Initial Ideas

The target audience for my magazine will be male and female teenagers and young adults from the age range of 15 to 25.  I think this is a good age range because of the magazines that I analysed appeared quite serious and I think there is a gap in the market for an exciting new product. The genre will be based on pop because this genre will attract a wider range of audience, it would also include special additions relating to other specific genres.  

Analysis of Uncut

Analysis of Uncut

The masthead of the magazine is a bold red colour in capital letters that stands out and looks 3D. The background image is a long shot of the band in black and white which works well with the red masthead because the layout and colours do not clash and look off putting. There is a special offer for a free CD but does not link to the band on the front cover but it appears to the audience because the CD cover has more colour on it than the focused stories which adds more ‘life’ to the magazine and liven it up. There is a world exclusive banner in red and white which draws in the audience to read. There is a quote from the band which gives an indication of what the article is about and makes people tempted to buy it to read the rest of the story. Capital letters are used to make the smaller stories stand out and appear just as important. There is a slanted banner which emphasises the artical and makes the magazine look more appealing.

Analysis of Mojo

Analysis of Mojo

The masthead for Mojo is in a gold colour that stands out from the white background of the magazine. There is a pink circle with a special offer for a free CD which draws in the target audience because of a bargain; this also has the buzz word exclusive which is an individual idea to promote the magazine and gain more readerships. The main image is a medium close up of the artist which links well will the special offer to promote the CD as well. The image is in black and white and stands out a lot against the white background as if the person is jumping out towards you. The typography on the magazine is the same as the font on the CD and I think the style gives the magazine a jazz genre style. The black and white typography is the same and the additional colour is the gold which highlights the key articles to read and what the magazine is about. The barcode is in the bottom right corner and is partly disguised by the white background. There is quite a bit of white space which suggests that the magazine is calm and not too busy to look at, however I think the colours are too simple and would be better if there was a bold colour such as red to make it stand out more and look effective. They typography style links to the main article and makes the other magazine articles look like it links with that story and I perhaps would have chosen another font or colour to outline the different articles.

Analysis of Kerrang magazine

Analysis of Kerrang

The black banner with the white masthead stands out and looks effective for the genre of the magazine which is rock. There is not a main background image for this issue but lots of little images placed together and I think it looks quite busy and loud however that also relates to the genre and target audience with rock music being loud. The general background colour is black which makes lots of the little images stand out and look informative. There is a medium close up of two people and one of them is very brightly dressed which immediately draws in the attention from the target audience and I think gives the magazine depth and looks quite realistic as if you were stood with them. Buzz words are used such as exclusive interviews to help sell the magazine. The main headline is in yellow and definitely stands out against the black background. I think the yellow is also used to engage the audience because it is used with the word ‘you’ and outlines important information. The over lapping of images in the left bottom corner are clustered together and it helps linking them to the article advertised with it, however I think it looks too busy with the additional images in the background. I think the unique selling point is the amount of information the magazine offers to the target audience and how well the images interact with the typography.

Analysis of Q magazine

Analysis of Q magazine

The Q magazine masthead has a red square shaped banner with the white Q so that the audience will recognise the magazine easily if there was a copy with an image over lapping the title like this example. Underneath the masthead is the sell line which tells the audience that this magazine is Britain’s biggest music magazine and that it is worth buying. There is a banner at the bottom of the page for an article to show a special offer targeted at women in the music industry.  The main article typography is in red and in capital letters for it to stand out more and draw in the attention from the target audience but also targets other readers who have not bought Q magazine before and this could interest them if they want to experience Q magazine. The Union Jack stands out and the body copy inside interacts with the audience because it is showing their opinions but they have to buy it to actually read the full article. The image is a close up of Madonna on the right hand side of the page which helps anchorage the red headline, linking the image with the text. There is minimal white space which shows that the magazine is interesting and has lots of information for the reader. The white typography stands out well against the black background but identifies the red as a more dominant colour with importance of articles.

Analysis of NME front cover

Analysis of NME front cover

The masthead stands out because of the bright red typography with the white around the edge this will stand out on any colour background and the audience will recognise the product and also aligned on the left of the page. The close up of the artists stands out against the dark background because of her very pale skin tone. The main colours of the typography are yellow and white, this draws the audience to the magazine immediately and helps state which articles are more important and links the image of the pop artist however, I think that the yellow typography is misleading because that is the first article heading that the audience will look at and does not link to the main article with the image and the actual heading appears less important. The price of the magazine is stated underneath the masthead so that the audience is aware of the price but is a subtle white colour so that its does not stand out. The barcode is placed in the bottom left hand corner and is camouflaged by the article heading next to it that the audience will read. The leading between the lines is a small gap so that there is not lots of space left on the page and it looks more appealing because it links the articles together and not look out of place. Buzz words such as exclusive draw the readers in because they believe that no other magazine has the specific information that this magazine offers, such as exclusive used by the NME magazine. I think the layout of the front cover is very simplistic but works well because of the main image placed on the left hand side with the article headings on the right hand side, with minimal over lapping. The magazine appears to draw in a target audience age range from 15-25years old which is good because they can vary the type of music within the magazine. I think the unique selling point if this magazine is the limited colours used which has a strong perseverance that urges people to read it.

Distribution

Distribution – The music magazines are sold in many retail shops from newsagents to music shops. Lots of magazine companies have a website that the specific target audience can subscribe to that will allow viewing of the magazine and interactions with the audience.

Publishers

Rhinegold – is one of the leading UK publishers for music and performing arts. They produce specialist magazines for the music industry.

They produce brochures for other production clients.

There magazines include- Classical music, Opera Now, Music Teacher, International Piano and Choir & Organ

Bauer - Largest privately owned publisher in Europe. It was founded by Johann Bauer in 1875. They publish in Germany, France, Spain, Portugal, United States, and Mexico and started publishing in the UK in 1987 with Bella Magazine.

Future PLC - is an international special-interest media group that is listed on the London Stock Exchange (symbol FUTR).  Founded in 1985 with one magazine and they have operations in the UK, US and Australia creating over 180 special-interest publications.

Comparison of top 5 magazines in the UK

Name of magazine	Price	Monthly/weekly	Readership figures 2010
NME	£2.30	Weekly	38,486
Q	£3.99	Monthly	94,811
Mojo	£14.99	Monthly	98,484
Kerrang	£2.20	Weekly	41,125
Uncut	£4.20	Monthly	75,518

Research - UK music magazines

Magazine Name	Description
Mojo	UK published magazine featuring reviews, news and interviews. They also have a website and blog.
NME	UK based, biggest selling music magazine in the world. It includes interviews and concert details.
Q	Involves music and entertainment with reviews.
Spin	Focuses on new music and youth culture, films, art, music – pop, R&B, rock, hip hop and rap.
Uncut	Focuses on pop music but other genres as well, offer exclusive interviews and subscription.
Kerrang	Mainly rock music that involves interviews and latest music news.
mixmag	Dance music, website with interactions such as a video, shows top 10 charts.

These magazines are a variety of music magazines sold in the UK with specific genres that appeal to their target audience.

Preliminary Task