constraints into the applicable linear equation and you have your new result. The result will have

changed yes, but the main objective of giving the clients the most “bang for their buck” most

certainly has not.

Some problems that may arise in that the results do not come to and integer value. You

may come across something such as, 14.7 Television ads and 4.6 radio adds. This outcome can

be very likely given the number of constraints a company may have. Since we are dealing with

money, it is always best to round down for the sake of the client’s budget. However, this should

always be explained to the client as well as presented with additional possibilities on how to

allocate placement of funds to reach the best overall result desired by the client. This again is

how the visual representation of the graph comes to be very useful to the client because they can

see how overall, given each constraint, they are able to make the best decision for themselves as

a company.
 Math can be used to explain just about everything. All an individual needs to know is

given constraints and variables I’m sure there is a mathematical formula to help come to the best

conclusion. From things such as, which is the fastest route home given the time of day. To things

like, can this metal support this weight in these conditions. Math is a language, a concrete

indisputable language. That is why one must become fluent in mathematics, to be able to explain

how you reached the conclusion and what words (or formulas) allowed you to make that

decision. This particular project was fun because it was a real world sales problem. Something

all of us come across on the daily without even noticing most of the time. For example, I have

this much money, and this much gas. Where is the best place for me to stop and fill up my tank?

With locating the given constraints such as how much does this gas station charge? How far

away is this gas station, how much energy will it take my vehicle to get to said gas station. You

can plug all these into a linear programming problem and be able to come forward with the most

optimal outcome. This project for instance, I would have been able to easily and readily explain

how the company should spend their budget and why.