question 5

How did you attract/address your audience?

AttractingWhen designing my magazine I carefully considered every aspect of the magazine to tailor it specifically to my audience.Some of the things I considered when designing my magazine were;Mast headColour schemePhotographsPromotional offers/competitionsLayoutCover linesPriceThese were all designed around the target audience and the music genre of the magazine.


MastheadThe mast head was the first thing I designed for the magazine. I did this by carefully selecting colour schemes that I though would work well and attract an audience. The colours I chose for the masthead were red black and white, this is because they all contrast each other and really make the magazine stand out when on the shelf in a shop. This colour choice is gender neutral colour and can easily appeal to both a male and female audience. When designing the masthead I decided to include an emblem embedded in the text, I did this to enforce my brands identity and to make the magazine easily recognised by potential customers. Further more I chose a font that is quite unique to my magazine, there are not many other magazines that share a similar font to mine which really makes it stand out from competitors, this also makes my magazine seem unique to the audience show that there is no other magazine like it on the market.


Colour schemeWhen I designed the cover of my magazine I selected colours that were neutral to both genders and made this prominent throughout the magazine to enforce the brands Identity. These colours were red, black and white. I chose red, black and white to make the cover of my magazine really contrast and stand out to the audience, it also reflects the rock genre while at the same time appears professional and carefully designed.


Layout

I decided to put the masthead at the top of the page to make it eye level when on a shelf in the store and make it the one of the most visible aspects of the magazine. Furthermore I placed the image of the model over the top of the title to show that she was the most important part of that magazine and enforce the importance of the interview inside, this is I the largest image on the page and easily the most attention drawing. I also decided to put sub images on the left hand side of the page addressing the natural mode of reading from left to right down the page. I put the additional content and competitions at the bottom of the page so it is the last thing the reader sees, this, in a way, seals the deal when a potential consumer looks at the magazine in a store. The barcode is at the bottom left of the page so that it is the last thing the reader will look at, this is because there is no need for the reader to see it and decreases the quality of the aesthetics of the page.


AddressingOnce my audience was attracted by the features mentioned previously the magazine starts to address them. My music magazine addresses through both visual and literal methods throughout the content.The front cover of the magazine does not only attract but also addresses the audience, for example my magazine uses a visually attractive model to attract the audience but they are also addressed through the use of eye contact that makes a connection to the audience.There were a few ways in which my magazine addressed my audience for example; Imagery, writing style and the use of competitions and prizes which has elements of both attracting and addressing.


PhotographsI chose a model, outfit and stance that would attract mixture of male and females readers, primarily male. I did this by having my model look directly at the camera and therefore the audience to create a direct mode of address. By doing this the reader has eye contact with the model creating a relation and connection to the magazine. I chose a female model and had her appear as a stereotypical female following Laura Mulvey's theory of the Male gaze. By creating a stance look and clothing that would appear sexually appealing to an audience of males, yet at the same time appears as a roles model, someone to aspire to be like to a female audience.


Writing style.The writing style I chose was colloquial and also most slang like, this is because it gives the audience something in common with the magazine, almost as though reading the magazine was like having a conversation with a mate. This informal and sometimes playful use of language also reflects the age and music & fashion genre the audience is attracted to. I also used exclamation marks to exaggerate the content to the audience to give connotations of the joy full and energized teen culture, this changes the way the text is read by the audience and emphasises certain aspects of it.The use of rhetorical questions suggests that the magazine is actually addressing the audience and asking them a question, although there is no answer required it makes the audience want to know.


Images/text rationI have used more images than I text because I believe it is more attractive to a younger audience.Stereotypically teenagers prefer to see more images than text because reading large amount of text can often become tedious, I have also used large imagery based page references so that through the use of imagery alone the content can really stand out. I have mostly used small attention grabbing words and phrases to be read so that the reader can get the general gist of what each article is about.I have also made use of canted imagery to address the teenage audience as it reflects how teenagers dislike conformity and the rebellious nature of teenagers as opposed to a formal structure seen in media such as news papers.


question 5

Art & Photos