In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?
From previously analysing NME’ front cover and considering the typical and more important conventions of a magazine cover I found the masthead must be bold and original as it is the main selling point of the magazine. For example the masthead is an indent for the magazine and represents the magazine in many different types of advertising (virally, posters, on other magazines etc.) I wanted to use a bold but simple format for my masthead so it didn't confuse the reader and would be easily recognisable by the audience. Alternatively I could have used a separate logo which would be placed next to the masthead however I chose not to use one as I didn’t want to make the layout of my magazine cover too busy. NME have used 2 basic outlines with a red background on the masthead to make it stand out, following this effect I have used a white outline also. The slight difference with LEAD and NME’S masthead is that I have placed mine in front of the overall article image unlike NME who have placed theirs behind. I feel the masthead is the most important convention on the front cover therefore felt it should stand out as much as possible. NME have used the sell line “new music express” with the price situated next to it, I have also included a sell line however the difference being I have also included the date in this position on the page. Not adding a barcode on the front cover of the magazine is not necessarily un-conventional however is expected to be at the bottom of the page by the audience. Also the positioning of the barcode visibly of the front is useful as the unique barcode shows what stage the products are on at the production line and useful when actually selling the product itself in shops.
I do not think NME’s magazine demonstrates any clear cover lines as they are not conventionally positioned in the left third as the customer would expect. However the producers have used the form of a puff/flash to advertise the different articles throughout their magazine, although this is not conventionally correct it does make the different “cover lines” or articles stand out more to the audience from their contrasting colours following the house style. My magazine clearly follows the more conventional aspect of using cover lines; although my colour scheme is different I think the ideology of using NME’s layout does make the splash more interesting and fun to the audience however it could appear too busy and confusing. I could have further improved my magazine by making my cover lines stand out more so they look more exciting to the audience. Alike NME’s technique both of the magazines have a main cover line on the splash which relates to the large image situated in the middle of the page. I chose not to include a skyline on my magazine cover as I wanted to dedicate the top left of the page for the bold masthead and did not want any emphasis to be taken off this convention. Finally I included a flash in the form of a teasing content to entice the audience, this would increase the chances of them buying and reading the magazine. Clearly NME has this feature in common with my magazine through the many articles situated on the page. I took inspiration from previous magazines in the early stages of my research to include a plus section at the bottom of the page which would feature a list of artists related with the Indie/rock genre of my magazine. As extra research I created a questionnaire for customers in my market and I had a lot of positive feedback as “it helps the audience define the music taste or genre of the magazine to see if it’s appropriate for them”. The layout of this section differs in NME to LEAD as it takes the whole length of the bottom page unlike mine which is a small section following the diagonal shape of the image itself. I do think my style is more appropriate however to improve I could have included another
At first glimpse at the overall look of my magazine compared with NME’s it is clear I maybe should have included more information or images to make the page more crammed and interesting however the articles I have included are appropriate for my magazine and shows a clear music magazine style. It is conventional for the contents page to include a news, features and reviews section to promote the different articles available within the magazine. Instead I have created 4 different section headings which are more unique and suitable for the articles in my magazine. Regarding the whole features section of both LEAD and NME, LEAD has uses a much smaller text and a more appropriate font which connotes a professional look, (a very important aspect for a popular music magazine). I did not include an editor’s letter on my contents page as I felt it would be better suited on another single page within the magazine, also my previous research when analysing 3 music magazines I found it was not common for a editors letter to be situated on the contents page. I have included 2 images of different artists on my contents page to give the audience a visual variety of the different artists related to the magazine, influencing them to buy the magazine against competitors in shops. I do think my images are both stronger than NME’s chosen image which could confuse the audience as they could relate the image to film production and the cinema rather than music and the Indie/rock genre the magazine is trying to achieve. Also the image itself is boring and doesn’t make the reader want to find out information about the article related, however the layout of the image on NME’ contents page is effective as it is positioned in the centre giving it much importance and the readers full attention. The article information below does not support the image at first glimpse so not fully attracting the reader’s attention which also if improved would create a successful contents page. NME produces could have improved the image by giving it a special effect, for example an eye catching border (following the their colour scheme) to make the image itself stand out on the page.
