Research into the magazine industry

How has technology affected people reading magazines and newspapers?

Sales of weekly music magazine NME have dropped for the second six months in a row to under 30,000, figures have revealed. A report conducted by the Audit Bureau of Circulations (ABC) showed the magazine's circulation fell 14.3% compared with the same time last year. It was the biggest faller among other music and film magazines. Mojo remains the largest monthly music magazine, despite shedding 4.8% in sales compared with last year. Rock magazine Kerrang! saw a 0.2% boost in the last six months, but compared with the same time last year only suffered a decline of 2.2%.

Sales of Q fell by 10.1% on the previous year, followed by Total Film which lost 5.6% in the same period. Sales for NME, which was founded in 1952, have now fallen to below 30,000 despite the magazine relaunching its format, front cover and logo last year. 

The information above is from a bbc news update about the decline in music magazine sales. As new technology is introduced, customers are now able to access magazines on their phone, laptops as apps have now been created so that people can access magazines more easily and much cheaper. More and more people are introduced to the newer technology because of this magazines like nme, mixmag have faced a decline because they are printed and do not supply the app or software on line that enables customers to view the magazine this way. In my genre research however i found that many house/dance music magazines were online and it was hard to find any magazine of my genre that were printed. This is due to the fact that this genre of music is quite modern and popular to younger people, however younger people are less likely to purchase printed magazines now because they are typically out on the nights or busy due to them having more freedom. I have gained a better understanding of music magazine industries and the effect that technology has on this. 

Blog feedback.

The above is an image of my blog feedback for november 2014 and the comment I have given towards this. 

Hand drawn mock up of my front cover.

I have not included colour in my mock up of my front cover, i have not drawn my actual masthead for my magazine either however the words nocturnal will be in the style i decide to use. And i have not yet written out any content but where each section will be and i have considered what i could write in each space.  

Mgazine front cover layouts.

I have had a go at designed different layouts for the front cover of my magazine, i have used my research and knowledge of the conventions of a music magazine to try and link my layouts to other existing magazines. 

This is the link to my questionnaire.

https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/SGTH2KX

Brand Identity

1. Create compelling magazine covers.

How are you going to make your front cover visually appealing to the reader from six feet away?

In order to make my front cover visually appealing i will pay close attention to certain aspects of my front cover such as colour, font, and images. I will use a colour theme on the front cover of  my magazine so that it appears professional and appealing to customers. I will also ensure that i use bright and bold colours to ensure that my magazine stands out next to other magazines. I will also use colours that reach my target audience of both genders. I will use a specific font all over the front cover in order to stick to a theme throughout, i have learnt that certain fonts appeal to specific audiences so i will choose a font for the front cover that will appeal to my target market as well as standing out. I Will also have to use the correct font sizes in specific areas, the masthead text will need to be larger than the other sections so that it stands out, also any content that i want to emphasised will need to be indicated with larger text. The images i use on my front cover will need to be appropriate for the content of the magazine, i will need to use images that reach my audience and the specific age group i am targeting my magazine towards. 

What design ideas do you already have?

I have three main design ideas for my masthead that i have drawn out. The one that i produce will be from these three. I would like the design of my magazine to be very trendy and fashionable, i want it to be a magazine that people of its target market desire to buy. So therefore i would like it to be quite modern and futuristic as i think this is what appeals to the target market of the genre of my magazine. My design ideas are based around both genders as this reaches a more wide variety of people. 

Which masthead have you decided to use – what does the layout and language suggest about the brand identity you are trying to create?

I have decided to use the masthead nocturnal. I have decided to use this masthead because i feel that its layout and the name of it clearly represents the genre of my magazine. I have used equalizers behind the name 'nocturnal' as equalizers are used in music readers will clearly recognise that my magazine is related to music when they see this. Equalizers are used in order to alter frequency of music, it can also be used to enhance certain sounds which is the bass in this context. House music features a lot of bass, it is usually very fast and hyper which is almost represented by the equalizers which are constantly moving up and down according to what is going on in the song. I have then called my magazine nocturnal. 

Nocturnality refers to the animal behaviour of sleeping in the day and being active through the night. i think this is perfect way to explain how people act towards house music, House music is often played in clubs, people go clubbing at night which means that people are up all night. My masthead suggests that house music encourages you to almost e nocturnal. i have used this name to target the younger generation who listen to this genre of music mostly (16-25). Younger people are typically able to stay up all night, have little sleep and then again go to sleep late. I think my masthead clearly represents its genre and it will be easily recognised by its audience. 

