Original Ideas For My Magasine

Before I created my magazine, I looked at different ideas that I drew up on paper for my magazine, these are shown below:

After looking through my rough drafts, I went on to design my magazine on photoshop. I created several drafts, the first of which are shown below. 

Target Audience and Questionairre

When deciding my target audience I had to consider several things, including the niche in the market there is for an indie magazine and what kind of market it would appeal to to be successful.



Firstly what age my target audience would be, this would help me decide what artists they would be likely to enjoy; a younger audience would be more interested in the type of music I plan to include in my magazine compared with an older audience who would be less interested in discovering new music and would more more interested in popular music that they know the style of and can get hold of easily. I therefore Plan to aim my magazine at an age range of 15-27 as I feel this age range will be the most interested generally in the kind of music my magazine supports. Also research shows that these are the most likely to attend gigs which is another major factor of my magazine as I plan to have plenty of coverage of live music events and information on up and coming gigs in my magazine.



My magazine will be aimed largely at a working class audience and students as these are the classes the majority of my target audience age range is made up of. This means that my magazine cannot be to expensive, otherwise my target market will not be able to afford it and they will not buy it. Also It is more likely that they will buy a less expensive magazine on a frequent basis rather than a more expensive magazine on a monthly basis as it will seem more convenient to buy a cheaper magazine with the spare change they have on them and they are not tied down to buying it every week rather than a larger lump of money monthly and then if they decide not to buy it the following month they will not have a magazine for a long period of time.



When designing my magazine I will mainly use a unisex colour scheme, however the target audience is largely made up of males as, although some females will be interested in my magazine, the majority of people who purchase indie magazines are male. This means that I will have to ensure it appeals to a male audience and doesn't look too girly; the artists that I cover however will not really be affected by the target gender as they are the reason the target audience will buy the magazine and appeal to both male and female audiences.



I think my magazine would be more popular the northern region as, although they have less money to spend on things such as magazines, they are likely to have a larger interest in reading about new music and going to smaller gigs that are often a lot cheaper than going to larger ones. I will therefore distribute it mainly in the northern part of England and ensure that the coverage of gigs and musical events are mainly based in the northern region.

Once I had decided in my target audience, I constructed a questionairre to ensure that I would make the most cost effective magazine possible. I asked several questions to ensure that my would sell and that it targeted the right audience at the right price. The questionairre looked like this:

Questionnaire

Do you buy any magazines? If so what type?

Fashion

Gardening

Fishing

Health

Home

Music

What is the most you would be willing to spend on a magazine?

£1.00

£1.50

£2.00

£2.50

£2.99

What genre of music are you interested in the most?

Rock

Pop

Indie

Metal

Jazz

Country

Would you use a website for a magazine?

Yes

No

I asked 10 people from my college the questionarire (5 males and 5 females) and then turned their answers into pie charts to help me make decisions when creating my magazine.

The results from the question "do you buy any magazines? if yes what type?" shows me that there is definiatly a market for music magazines as 50% of people buy music magazines. However this could mean that there is a lot of competition I am up against which means I will have to make a big advertising strategy to ensure that the magazines is known of and sells well against its competitors. "What is the most you would be willing to spend on a magazine?" this question helped me decide how to price my magazine with the majority willing to spend up to £2 on a magazine; this pricing helps me budget how much I will be able to spend on my magazine and once the prices of competitors are taken into account, ensures that my magazine will sell. "what genre of mudic are you interested in most?" the majority was a tie in this question between "indie" and "pop" which is good for my magazine as I am planning on creating an indie magazine and although there is a lot of comeptition for pop music magazines there isn't much for indie magazines, although this research proves that there is a market for them. "would you use the website for a magazine?" "yes" was by far the majority answer for this which will also help me with my advertising which I can do online and provide a link for the magazine website.

NME magazine

Front Cover.