Alike the ideology of my masthead I believe the large headline on a double page spread is equally very important as this is what catches the audience’ eye when reading the magazine. NME have very successfully made their double page spread very noticeable and bold which would attract the customer. This is connoted from the block outline of the quote headline which contrasts against the background making it stand out. Similarly LEAD magazine has a bold title “ready to ROCK” however the title I chose directly addresses the music aspect of the article unlike the chosen quote from NME (which although does entice the reader) is more personal and doesn’t attract the readers music interest. In terms of mise-en-scene I think my double page spread is much more suitable for the music magazine as it is important all the images have reference to the actual music element which is clear on page. I have purposely used drumming equipment in my double page spread image to promote the artist featured in the article. The denotation of my main image on my front cover is another example of a picture in which I carefully constructed the setting to make the genre clear. Also the splash must have a clear music reference as this is what the audience will ultimately buy the magazine for therefore it must show its ideology to grab the reader’s interest. When analysing the text in the article itself NME have successfully used a conventional drop cap alike LEAD however there is so use of a pool quote. This may be because the double page spread has already included a quote as the main headline however I still think a pool quote is useful as it separates the text and make the articles look shorter, less daunting and time consuming to read which I found out from my questionnaires can be an issue with some customers and result in them not buying the magazine. The Lead of the article has also been given a red format, again to break up the large text chunks making it easier for the audience to read. I included the convention of a strapline Although the Large headline and main image is more eye catching on NME’ magazine the customer may not read the related article below as the format is too small and there is too much text unlike my magazine. I have not included a by-line and photo credit on my double page spread as I wanted to completely promote the magazine as an institution which creates all aspects of the magazine. To ensure the audience realises the magazine has been created purely by LEAD I have used an indent (a small image of the masthead) at the top left and right of the double page spread.
How does your media product represent particular social groups?
The Indie/rock genre of my magazine immediately influences the representation of the audience of the magazine, stereotypically this audience group are rebellious, loud and young. This stereotype is further promoted through the mediation of the colour scheme and certain conventions throughout my magazine which making the splash connotate the audience as unruly people who have a bad attitude. For example the one of the points on the features section of the contents page “hate chavy twats trying to steal our scene” – this represents the young audience as quite aggressive and foul mouthed. I did not intend on creating this negative public opinion of the target audience however loud and expressive text is more appealing to the customer as it draws their attention. As stated for part of my research I wanted to target an audience similar to those of my competitors involving the top 3 classes of the Socio Economic group. The stereotypical audience of the magazine are expected to be rebellious and generally the lower class of society however from previous research into NME I found they actually aim to target the top 3 Socio Economic groups which generally are higher class citizens. As this is the representation we get, I do not think NME are accurate in their target audience. I think the representation of my audience (same as NME’s) has been targeted much more accurately as the more calm colour scheme and images I used alike previously stated connotate a professional appearance therefore my magazine represents a more mature and higher class audience. During the planning of my magazine I included the C1 and C2 SEG groups (as well as my higher class audience) as some customers in this group may find the magazine appropriate for themselves. Also stereotypically people in a lower class are likely to always aim to achieve that class higher and reading LEAD which represents higher class civilians may make them feel of more importance which could result in them buying the magazine monthly. In this circumstance I think In terms of Socio Economic groups I have targeted my audience much more successfully than my main competitor NME as my magazine effectively targets a whole mass audience, instead of just a higher class.
I do not think my magazine targets a specific generic audience as there are different conventions used which appeal both male and female customers, however my first impression when looking at the splash is that a more masculine image is portrayed. I am disappointed with this representation as part of the planning I stated I wanted to create a dominant female audience as there is a gap in the market. I think this male audience assumption is made due to the stereotypical link between men and band with drums and guitars ect.
What kind of media institution might distribute your product and why?
Alike my competitors I want my magazine to be a national success therefore an independent and local publishing company would not be suitable as there would not be enough financially backed advertising to promote the product. Bauer Media is an example of a thriving publishing company which would benefit the LEAD magazine brand through its multiple media channels, however my only concern is a major competitor Kerrang also shares the same publishing company. If my magazine company was to have its own financial resources I could suggest the media company creating “LEAD publishing company” which would make the magazine and business completely independent from its competitors.
Who would be the audience for my media product? And how have I managed to attract/address my audience?
As part of my previous research and planning (pre constructing my music magazine) I had to consider demographics and psychographics which would allow me to target a specific audience suitable for my music magazine. During this planning stage I independently researched the target audience of existing media texts of the same form and genre (NME and Q magazine). From the data I found (presented on the demographics and psychographics research on my blog) I found the focus audience of my magazine was between the ages of 18-26. I did not think the age group 15-21 would be appropriate for LEAD individually as the few references of graphic language makes the magazine unsuitable for readers under the age of 18. I do think my magazine product addresses this target group as I have included certain conventions which directly address the +18’. For example I have included few tease devices like the subscription offer and “win free concert tickets” in which young adults may need parental guidance. I did not want to use an age restriction on the magazine as the whole ideology of the music in my magazine connotes freedom to be different and listen to alternative indie/rock however including these conventions makes the magazine more prone to be bought by the age group targeted. Also I used a more subtle colour scheme than, for example than NME’s front cover to connote a more professional final magazine appearance which would attract the pure music lovers interested in reading the articles within the magazine, not only customers Intreged by the appearance of the magazine.
