Research of images

The first image that caught my eye and appealed to me was this shot of The Strokes. I think this image is good as it shows the band as powerful and mighty as they are looking down at the camera, i really like the shot and may use it in my magazine. This image really shows the typical clothing worn by bands in the 'indie' genre of music and also the colours they wear, black and red which are the typical colours of clothing. They give off the bad boy image as they all have scruffy trainers on and some have leather jackets on. I also like the fact that the background is plain as it helps you to focus just on the band and you can also see there shadows going towards the camera which i feel is effective.

Another image that caught my attention that i think reflects the culture of 'indie/alternative' which is what my music magazine is about, is this picture of The Libertines. I think this image reflects the rock and roll culture as it shows The Libertines playing live, with Carl Barat and Pete Doherty sharing a microphone wearing leather jackets and playing guitars. This image i feel really shows off the 'bad lad rock' image to the public and i think would attract my target audience. I really like the angle of this shot as it is very close up and its almost as if you are at the gig, watching them.

Target Audience

A 'target audience' is the specific group of people you want to target and direct your product towards. My target audience for my music magazine will be for 14-19 year olds and will not be specific to a gender. My magazine will be targeting teenagers as they are usually the type of people who buy music magazine and want to know about the latest music. My magazine will belong in the middle class, right through to subsidence class. I can determine my target audience by using graphic profiling. I will make my magazine out of eco-friendly paper to help the environement as global warming is occuring, this will also boost sales from other target audiences who care for the environment. My music magazine will be available to anyone who wants to buy it and wont be regulated to a specific market. Maslow created a theory called maslows heirachy of needs. In this there was five stages which are: basic needs, safety needs, soical needs, esteem needs and self-actualization. Out of these, i think my magazine will cover the esteem needs as it will show the band in my feature article are down to earth and help the audience to relate to them. I also think my music magazine will cover the self actualization as it will feature creativity and moratlity. My magazine will appeal to its target audience by the colours i use and the style of my fonts etc. Also i will feature bands that my target audience will reconize and want to read about such as Twisted Wheel, The Smiths, The Courteeners, The Enemy and The Coral

Representation

In my music magazine, there will be 5 protagonists as they are the band i have used for the cover/contents and feature article, they are promoting there new cd. My magazine will feature my feature band in different locations and also playing live in different locations. My protagonists will be stereotypcally 'indie' as that is the genre of my magzine, this will be represented from their clothes, how they speak and also the shots of them. The characteristics of my protagonists are shown through the shots in my magazine and this is a feature in my magazine that may extend my audience. Walter Lipmans four functions of stereotypes are: they are an ordering process, sterotypes are short cuts for journalists, they are a map of the world so that people can associate different places with certain stereotypes and also that stereotypes are an expresion of our values and beliefs.

Questionairre

I produced a questionnaire as part of my research into music magazines. I wanted to find out what are the most popular types of magaazine and also what attracts customers to look at them and buy them. Below is my questionnaire which i asked 10 people to fill in, i asked them to tick the appropriate answer.


1. Are you male of female?
male (x) femle (x)

2. How old are you?
under 15 (x) 16-18 (x) 18-20 (x) over 20 (x)

3. Do you busy Music Magazines?
Yes (x) No (x)

4.Do you buy a magazine weekly or monthly?
Weekly (x) Monthly (x)

5.What type of magazine do you usually buy?
NME (x) Kerrang (x) Vibe (x) Pop (x) Other .........

6. What attracts you to a Music magazine?
Images (x) Relavant headings (x) Colours (x) Other .......

7. How much would you be prepared to spend on a Music Magazine?

less than £2 (x) £2-£3 (x) £3-£4 (x) £4+ (x)

8. What type of Music Magazine do you prefer to buy?
Indie (x) Pop (x) Rnb(x) Dubstep (x) Rock(x) Other............

9. Which bit do you like best in a Music Magazine?
Reviews (x) Band Radar (x) Interviews (x) Band of the Week (x) Other ...............