L: The front cover of this magazine has slightly different conventions to other magazines as it is a special edition for a specific band. It has a masthead like most other magazines however it doesn't have much information about what is in the magazine as it is specific to a certain band so consumers will know what the magazine will be about. Although the few headlines it does have entice the reader to buy the magazine as it offers extra snippets of things about the band that cannot be found anywhere else so a lot of fans will buy it because they want to know as much as possible about the band. The magazine is set out like most other magazines though as it has a house style throughout, a bar code, logo, large image and headlines about what is inside. The image that takes up the majority of the front cover is a high angled shot of the band members, this adds to the effect that the magazine are ''looking in'' on the life of the band and suggest to the reader they are covering a ''fly on the wall'' type look on the band. The use of the colours red, blue and white on the floor of which the band members are sat connotes a very British band and suggests that they are very patriotic. Also the fact that Pete is wearing red, white and blue as well makes him stand out against the other band members as they are all wearing black; this helps sell the magazine to fans as Pete is a major factor of the media side of the band and he is always in the lime light and highlighting the fact that he belongs to the band sells the idea that it is a further look into his life.

I: The institution NME is shown several ways, there is a clip pet at the bottom that says ''from the makers of NME'', a logo at the top saying ''NME icons'' and both use the same red NME writing that is always seen in NME. The further use of a blue, white and red colour scheme in the magazine logos and headlines suggests a patriotic message and adds emphasis to the idea that The libertines are a very English band which helps sell the values of the band and the magazine. The synergy of The magazine label ''NME'' and the band The Libertines helps sell both the magazine and the band; fans of The Libertines will buy the magazine as it is a tribute to one of their favourite bands helping to spread the name of NME and selling copies to an audience that may have not bought the magazine before and may, after reading this special edition decide to buy the magazine more often; at the same time the appearance in a well known magazine such as NME will help advertise The Libertines music and for those who may not have really listened to their music before, they may decide to invest in their Cd's and merchandise because they are associated with NME.

I: The magazine appeals to a very specific audience therefore it doesn't need to sell itself as much as other magazines; the fact it has a large picture of The Libertines on the front and is obviously a Libertines special magazine will sell the product effectively to those who are serious fans of the band. The main headline on the magazine which reads ''the greatest rock'n'roll story of our generation'' suggests that the magazine represents the rock'n'roll side of music and has a slightly edgier approach to music than other magazines that are available. Also the headline itself is in the form of a chopped up banner that is slanted and is made to look messily put together, this adds to the rock'n'roll representation of both the band and the magazine and shows that NME isn't particularly serious, and looks more at the fun side of music eg gigs, festivals, interviews.

A: The fact that the band are being shown in NME shows they are an indie band as it is specifically an indie music magazine. Also as the layout has quite a choppy, messy style it reflects the style of the band as they are seen to be quite rebellious and unorganised. The magazine also appeals to its audience through its pricing; this particular issue of the magazine is priced at £5 and, although this may seem expensive to some readers, the magazine is presented in a glossy form rather than its normal newspaper type style. Also it is much thicker than the normal magazines which are priced at £2.30 and as it is made clear that it is a limited edition magazine so the reader is more inclined to pay more for it as they see it as a one of pricing. Furthermore

R: The band are shown as quite rebellious and individual due to the style of the front cover and the way it is put together, the headline suggest they are ''rock'n'roll' and their clothing also reflects their rebellious style.

Contents Page.

L: The layout of the contents page is very simplistic; not many pictures are needed to advertise the different parts of the magazine as they all are about the same band so the majority of the space is take up by a large contents of different quotes and stories of the bands history. The colour scheme sticks to the house style which makes the magazine look proffesional and well organised. The large picture used for the half of the page that isn't taken up by text is one of Pete and Carl singing into the same mic, this is a well known pose of the two men and is something they are known to do when performing live.

I: see front page analysis

I: The Contents page works effectively as it uses quotes and small clippets of information along with page numbers to make it easy for readers to refer to the parts of the magazine they are intersted in.

A: see front page analysis

R: The rebbellious representation of the band is carried on through to the contents page were the main picture is of a small gig rather than proffesionally shot photos that I have seen in other magazines such as Q. This adds to the care free effect of the band and makes both The Libertines and NME appeal to teenagers and thos who tend to have a more rebelious nature.