2.Focus your content to your target audience.
Content needs to be appropriate to help create brand identity. What features will your magazine include and why?

The features that my magazine will include is firstly a main image on the front cover of an upcoming and popular artist, the anchorage text will be closely linked to this artist. I dont want my magazine front cover to include a lot of text as i think it will appear more cool and edgy. it will also let my front cover focus more on the main image which i would prefer as i think this links well with the conventions of this genre. I would like my front cover to follow a theme of colours and font as i think this will ensure that it appears very professional, the theme of my front cover should follow conventions of a house music magazine. I would like to include in my magazine aspects like new upcoming artists or charts, further information about charts and popular music. i would also like to include a plug in my magazine so if i do i will link it to the younger generation as this is who my magazine will be aimed towards. 

Music magazine have a niche audience. Can you explain your niche and how you will ensure content appeal to audience?

 My niche market will be people of both genders aged 17-24. It will appeal to male and females because i believe this will widen my audience. The content of my magazine will appeal to people of this age and gender because these are the people who enjoy to go out and have more of disposable income for items like a magazine. 

3. Choose a Graphic Design That Reflects Your Magazine's Purpose.
Use font websites and Fireworks to create your masthead using different graphics/ designs.

4. Respond to Your Changing Audience.

‘Review how your magazine fits into today's world. You can have well-written articles with pretty photos, but if your target audience has shifted to a new direction, you have to move with them.’

Outline, in detail, who your target audience are. Don’t just consider the basics – age/ gender. Consider likes/ dislikes/ lifestyle/ habits/ hobbies...

My target audience are those involved in clubbing. They are the ones who make the happening music happen within their peer group They are the first to recommend a new song and the first ones to increase a new fashion trend.  These people are the best informed about top DJs and upcoming tunes. They’re the biggest down loaders of music in the UK. The median age of a Mixmag reader is 24 –  people of this age have a high propensity to spend their money on: Nights out, clothes, tunes, the latest mobile and MP3 player due to their disposable income.

5. Brand Beyond the Pages
Can you consider how you might develop your brand outside of the actual magazine itself? There are some ideas in the article.

In order to develop the brand of my magazine outside of it i could create a branded event. I could invite all people in my target audience and offer a general invite to people outside of my target audience because it wont always be my target audience only that will read or purchase my magazine. It would be a great way to advertise the brand of my magazine. 

Genre research

https://prezi.com/lg3d_lrwxp8n/genre-research/

Sketched music masthead design ideas.

These are 3 sketches for a masthead of my music magazine. I have incorporated the aspects i have researched about this genre of music in order to create mastheads that easily represent the genre i am researching at the moment. 

Self Asses Textual Analysis

Music magazine front cover analysis.

Evaluation of my magazine front cover

Question 1: in what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products? (what have you included that we would expect to see on a magazine front cover)
My magazine follows conventions of a real magazine it includes features such as a masthead, a main image, coverlines. These are the type of finds you would find on every normal magazine. My main image reinforces the conventions of a school magazine the students represent the school, and as I have taken the picture for my main image as a long shot you are able to see part of the building at the front of plantsbrook school. The students are also wearing uniform which reinforces conventions of a school magazine. My masthead features the plantsbrook logo, I tried to be quite creative with my masthead and I wanted to feature the plantsbrook logo somewhere in order to again reinforce conventions of a school magazine. The cover lines follow the context of a school magazine and the font used throughout my front cover represents the genre of this magazine. I have tired to use either old school or capital font as it looks very 'high school'. The 'free stationary coupons' also links well with the conventions of a school magazine students would be able to understand from my magazine cover the type of magazine that this is and who it is aiming to appeal to.

Question 2:https://prezi.com/mayl2isttide/question-2/

Question 3:

Question 4: How did you attract/address your audience? (What have you done that would make school students buy your magazine?)

School students will be encouraged to buy my magazine firstly because the masthead is closely linked to the school I have used the schools logo and the schools name in my masthead. This attracts students because they will recognise this and feel more familiar with what the content of the magazine may be. I have then also used a main image to give an impression of what the school is like. The students are quite calm and relaxed and as it says as part of my coverlines 'how to relieve exam stress' students will be encouraged to read my magazine when they see that there is possibly some way or advice of tackling this.. The main image will appeal to parents as the students in the main image are in uniform. The cover lines are very relatable they are not just focused over one age group I have widely spread the coverlines so that I am reaching out to different age groups e.g. a level students, and people interested in taking part in any extra curricular activities. There is also free stationary coupons in my magazine which instantly grabs peoples attention, I have tried to use bold lettering with an old school font for this in order make it stand out even more. I have also tried to stick to very professional and sophisticated features throughout in order to appeal to all target markets.

