DIGIPAK AND MAGAZINE ADVERT ANALYSIS

What is a Digipak?A Digipak offers the audience a lot more in terms of content than a disk with a regular CD cover. It is a marketing tool intended to offer the buyer an incentive for purchasing the hard copy from a high street or online retailer rather than downloading and streaming the music. It is particularly important as sales of albums have decreased due to buyers preferring to download music as opposed to paying for a full album. he incentive is added extras to the CD/DVD in addition to the actual disk and its case with front and back covers. It will include a front, back, spine and at least four additional panels. The additional panels may contain features such as a flier, lyrics, disk impression, band information, free poster or a set of postcards with autographs from the artist(s).

The colours used are only black and white. This adds to the theme of the band as all the music videos are made in black and white.

The audience to this CD is most likely just fans between ages of 15-20. This is because it has very little textual information to be a mass-market product. It is fairly sophisticated but not extremely adult-like.

The font used is unique and very sharp. This adds to the convention of bands, different and unique.

Also, the colour themes and indications implies it contains songs of which could only be understood by those no younger than 12 years old.

The colour black suggests mysteriousness and fear. It may be that the songs the band sing are about insecurities and things that they fear.

The white illuminated outline and stand out on top of the black which could be associated with a light of hope, messages their songs give. The colour white indicates faith, purity and innocence.

Also, because it is mysterious, it may add a sense of potential and possibilities as they were a new band. It connotes feelings of emptiness, gloom or sadness, again adding to the theme of the songs they make which are often about broken lives, heartbreaks and drugs.

ADVANTAGES DISADVANTAGES

The dark colours add to the theme and genre of the band – vintage,

indie, mysterious

It seems very dark and gloomy so not very attractive to those who do not

know the 1975

Straight forward necessary information, including song name

and orders and copyrights

Minimal text which may be unhelpful to customers wanting to find out more

The white illuminated light may stand out to customers

Uninformative of the band itself; who they are and how many of them etc.

There is a consistent theme in terms of colour - fans would relate

them to black and white

May be deceiving as black suggests gothic/metal music

There is a ‘parental advisory’ logo at the bottom left showing there are some explicitness to the album. This is expected with most hip-hop/rock albums.

All fonts link in with the hip hop/rock theme of the album. They are written differently in each panel to add uniqueness qualities to the album.

The background is sort of like an old, treasure-type, brown which ultimately is not that bright of a colour. This may add to males being the target audience because it is not that colourful.

The artist’s and band’s name are written in a graffiti-like font which indicates the genre of the album – hiphop/rock. It may also suggest the target audience are males and rebellions because stereotypically, males usually listen to hip hop and rock songs.

The text labelling what songs the album contains are structured in an orderly manner for a clear understanding for the audience. It is quite informative which suggests there are a lot of songs on the album that the artists have worked on, making the audience more appreciative.

The actual CD is blue which again is another male-based colour. It also indicates peace and mellowness, which may add to the genre of album.

The flap for the CD in the 5th picture is quite an initiative way of offering CDs. It is less common but that is what makes it unique and different from other Digipaks. It could perhaps be the USP of the album as it stands out, showing how ‘limited edition’ the album is.

ADVANTAGES DISADVANTAGESFull of art and a variety of colours

which is eye-catching to the audience

Doesn’t show who the artists are

Every panel adds to the genre of the music – pop/street/rock

Lack of information about the artists

Different designs and font on each panel which could interest

the audience

 Seem to be only for males, could perhaps generalise it for a bigger fan-

base

Instantly makes an audience with the uses of colour – males

 Quite visually harsh as there is too much graffiti

What is a Magazine Advert?A magazine advert is another marketing tool for a product in which should encourage its audience to buy or see whatever they are advertising. Usually, for an album cover, it would be of some relation to the artist or band; this could be in a form of synergistic font or the artist(s) themselves.A generic magazine advert are not often promotional but instead attempt to show the artists genre as opposed to the contents of the actual album.There isn't as much information written on it but should include the album name, release date and the artists' name/photograph. Sometimes, it is the actual album cover, other times it is a completely new photograph of the artist. 

The colours used in the whole photograph are quite warm – orange, grey and white. Orange is very different yet eye catching. Also, it contributes to Ed Sheeran himself as he has ginger hair, making it iconic and symbolic.He is wearing a black t-shirt which is

plain and simple. He doesn’t go all out like other singers in the music industry which shows he is a simple guy who is serious about just singing and song-writing.

The poster is dominated by the artist who is smiling and looking down. This outlines his character, that he is a cheerful, humble and sweet artist. However, the fact that he is not facing the audience may suggest that he has some insecurities, which may be highlighted within the lyrics of the artist’s songs.

The colour of the photograph is quite grey/orangey with a slight vintage and grainy effect. This is fairly gloomy and mysterious. It may highlight the genres of his songs as they are often about the past and heartbreaks.

‘The no.1 album’ is written in orange to fit his actual album cover which is also orange. The colour orange may be related to the themes and vibes his songs give as it usually connotes encouragement, enthusiasm and joy.

The font is pretty basic and looks type written, which fits the vintage look the whole photograph has. It may also fit the idea that his songs are old-fashioned as he uses his guitar and rarely any electronics like most modern music in the 21st century. However, the colour white suggests purity and freshness, which could add to the idea that he was a new –ish artist at the time.

The album cover in the bottom show most of his face but not all. It may show a sense of the idea of ‘coming out the shadow’ or ‘standing out’ which may be themes and messages that he creates in the genre of his music.

The poster contains little text which could mean two things. One, because he is a popular artist, he does not need much marketing. Two, to add to his mysteriousness as the artist is a person who keeps his life personal.

The symbol of the first aid sign is synergetic to Ed Sheeran as his fans would associate him with the symbol. It may show that his album is a first aid kit to people who face the same issues as those his songs portray.

There is an island in the centre of the photo indicating escapism and loneliness. It could suggest that the album is a way of escaping the real world – what some people believe music can do. The fact that it is stranded shows loneliness – maybe indicating the genre of the album, that most songs are sad and about loneliness – but also being on your own little luxury island where the audience would like to escape, when listening to the album.

The sea doesn’t look like your typical exotic beach, perhaps linking with the album title ‘plastic beach’. It is a quite gloomy, dark sea suggesting danger and violence. It could also be a link to the theme of the genre.

The block capitals of ‘the new album’ then ‘out now’ in bold stands out very clearly to the audience. It is the first thing anyone can see as it is very out there. This may draw the audience to read more of the poster and ideally, make them check the album out.

The font of ‘Gorillaz Plastic Beach’ is written in a wavy font that almost looks as if it’s part of the waves in the photo. The colour white is associated with light, innocence and purity, however, it is against an almost all black background. It could suggest a new, successful beginning for the band or for the audience when they listen to the album.

The 4 ratings can also encourage the audience to check the album out because critics are often taking in consideration, especially reviews on new things.

The dark skies in the background show evil and deceit. It may suggest that lyrics in the album are about mistrusting and danger.

The website at the bottom is another marketing technique, attempting to encourage the audience to follow the band.