Double Page Spread.

L: The pagge is taken up by a large picture of all four members of the band. The camera angle is eyeline with them, however they are not looking directly at the camera; this suggests they are not taking the photoshoot very seriously and are a genuine band that are about the music and aren't about appearances. This also supports NME who are about serious music and viewing the band in this way makes NME also look like they are about the music and not appearances. Also a quote is used at the top of the page in keeping with the house style which is black. This black texts also ties in with the colour of the clothes the band are wearing. There is a small picture in the bottom corner of a guerilla gig that the band did, adding to the rebellious image of the band/magazine.

I: see front page analysis

I: The purpose of this page is almost a 'welcome to the magazine' page, it simply has a quote that sounds very libertines-esque and two pictures of the band that some them up, a not so serious posed shot and a guerilla gig shot. There is a small box of text that gives that tells the begining of The Libertines and helps set the scene for the rest of the magazine, allowing those who may not know the band so well, know about their origins etc.

A: see front page analysis

R: As in other parts of the magazine, the band are made to look rebellious and fun loving. The picture of them sat on the sofa makes them come across as fun, and not very serious however the gig in their flats makes them look passionate about music and serious about what they are doing.

NME magazine

Front Cover.

L: The front of NME follows all of the main conventions of a music magazine; it has a masthead, close up image, quotes and headlines. The colours are limited to four, back, white, clue and red which connote British music, tying in with the artist featured on the front of the magazine as he is a British artist. The close up image is slightly blurred allowing the writing to stand out against the text and making the image look more natural. The large quote that headlines the main story and the cover artist is written in a font that looks like and writing suggesting a less professional theme compared to other magazines such as Q. The magazine uses names of popular artists in bold fonts to draw in the readers as, because it is a specialist magazine, the readers will buy it due to the artists featured so this synergy benefits both the magazine and the artists for which the magazine is bought.

I: NME appeals to a gap in the market as there isn’t another popular magazine that appeals to an indie audience of a teenage age range. Although other similar magazines do exist such as Q, NME has a slightly more light-hearted approach to music and allows more readers opinions on subjects and covers a lot more artists that aren’t aswell known as some of the artists Q interviews. The masthead NME is in bright red font which makes it obvious to the buyer what magazine it is and helps catch the readers eye, this will help sell the magazine to existing buyers as they will recognise the magazine immediately, however it will also help bring in new customers as anyone who is into that type of music will have heard of NME and know it appeals to their taste therefore they will also be able to recognise it and purchase it easily.

I: The use of a handwritten font on the front of the magazine shows that NME isn’t a completely serious magazine and has an element of fun to it. However the image of Carl Barat is a serious portrait with him not smiling and just staring at the camera, this connotes a more serious tone to the magazine and suggest that, although the artist does have an element of fun, he also wants to be viewed as a serious artist.

A: the audience for this magazine are very specific. They will recognise this magazine as one of the only ones that appeals to their type of music, (indie rock/folk) so will automatically go for this magazine above any others. However NME ensures they are top choice by advertising bands and artists names in bold font to catch the target audience’s eyes and, as these are names that they will recognise, entice them into buying the magazine. Also the quote ‘’i’ve got a right to tell my story’’ suggests to the audience that the interview will be exclusive as the artist is fighting for a right to tell his story so coverage may be scarce. The casual approach to music will also appeal to the target audience which is mainly teenagers as they are more interested in the live side of music and not their reputation; this is a major concept for NME which have coverage of lots of gigs and new music, all of which largely appeal to the target audience.

R: On the front cover of NME,Carl Barat is shown to be a major artists as he is the cover art on this issue; also the text for his interview that goes along with the picture takes up almost half of the magazine cover, representing him as a big artist; also the mention of his band The Libertines in the text helps sell his solo career as people will know him as ‘’the guy from The Libertines’’. All of the artists featured on the front of NME will get very positive coverage for the music they make, as NME is well known and this will help the bands and artists be viewed as a good, indie band/artist and widens there audience to the readers of NME aswell as the fans they have already.

Contents Page.

