MAGAZINE PITCHBY JAMES KIRBY

The Brief:

You have been commissioned by the Northern Echo to produce a new magazine or newspaper product. Your product could be in any style or genre (lifestyle mag, music mag and so on) but it must be self financed through sales or advertising. You must also produce your magazine for a specified audience segment within the 16 to 25 age group.

Client Constraints• Constraints from the northern echo:

– The target audience proposed by my client the Northern Echo, is within the age range of 16-25 years of age.

– High profile– Newsquest is one of the leading publishers of magazines and

newspaper material within the UK, having 300 titles included in its portfolio. This company owns the Northern Echo, and therefore I have also had to consider constraints set out by the larger publisher, known as Newsquest.

Client Research

• My client has requested a magazine that represents both the local music scene and the wider gaming community

• I have successfully created a magazine that identifies both these client needs, without sacrifice to either the quality or quantity of my product.

• I believe there is a gap in the market for my magazine, its unique blend of both gaming and music is leading the way for cross-genre magazines.

Press Complaints Commission

• The PCC is a voluntary regulatory body for British printed newspapers and magazines, consisting of representatives of the major publishers. It is funded by the annual levy it charges newspapers and magazines.

• As the PCC is a regulatory body, and all printed material within the UK has an obligation to follow it’s guidelines and rules, I have had to consider at least 2 codes from the PCC body.

• The first I have had to oblige by is Accuracy, making sure my articles have been prove read and adhere to the truth, as reported by journalists.

• The second code to consider is Misrepresentation, which can draw a thin line being discrimination and representations. The bands I am going to feature in my magazines will be made fully aware of these 2 codes.

Audience Research• My audience is a selective, niche group that

make up a much smaller percentile of the overall regional audience. This has proved problematic with the future success of my magazine, as much less people will be purchasing its pages than a contemporary magazine.

• My audience is between the average age of 16-25, and fit comfortably into the C1/B2 socioeconomic grade.

• I have researched the possible narrative structures and tone of my audience, and have concluded that theyprefer to be spoken to in first person, as this gives a sense that the writer has experienced the subject of the article. However, I will be adopting a third person narrative for the reviews included in my magazine, keeping it anonymous and unbiased.

Genre Research• My magazine has been majorly influenced by several

key magazines within both the gaming and music genres. I have adopted subliminal features from both to contribute to the success of my own.

• Kerrang! Magazine is the leading format for rock and metal music, so I thought it best to explore it’s styles and themes, and research it thoroughly, to gain invaluable knowledge for my own product.

• As my magazine is clashing two genres into one, my primary gaming resource was Edge Magazine, which is highly regarded amongst gaming enthusiasts as the only true source to the gaming world. It’s anonymous third person narrative is essential and effective with its target audience.

Edge magazine Issue#234 (December 2011). The magazine is known for it’s longevity, having been in print since August 1993

Magazine AnalysisThe cover consists of a main three colour rule, olive, white and

yellow, but also clashes with a mix of red which could be classed as a secondary colour, these splashes of vibrancy helping to restrain the cover from being anything but professional. The masthead, situated at the top centre, is featured in a bright, yellow colour scheme, which primarily attracts the younger audiences as yellow is generally a warm, welcoming colour. The masthead is located in this position due to the layout that the magazine would have to embrace in a generic store. The magazine advertises freebies that further attract its target audience. This freebie not only pushes the normal, shop going buyer to purchase the magazine, but should, with its intentions, persuade a valued collector to part with his/her cash and increase their personal repertoire of collector items. It is embellished in blue, yellow with a streak of purple tint, which is considered a royal colour, which makes both the reader and collector feel exclusive. The freebie also dons a retro style to its text and imagery, which gives the collector item a vintage, quality selectiveness to its cover.

Magazine Analysis Part 2

Kerrang!’s DPS’ are consistently

rearranging colour schemes and text

objectives. They usually abide by a

three colour rule, red, white and black,

or a variation of the three. Images are

commonly desatuarted or stripped of

primary colours, to appeal to it’s

alternative target audience. Band

interviews are a heavy feature of the

magazine, giving the reader an insight

into their favourite artists thoughts

and music. Graphic, bold fonts are

deployed for the main header, whereas

a more toned down, elegant text is

used for the main bulk of the article.

This appeals to both the alternative

and older audiences.

The ProductMock Up 1

Bold, graphic fonts for the main header, mirror that of Kerrang Magazine.

The ProductMock Up 2

The ProductMock Up 3

Front Cover Mock Up

• This is a mock up of a possible front cover layout I will be using. Colour scheme will be three rule, and the imagery will feature a main image enlarged to convey dominance to my Target Audience.

Commercial and audience Viability• My client has requested a magazine that

represents both the local music scene and the wider gaming community

• I have successfully created a magazine that identifies both these client needs, without sacrificing on either quality or quantity.

• I believe there is a gap in the market for my magazine, its unique blend of both gaming and music is leading the way for cross-genre magazines.

• Sales: 5000 x 2.50 = £12.500• Total Expenditure: £8326.8• Total Income: £19,160• Net Profit/Loss: £10,833.2

1,350

875240

720

1,800

550

500625

6,660

Full page advertDouble Page SpreadHalf Page AdvertQuarter Page AdvertEighth Page AdvertInside Front AdvertInside Back AdvertOutside Back AdvertAdvertising Total

From the commercial and viability research I have conducted, I am making a clear profit from the sale of 5000 copies of my product. Therefore, it is commercially viable and should enjoy local success.

ConclusionMy USP is that my magazine is a clash between two respective genres, and is unique

from anything on the market at the present day. I set out to achieve a successful and viable product that would be distributed to the local area, with 5000 copies being printed for sale.

I approached my magazine in a professional manner, making sure I researched previous magazines before hand, to gain a back catalogue of ideas and knowledge to aid in my own production process. I approached it from this directive to ensure a successful production process, as mentioned previously.

My clients aims were to produce a self financed, local magazine within a specific age range, and I believe I have accomplished and met my client’s demands.