Audience Research

What magazine would you prefer to read? NME I I I IKerrang! I I Metal Hammer I I Sound Rock

What is the content that most interests you in a music magazine? Interviews I I I I ICoverage of festival/gigs I I Free things, such as posters New releases Album ReviewsBand gossip I

How much would you spend on a music magazine? £1-2 I I I I I I£3-4 I I£5+

Which is your favourite band out of the following? Papa Roach IA Day To Remember I I IEnter Shikari I I Boys Like Girls II Rise against the fallNone of the above

Out of the following which colour scheme would you expect to see in a Rock magazine? Black, yellow and white I IRed, black and blue I I I IGreen, black and yellow I I

Do you prefer more images or more text? Images I I I I I I I Text I

How often do you buy music magazines? Weekly I I I I I I I IMonthlyRarely

Males answers are in blue, female in pink.

Which magazine would you prefer to read?

Females

NMEKerrangMetal HammerSound Rock

Males

NMEKerrangMetal HammerSound Rock

This data shows that females much prefer the ‘lighter’ music so therefore prefer music magazines such as NME and Kerrang. Whereas males prefer heavier music and have a higher preference for Metal Hammer. However all together the most picked was NME. This has shown me that people tend to prefer magazines with a strong multi-platform approach. NME aims at the mass market(though more towards rock) which I should consider when designing my magazine, as I want to create a magazine that a mass of people would be interested in.

What is the content that most interests you?

Females

Interviews

Coverage of fes-tivals/gigs

Free things

New releases

Album Reviews

Band Gossip

Males

Interviews

Coverage of fes-tivals/gigs

Free things

News releases

Album reviews

Band gossip

These results show that the contest most interested in is interviews. I think this is because of the ever growing interest in celebrities. Young people think of celebrities as their friends, they know them and visit their lives on a regular basis. The Uses and Gratification theory can also be applied to interviews. We find personal identity through them as we can relate to many of the things the celebrities are saying, we also find models of behaviour- imitate the way that celebrities behave. We again find it as a point for social interaction- to find out about the ‘gossip’ in the interviews and use it as a conversation point.

How much would you spend on a music magazine?

Females

£1-2£3-4£5+

Males

£1-2£3-4£5+

Overall people would spend between £1-2 for a magazine. I think this is because the majority of people asked were students, so they don’t have much money. Also there are many very cheap magazines now days (appealing to customers since we are in finacially hard times). Also since the print magazine industry is in somewhat decline, magazines have to keep in the competition and appeal to younger customers.

Which is your favourite band out of the following?

Females

Papa Roach

A Day To Remember

Enter Shikari

Boys Like Girls

Rise Against the fall

None of the above

Males

Papa Roach

A day to remember

Enter Shikari

Boys like girls

Rise Against the fall

None of the above

These results show there is quite a variety in the bands young people like, however the majority out of both liked ‘A Day to Remember’. I shall keep this in mind when designing my magazine.

Which colour scheme would you prefer?

Males

Black, yellow and white

Red, black and blue

Green, black and yel-low

Females

Black, yellow and white

Red, black and blue

Green, black and yellow

The majority of people asked chose ‘Red, black and blue’. I think these colours appeal to both sexes and now I know which colour scheme is most liked amongst my age group, which is useful for when I come to design my magazine.

Which do you prefer more images or more text?

Females

ImagesText

Males

ImagesText

How often do you buy music magazines?

Females

WeeklyMonthlyRarely

Males

WeeklyMonthlyRarely

This shows just how much the music magazine is in demand, with the younger generations ever expanding need for new information it is important to them to fulfil this need.

Find your tribe

Moshers would be a great tribe to aim my magazine at as they’re into alternative/rock. They tend to dress in dark clothing and are very into gigs and festivals. They’re also prone to going into mosh pits. I would have to think carefully about language used, I think using informal, minimal language would be appropriate. I also think using some ‘taboo’ words and expletives, would also aim the magazine towards them and appeal to their rebellious side. It also means they’re very into music- like listening to their music a lot- which is another good quality as I’m trying to write a music magazine aimed at them.

EvaluationIn my audience research I have found what type of magazines people like- overall NME was the favourite, I can now do more research into NME to find out exactly what is so appealing about this magazine- so I plan to do a media information packed based on NME to get some figures and facts about it. Interviews were found to be the most interesting content. I now know what to include on my DPS and have found that this is probably due to the ever demanding need for ‘new information’ and ‘new gossip’.I found that students and young people wouldn’t spend too much on a magazine (the audience I plan to target) and the majority would spend no more than £2. Thanks to this information I now know what to price my magazine. There is a growing demand for lots of new content about bands and lots of different bands. I am going to try and follow some of the techniques used on magazine front covers to fulfil this (lists of lots of bands names, emphasis how much content there is). Through my audience research I also supported my opinion that images are very important for a young generation when considering which magazine to buy, as they want it too look interesting and full of content. I also found out that there is a demand for the music magazine, with every one of my participants saying they weekly bought magazines.Overall it has been very useful to get information from other people, especially my target audience of 16-25 year olds, as I now know what they expect from a music magazine.