L: Some of the language used in the contents page is slightly tabboo. The phrase "Of course there's drama-its the fucking libertines!" suggests that the readers of the magazine will be aware of certain bands as they are very popular with the genre. The use od the word "fucking" connotes a laid back approach and that the magazine is friendly, opinionated and itsn't too bothered about being formal . Quotes are used in almost every advertisement of every page of the magazine; this shows that NME can afford to get interviews with the hottest bands of the moment, making the reader think that its the best value for money. Also the fact that the reader can see that there are a lot of interviews and not just reviews will entice the reader in as they can learn more about their favourite band and not just about their music.


I: see front page analysis


I: The contents page supports NME's idea of being like a newspaper. The format of the writing is serif which is similiar to a newspapers formatting. The use of big pictures is also similair to a newspaper style publishing as they are used as a header type enticement that encourages the reader to read the quote which goes with the picture then follow the page number which is printed in large bold font, to the article of their interest. The magazine also supports a libertine style life; interviewing bands that follow such lifestyles and advertising interviews with quotes such as "we are fucked up" show that NME support a carefree ideology which is something that is attractive to their audience.


A: As its audience is teens/early twenties using words such as "fucking" will be something that they can relate to and will make them feel more at ease with the magazine and less intimidated by the expert opinions on new music. THe magazine also appeals to its target market with the large advertisement that asks them if they "want to get NME for the best price possible?" this shows that the magazine recognises that the target market don't just have money to throw away and by offering them discounts it gives them an advantage on their competitors as price is taken into great consideration by their target market when choosing which magazine to purchase.


R: Through my contents page; my audience are shown to have similiar values to the artists featured. By advertising the artists bohemian lifestyle through quotes such as "my mums friends are on it" and "we are fucked up" it shows that the readers would be interested in finding out about the lifestyles of their favourite artists which are represented through a carefree lifestyle, rock star type lifestyle. The large advertisement to get NME at a cheaper price shows that the audience don't have a particularly large income therefore an offer like this largely appeals to them.


Double Page Spread.


L: The use of the pun in the title "one giant (dub) step for man" appeals to the humourous side of the audience who aren't very serious due to their age. The fact that (dub) has been added in gives us an idea to what kind of music the article is about, which is dubstep which is handy for the readers as dubstep is something that not all readers would be interested in so it makes it easy for them to decide wether to read the article or not. HOwever the readers may persuaded to read it due to the fact that NME is making a big deal out of the band; the fact that theyreffered to it as  "giant" step for dubstep music shows that they may have something a bit different to them therefore the reader may decide it is worth reading the review. Also the fact that NME has used a quote that firstly described the landing of man on the moon shows that they see this band as a big deal as this quote wouldn't be used on someone they thought was only okay; showing the audience already that this band is to be taken seriously.


I: see front page analysis

I: The use of a black and white colour scheme on the double page spread is metallic and reflects the name of the group "Magnetic Man" as it has connotations of metal and coldness. The group members are also dressed in black and white which helps tie the piece together and shows that they live up to their name. This idea of coldness is also created with the way the photraph has been shot; two out of the three members of the band are looking away which could suggest that they are chanelling the cold, standoffish approach their name suggests.

A: It is made clear in the title of the article that the audience that would be interested in this would be those interested in Dubstep. The fact that the bands name is used in bold in the text underneath the headline shows that fans of the band would be able to immediatly recognise them by either their name or the large picture of them that takes up a whole page.

R: The audience of this article are shown to be into music that doesn't nessacarily have a personality behind it. The fact that there are no quotes from the band written in large or bold shows that the group have earnt there respect through their music and not their personalities. This is also reflected in the fact that NME has crowned them with the headline "one giant (dub) step for man" as this shows that they are a big deal and incorporating the genre of music they are into this shows that they have done a lot for dubstep.

