Style of Magazine and Audience Profile

Style of Mag:
My magazine is to be music based and the main focus will be the UK Charts that make an appearance each month. It will reflect the traits of a stereotypical female and feature sexualised males and fashion tips from female artists. It will feature interviews from the popular artists (such as number 1 that month) and new stars that have recently been signed or "made".


Audience Profile:

A Condé Nast Media magazine aimed at ABC1 Women aged 16-24 who like a variety of alternate music (as the magazine features anything that is in the charts in that particular month).The women in this target audience are obsessed with celebrity gossip and the latest news on new artists, gigs and fashion. They are prolific shoppers and like to be up-to-date with the seasons trends - the artists opinions of fashion is especially important to them.

Survery Results

Question 1: What Type of Music do you listen to?
Most Popular Answer(s): Charts and Acoustic

Question 2: How often do you buy magazines?
Most Popular Answer(s): Monthly

Question 3: What is currently your most preferred magazine?
Most Popular Answer(s): NME, Cosmopolitan, The Fly

Why? Reasons Included -->
NME: Variety, alternative, focuses on music rather than general gossip
Cosmo: Interacts witht the audience and empathises with whatever situation they are going through. Has regular features but also has a variety of articles, headlining article is always random and ineresting, gives everything that a girl wants - fashion, men, health & beauty plus music & celebrity gossip.


Question 4: Name of Artist you would most aspire to be
Most Popular: Adele/Katy Perry/Lana Del Rey <----- ALL CHART MUSIC
Multiple reasons, most common was their own individual style.

Question 5: What is your favourite section of the magazine you purchase most often?
Most Popular Answer(s): Celebrity Gossip

Survey Testing Potential Content/Style and Look

Create a survey testing potential content/style and look of your magazine

1.       What type of music do you listen to?

Charts                   R&B/Rap              Metal                    Rock                      Acoustic               Other

If other, what?

2.       How often do you buy magazines?

Weekly                                 Monthly               Every 6 months                 Yearly                    Never

3.       What is your most preferred magazine currently?

Why?

4.       Name an artist you would most aspire to be.

Give Reasons for you choice.

5.       What is your favourite page in the magazine you purchase most often?

Fashion&Beauty     Interviews       Problems       Health     Celebrity Gossip   Celebrity Careers

Brain Storming Ideas for Magazine

• Chart music (variety of different styles featured)
• Elements of women's lifestyle magazine to cater to target audience of females aged 16 - 24
• Main Bold Colour (typical female: pink) contrasted with others (blues, greens etc) to reflect variety of music and artists.

Possible Magazine Names:

Alternate                      Chart That
Applause                      Only Chart
Years                         
Crunk

Possible Front Cover Features:

• Introducing new artist/number 1 on Charts
• Tour by band
• Losing weight articles (element of women's lifestyle)
• Music Awards gossip (Grammies?)
• celebrity relationships

Magazine MUSTS:

• Website
• price/barcode
• date and issue
• Strong strapline
• Buzz words

Deconstruction of "From The Editor"

Deconstruction of NME Masthead

The masthead of NME immediately sets the house style of the magazine. The bold colours of red, white and black compliment each other brilliantly for this particular genre of magazine. The colours are very specific and sharp and the double outline of the letters emphasises the crudeness of the letters. The playful font style and colour signifies the fact that the target audience is the younger generation of 15 - 19.

The sharpness of the masthead makes the magazine recognizable and memorable for the audience so they can then help the magazine be promoted. The specific colours, the specifc style and the specifc placement at the top left corner of the magazine is all NME's trademark - an identity - that no other magazine has.

Deconsruction of InStyle Masthead

The bright, striking fuschia pink colour of the masthead signifies the typical woman's lifestyle magazine - featuring fashion, beauty, health, celebrity gossip and men. The name InStyle is directly relevant to the magazine considering it is a fashion based magazine. The middle of the masthead is covered by a member of a girl band Girls Aloud. The fact that a section of the brand name is covered suggests the producers are confident in the popularity of the magazine in the sense that they know it is well-known and recognized; therefore, despite the fact the name cannot be fully seen, the audience will know exactly what magazine it is simply from the font and style of the masthead.

The house style is incredibly simple - pink and white - however effective. The pink gives the masthead a bold and eye-catching appearance but it is not too shocking. This is due to the juxtapostition of the colour white - symbolising a calm and rational woman. The two colours together work well in selling the product.