My magazine front cover

Audience feedback

                                     
These are 2 videos of audience feedback. Each person has answered the following questions:
1. what do you like about my magaizne?
2. how could i improve my magazine so that it looks more professional?
3. which part of my magazine do you like the most? And why?
4. if my magazine was on sale would you buy it?
5. how effective do you think the main image and masthead of my magazine are?

Blog feedback and Pupil comment.

Generic conventions between the mastheads on my previous blog post.

This blog entry is to point out the generic conventions between the mastheads on my previous blog post. 

• All of these mastheads are in a bubble writing font. This kind of font is quite childlike suggesting that this genre of music is aimed towards the younger generation. 
• All of these mastheads feature similar colours of black and white. And these colours are either used to outline or the letters are filled.
• All of the mastheads appear quite futuristic and modern-this links with the genre of the magazine because house/dance music is more of a modern genre. 
• The letter of each masthead are close together-all joined up. 
• The masthead 'Core' is used to suggest that music is at the core and possibly the magazine core is the core to finding good music or hearing about the latest music. 
• The masthead 'Mixmag' is a good name for a house/dance magazine. A lot of house music features remixes/mixes so this links well with the genre. The audience of this genre will then be able to recognize its genre more easily.
• The masthead 'maxumi' looks very futuristic and bold. The name is very unique and attracts people this way. Because it is something different this almost represents house/dance/ music which is quite different and unique.

Different existing house/dance music magazine mastheads.

The magazine genre i would like to produce is a house/dance music magazine. I would like to produce a magazine connected to this genre because it is the genre that i like and what i am most common with.
These are three mastheads to 3 different existing house/dance music magazines. Core, Maxumi and Mixmag. 

English Baseline Assessment

PB magazine designs for mastheads.

Flickr link to focus and portrait photography

https://www.flickr.com/photos/128497810@N02/

I have set up a flickr account and uploaded a group of 10 images that i took in a lesson. The pictures represent focus and portrait photography. 

School magazine masthead analysis

This is an analysis of the school magazine masthead 'CLASS'. 

Slides showing the different camera angles.

The ten images are from a slideshow i made representing the 10 different camera angles we were assigned to focus on. Each picture shows a different shot, extreme close up. close up, medium shot, long shot, establishing shot, point of view, Arial shot, high angle, low angle and over the shoulder shot.

Reflection on different blogging tools

I looked at audio tools first, the website was podomatic, it will be what I will come to use in the future when working on podcasts it seemed very easy to use. I then looked at video tools,  we video  is something that I may use . I looked at organisation tools  the  one website that seemed most straight forward was remember the milk  an organisation app that you can access on iPads and iPhones. I looked at different photo storage  tools, ways in which I could put all images I need in one place. Photobucket was the one that stood out to me, it  was very modern. I also looked at sharing tools. All of these websites were quite complex and didn't give much information on how to use them, however if I was to use this I would use slideshare because it seemed the most easy to use. There were lots of mind mapping/brainstorming tools that I found  were really unique. Tagxedo and worlde, also bubbl.. All three of these websites included lots of interesting ways to mind map my ideas . There was also a very helpful image editing website pic monkey and lots of presentation tools that I will definately use. Prezi, animoto, glogster, zoo burst. There were however some websites that didn't give enough information or seem very useful, such as tube chop a video tool, screencast a filming tool, Diigo a presentation tool.

School magazine front cover analysis

This is a picture of a school magazine front cover analysis. I have labeled certain  aspects in order to analyse and describe the effect of certain things being done. I have also coloured certain  words with the key in this picture to point out which is denotations, connotations, key words and audience.

Prezi presentation link

http://prezi.com/wktgnyvhnncg/edit/#60 - this is the link to my prezi presentation of the analysis of two mastheads.

GQ front cover magazine analysis

This is a picture of a short assesment in lesson. We were asked to pick a magazine cover of our choice and label the different sections of the front cover.

Mind map - 5 key media concepts

This is a mind map showing a collection of the 5 key media concepts. Genre, Media language, Media representation, Media institutions, and Media audiences. It contains a description and essential details about each concept, this will be used as a revision tool.