Q magazine

Front cover.
L: The Layout of Q is quite simplistic. It features simply one image, a logo and a headline. The photograph is taken from a low angle to give the idea of superiority which ties in with the caption ''Life inside rocks new royalty''; the use of gold in the title ''KASABIAN'' again adds to the idea of royalty as gold has connotations of luxury and richness. The other version of the front cover that is found on magazines available in newsagents features a very similar style however down the right hand side of the magazine it features several headlines of artists featured in the magazine which are in white writing on a red background as this stands out against the background catching a passers by eye which is needed when selling a magazine among its competitors on a shelf in a shop.


I: The use of the masthead ''Q'' makes it obvious who the magazine is by which entices readers to buy it as Q are seen largely as a serious music magazine which also helps sell the Kasabian brand through synergy of Kasabian and Q. Also the offer of a subscriber only cover helps sell more issues as the serious consumer will then want to subscribe and make a commitment to the magazine due to additional perks. The version of Q that is available to buy in shops differs slightly as it needs to be more enticing for the consumer as it is competing with other magazines around it; this is where the masthead Q becomes very important as it is seen as a trusted magazine that is popular and recognisable so this helps the magazine sell in a more commercial environment.

I: The magazine uses a glossy type cover, rich colours such as gold and red and a minimalistic theme to suggest a professional magazine. This in turn shows that anything contained within the magazine is serious about music and therefore they have a reputation to keep up so will only cover stories about serious musicians who produce popular but good quality music. This synergy provides both Q and the bands it covers an extra incentive to get involved with each other as the reputation that comes with being inside an issue of Q is what many musicians need to boost their career and in turn the publicity that Q will get from covering popular musicians will help sell even more of their magazines.

A: From the front cover of the magazine I can see that the target audience will be quite serious music fans who are interested in music that has maybe been around longer than new up and coming bands and have set themselves up with a reputation as very good musicians. This is shown in the quality of the magazine cover which is of a glossy style and the names of the artists on the front of the magazine are all ones that the target audience will recognise and will like the majority. Also the language used on the front cover very minimalistic and as there is not much writing other than artists names; this shows that the magazine appeals to an audience who will be familiar with the musicians in the magazine as this is all that is needed to sell the magazine rather than lots of writing and quotes that other magazines may use to entice their audience.

R: The magazine is shown to be a very professional, the fact that it is a monthly magazine also shows that the magazine is a skilled piece of work that takes lots of time and effort to create. This means that any musicians covered in the magazine will get positive representation as they will then be seen as extremely good musicians due to the coverage and reputations that come with being in an issue of Q.

Contents Page.

L: The contents page of Q takes up a double page spread showing that there is a lot contained within the magazine. There are several large images of artists featured within the magazine; all of but one of which are taken professionally on a photo shoot and aren’t taken at a gig; this shows the magazine wants to be taken very seriously and that the artists are perhaps more ‘’grown up’’ as they are in a professional environment when being interviewed. The house style of the magazine has a colour scheme of red, black and white which are all bold colours that are not very exciting however this allows the texts to speak for themselves. Also the font used is serif style which adds to the professional element of the magazine.

I: see front page analysis

I: The contents page is used to direct the audience to the article of their interest. Large pictures of the mian features are used to entice the reader to look at the main articles. THese are accompanied by a short text about the article and a page number were it can be found. Page numbers are a crucial part of the contents page as they help the audience find what they are looking for and can be used as a reference guide.

A: see front page analysis

R: The large images used for the main articles are used to help show that the artists are a big deal as, not only are they being covered in Q magazine, they are also a major article in this issue. The large pictures are often taken from the same style of photos used in the article and are mostly taken on a photoshoot. This makes both Q and the artists look classy as they can afford proper photoshoots to reveal another side to the artists rather than relying on not as good quality shots taken at live music events.