Cosmopolitan Contents Deconstruction

Kerrang! Contents Deconstruction

Q Contents Deconstruction

Cosmopolitan Deconstruction

Q Deconstruction

Kerrang! Deconstruction

Q Fact File

Whilst studying the alternate music based magazine Q it was harder to pin-point the exact genre of the magazine becuase it changes each month and every issue features a variety of different types. However, the target audience is easier to notice due to the layout of the magazine and the mode of address. The language used is eloquent but has a colloquial nauture to it. It illustrates the older generation being targeted because it includes adult humour - mature but comical. It invites the audience in by featuring artists and celebrities that the older generation are likely to know. The adverts are many such as make-up, Jack Daniels (Whiskey), Madonna/Ed Sheeran tickets - thus illustrating the fact they are targeted at not only both genders, but different genres of music and interests.  

Kerrang! Fact File

While studying the music based magazine Kerrang! I noticed how obvious the target audience of 14 - 17 (16 - 25) multi gender, rock genre music was. The front cover displays the rock band called Mastadon whose appearance illustrates the fact they are within the genre of rock/punk/emo. The masthead is presented in such a way that it suggests a 'punk' nature to the magazine. The strapline then also matches the theme of the target audience due to the use of bold, bright text and sharp colours that put together usually represent danger - again, emphasising the genre. The adverts are all linked to the same genre (console games that feature tattoos, violence, both that fit they stereotype of 'rockers').

IPC Media Research and Findings

Woman's Lifestyle:

Chat - Price 80p
Chat - It's Fate - £1.95
Essentials - Monthly - £2.70
InStyle - Monthly - £3.60
Look - Weekly - £1.60
Marie Claire - Monthly - £3.50
Now - Weekly - £1.40
Pick Me UP - Weekly - 70p
Woman - Weekly - 92p
Woman's Own - Weekly - 92p
Woman&home - Monthly - £3.60

Men's Lifestyle:

Nuts - Weekly - £1.70

Music & Entertainment (SPECIALIST/NICHE):

25 Beautiful Homes - 13 issues per year - £3.60
Amateur Gardening - Weekly - £1.90
Amateur Photographer - Weekly - £2.50
Angler's Male - Weekly - £1.70
Beautiful Kitchens - 10 issues per year - £3.99
Chat Passion - £1.85
Country Homes & Interiors - Monthly - £3.70
Country Life - Weekly - £3.20
Cycle Sport - Monthly - £4.10
Cycling Active - Monthly - £3.99
Cycling Weekly - Weekly - £3.99
Decanter - Monthly - £3.95
Boatbuilder - 6 issues per year - Subscription only
Eventing - Monthly - £3.95
Golf Monthly - Monthly - £4.10
Goodtoknow Recipes - Monthly - £2.20
Homes & Gardens - Monthly - £3.70
Horse - Monthly - £3.60
Horse + Hound - Weekly - £2.40
IBI - 7 issues per year - Subscription only
Ideal Home - Monthly - £3.20
Livingetc - Monthly - £3.70
Motor Boat and Yatching - Monthly - £4.50
Motor Boats - Monthly - £4.40
MBR - Monthly - £4.25
NME - Weekly - £2.30
Practical Boat Owner - Monthly - £4.10
Rugby World - Monthly - £4.00
Shooting Gazette - Monthly - £3.75
Shooting Times - Weekly - £2.20
Soaplife - Fortnightly - £1.60 (specialist but high circulation)
Sporting Gun - Monthly - £3.50
Style at Home - Monthly - £1.99
The Field - Monthly - £4.00
TV  & Satellite Week - Weekly - £1.30 (specialist but high circulation)
TV Easy - Weekly - 49p (specialist but high circulation)
TVTimes - Weekly - £1.10 (specialist but high circulation)
Uncut - Monthly - £4.50
VolksWorld - 13 issues per year - £4.20
What Digital Camera - Monthly - £3.99
What's on TV - Weekly  - 49p (specialist but high circulation)
World Soccer - Monthly - £3.80
Yatching - Monthly - £4.30
Yatching World - Monthly - £4.50

Most magazines published by IPC Media also have an online website that offers subsitutes to the magazine or extra.

IPC Media Timeline