As part of my previous research and planning (pre constructing my music magazine) I had to consider demographics and psychographics which would allow me to target a specific audience suitable for my music magazine. During this planning stage I independently researched the target audience of existing media texts of the same form and genre (NME and Q magazine). From the data I found (presented on the demographics and psychographics research on my blog) I found the focus audience of my magazine was between the ages of 18-26. I did not think the age group 15-21 would be appropriate for LEAD individually as the few references of graphic language makes the magazine unsuitable for readers under the age of 18. I do think my magazine product addresses this target group as I have included certain conventions which directly address the +18’. For example I have included few tease devices like the subscription offer and “win free concert tickets” in which young adults may need parental guidance. I did not want to use an age restriction on the magazine as the whole ideology of the music in my magazine connotes freedom to be different and listen to alternative indie/rock however including these conventions makes the magazine more prone to be bought by the age group targeted. Also I used a more subtle colour scheme than, for example than NME’s front cover to connote a more professional final magazine appearance which would attract the pure music lovers interested in reading the articles within the magazine, not only customers Intreged by the appearance of the magazine.
When previously researching the most suitable generic target audience I independently researched NME and Q magazine as both of these magazines are similar media texts therefore will have a similar target audience. I found both magazines have a dominating male audience, for example 74% of the audience are male (using NME’s statistics). I pursued these findings and decided on mainly targeting a female audience as clearly it is a niche market and I will have an advantage over my competitors. This female market proved more difficult than anticipated to aim for as the majority of magazines I researched have a dominant male market therefore I have had to create conventions and article purely from my questionnaire output. I wanted to use a darker and more subtle colour scheme which would allow me to easily contrast certain text I wanted to emphasise however stereotypically we associate these darker colour like grey and black with the male gender which clearly would impact my ideology to attract a female audience. In the contents page I included certain articles which may attract the female audience, for example “the long blondes” article has a gossip tone which you would expect to find in a celebrity magazine. I specifically included this article as it does have reference to the music but also recent celebrity news, stereotypically women in general are more sociable and enjoy reading about recent news in the music world therefore I thought this article may be appropriate. As just stated this dominant female target audience has proved difficult to connote therefore I have changed the ideology and target audience making it suitable for both male and female.
By considering demographics in terms of segment groups I appropriately have a chosen target audience in the groups C1 and C2. My chosen age group has helped influence this decision as it includes ages 18-26 therefore the majority of my audience are students at university and the employed with low wages so my customers are likely to lack funds making them middle class fitting in with the C groups in terms of Demographics. Using this information I have priced my magazine lower than its competitors at £1.50 to influence the audience to buy LEAD magazine. I have excluded the E group from my SEG choices due to the lack of finance that they receive so it is likely they will not be able to afford my magazine anyway. As I have this specific target audience who are likely to have limited funds I included some plugs to specifically attract this particular market. I included an advertisement which was based on winning free concert tickets as this may particularly make the audience buy the magazine for the chance of gaining free outings which they may not be able to afford in reality. I think my splash does directly attract and address my target audience as the overall appearance makes the audience feel part of the scene. This is clearly promoted through the indie/rock genre of the magazine and the main images (the model holding the guitar) which makes the audience feel they must buy the magazine and become involved in this music style to be considered “cool” or “fashionable” ect.
Finally I have two sources of audience feedback which were recorded using a video camera to make the response from the different individuals more authentic and a reliable response to what they actually thought about the product.
What have you learnt about tecnologies from the process of constructing this product? (On Power Point document)
Looking back at your Preliminary task, what have you felt you have learnt in the progression from it to the full product?
The major improvement made from my previous college magazine to my current music magazine is the overall professional and final appearance of the magazine which would be now suitable to be sold in a shop against competitors of the same content. This is mainly due to my experience using Photoshop which has allowed me to create many different effects which attract the audience and make the magazine have an overall enhanced appearance. Although I had researched the conventions of a music magazine prior to creating my college magazine I still found it difficult understanding the different terms and understanding which aspects of the splash suited the magazine better improving the overall appearance. Comparing both of the splash’ I still have the opinion my bold college magazine connotes the wild and crazy student youth of my target audience from the denotation of the contrasting colours used and the conventional cover lines which influence this ideology. However my music magazine front page clearly has a much clearer appearance and connotes specific textual detail of music that the publisher wants the audience to read and engage in, to influence them to buy the magazine. There is a large contrast between the two images in that the music magazine is very conventional which is very good as it follows the typical expectation of music magazines featuring this genre. Although the cover lines featured on my college magazine are bold the text is conventionally too large and there are not enough featured articles to attract the reader’s eye unlike my music magazine. The mise-en-scene of my college magazine is appropriate as the setting is the actual college in reality that my magazine is trying to promote however the image did not have to be altered and modified on Photoshop unlike my music magazine which was time consuming in using the different tools to make the image look presentable for my magazine. The music magazine also demonstrates a good use of mise-en-scene as the images include props and the costume of my model clearly shows the Indie/Rock genre of the magazine. The process from creating my college to music magazine has also improved my understanding of the music industry and the different aspects when creating the magazine you need to consider (target audience, drafts, audience feedback ect).
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