Double Page spread.
L: THe layout of the magazine follows the house style colour scheme and fonts. The 'Q' symbol is present at the top of the page to show that Q are in full support of the band and to strengthen the cohesion between the band and the label. The picture that takes up the double page spread is of Kings Of Leon's band member Caleb Followhill. The image is taken from above him and he is looking into the camera which shows that the shot is professionally shot and taken specifically for the magazine. Also The house style colour scheme continues through to the bed sheets and colour of the walls showing that the picture was taken for the specific purpose of the magazine article.The large quotation that takes up a page of the spread is written in sans serif writing, this supports the idea that KOL are a laid back band as the sans serif font has connotations of informalness.
I: see front cover analysis
I: By photographing Caleb with a bible it shows that, although Q supports alternative rock music, at the same time it is keeping its reputation as a sensible music analyst as KOL are shown to have more to them than may first meet the eye. However the fact that the image is shot in what looks like a cheap motel may suggest that Q are skimping on the cost of filming and didn't want to spend as much on the film shoot of the band.
A: see front cover analysis
R: The use of the colours blue, white and red are very patriotic and represent KOL as a band that are very loyal to their country and grounded; they know their roots. Also the fact that Caleb is holding a bible in the photo may suggest that the band are quite religous aswell, this may be a factor that effects people's views on the band and allows people to see an alternative side to a rock band.

Magazine Name

I have considered a few different names for my magazine, it needs to reflect the style of the music and be easy to remember. My strongest options are:

NU (new and undiscovered )

L!VE

PULSE

Vertigo

I have researched the magazine names and only the only similair music magazine that exists is one called ''LIVE!'' I therefore have a good choice of names out of the ones I think would work best. I have chosen to name my magazine ''Vertigo'' as it is very different to any other magazine name that exists, also it is easy to remember and is quite a strong word so ensures it will be recognisable. Also the meaning of vertigo is to have a feeling of dizziness, to not know which way is up or down and is often a state brought on by drinking; this is a feeling many of my target audience will be familiar with even if it is not in a positive way the word is very powerful and something that will make sense to my target market.

I tried out a few font styles for my logo, I wanted it to be fairly plain however have a bold impact and stand up against the background. My options are shown below:

I chose the second font as I thought it would have the moost impact on the front of my magazine and had a solid, recognisable look to it.

Music Genre

My music genre is Indie rock, this genre of music mainly looks at artists that aren't linked with major record labels and are mainly independent, the majority of these artists write their own music and play their own instruments. Popular artists of the indie genre include The Libertines, The Smiths and The Cribs, these are the kind of bands I will look at for features in my magazine.

Below are examples of the type of music you would expect to find in my magazine.

LIIAR interpretation of the brief

L: My magazine will have to follow the conventions of a music magazine throughout; this will include having a masthead, mid close up image, headlines and cover stories. On the front page I will use a large image for the background which will probably be a mid shot of my model/s; for the contents page I will use smaller image that are taken at a range of angles including close ups and long shots. My double page spread will have one large image as the main image which will be a long shot as I want something that doesn't stand out as much as I want the writing to be the focus of this page however I will still need a good photo to catch the readers eye and get them interested in the contents.

I: As my magazine is for the publishing company Bauer, my magazine appeals to a gap in the market as it is for teenagers that are into alternative music; although similar magazines exist (NME,Q) my magazine deals with a lot more unsigned acts and gets them the coverage they deserve. This means my magazine has a higher chance of being successful as it doesn't have much direct competition, it will also have lots of support from the band it in turn supports. Also it is not competing with any other of Bauer's magazines (Q,MOJO and Kerrang) as none of these apply to and ''indie'' music market.

I: I want my magazine to support new music and be open to suggestions of new, up and coming artists and bands from its readers. It will convey this by having coverage of new music recommended by readers, suggestions of bands that will be big in the future and will always be one step ahead in the music world.

A: My target audience will be around the age range of 16-24 as this is the sort of age that are interested in smaller bands and going to gigs, also they will be in to alternative/indie music. Many may be students so the magazine will be reasonably priced.

R: I want all elements of my magazine to be represented in a positive yet truthful way. My target audience will be represented in an unconventional way, as i want my magazine to allow a lot of slang terms that wouldn't normally be found in most publications as I think it is most important to appeal to the target audience. Also I want my music genre to be shown as fun, new and exciting with a sarcastic, bias opinion on it being the best genre.

Music Magazine Brief

My task is to create a front page, contents and double page spread of a new music magazine. All images and text used must be original, produced by me and include a minimum of four images.