10. Why do you buy a Music Magazine?
Entertains you (x) Interests you (x) Other.............

Narrative

My music magazine will follow the typical narrative structure as this is very popular to an audience and they are familiar with it so therefore will recognize it when they see it. The typical narrative is good to follow because there are set rules for you to follow that everyone will recognize. However, when i actually start my music magazine, i may break the typical narrative structure in certain parts if i think it suits my music magazine better.

Target Audience

GRASS

Gender: When deciding about the gender you are aiming for in your magazine, you have to think about colours/pictures/font etc. I have decided that my music magazine will not be targeted on a specific gender. The genre of 'indie/alternative' isn't focused on a particular gender, it is for both men and women. To show that my music magazine is representative on both genders i will use colours that are quite netural and suitable, i will also use the types of fonts that appeal to both. My magazine will also feature artists/bands of both genders so my magazine doesnt sway towards a particular gender.

Race: Race is a key aspect when thinking about target audiences. The artists/bands you feature in your magazine have to reflect the race you are trying to reach. The race i will mainly be trying to reach is generally white british as 'indie' is the english music scene so will appeal to british students

Age: The age is also a very important factor when discusing target audience. The age is probably the key feature you have to get right in a magazine so it catches the eye of a particular age range. Different things appeal to different age groups so you have to make sure you have picures/fonts/use of language suitable for your chosen age range. The age i have chosen to go for is between 16-20 as after researching into this genre of music, realised that this is the majority age range. In order to make sure i target this range, i need to thing of key pictures and fonts that will stand out to my potential customers and make them want to read on. Artists/bands are a key element in attracting an age range as different artists/bands will appeal to different age ranges. In order to find out further what type of band are popular in this age range, i will be creating questionnaires.

Socio-economic status: Socio-economic status is split up into 5 groups: A B C D E the top is 'A' is upper class and it goes all the way through to 'E' which is subsidence (students) After researching into my target audience, i feel that my target audience will be from the group C1-E because i am targeting the age group from 16-20 which are usually in C1-E because they are only young so haven't reached the higher professions yet. 'E' is a very important group to include because these include students which will be my main target audience.

Feedback - 6/12/09

Some good analysis Emma but you need alot more on here to get a decent coursework - you should now be working on this (research) as homework and all the planning you are doing in class should be put on here also.

Dont forget to put your drawn contents page for your prelim task on here also ( you could lose 15 marks!)

Research : Essential - research your target audience - use your demographic and psychographic profiling - do some questionannires and put your results on your blog. Use Maslows theory and explain how you magazine will appeal to yoru audience.

- Which publisher will publish yoru magazine? (Institution) Look at ones that publish similar magazines. Look at some audience/circulation figures for music magazines.

- research your music genre - put some music videos on here etc...

Planning ( see the 'Before you Blog' handout - last 2 pages)

Include..

-mock ups of pages

-location shots

-props/costume list

- rough draft of feature article

- photographs and final chosen ones etc...

Miss McNulty

Planning Moodboard

In my mood board, i have mainly focused on individuals that are iconic in the 'indie' genre of music. I have used pictures where i like the angles of the shot and the colours that have been used in them. I have used both men and women as my magazine will reflect both genres so i will be incorporating both genders into it. I have used both coloured and black and white images as i am not sure what type of photo i will be using on my front cover and inside my magazine. Aswell as images, i have also incorporated fonts that stood out to me and are eye catching. They are all different fonts and colours but all the writing i have chosen would be suitable for my target audience and i could see myself using in my magazine. On my mood board, i have also used images that i think reflect music such as the 'St Jude- Courteeners album' which i think works very well as the colours used in it are not over-powering and too much. At the bottom of my mood board i have used pictures that are of the same people but are linked together with all the different shots and angles, i think this works really well and i would like incorporate this within my own music magazine.