Magazine Content - Idea Update

My research and analysis of other magazines has helped me to gather my own ideas of what I want my magazine to roughly look like. Here are my ideas so far for the cover, contents and the double page spread, along with what kinds of articles I may feature.

Front Cover

Magazine Name Possibilities: 

Anarchist/Anarchy
Noise
Bloodstream
Ashes
Affliction

I think I will most likely use either Affliction or Bloodstream, as I think they sound quite conventional in terms of how rock magazine names are usually aggressive sounding words in order to connote the nature of the music genre. Although I like the other names as well such as Noise, I think Affliction sounds more attention-grabbing and has more of an impact.

Image Ideas:

My ideas for images I could use that I will take photographs of or make are concerts (this will be achievable as I have been to one very recently), a male/female model with a guitar, friends posing as band members, or a new album by said band members (I could make a cover for the album using Photoshop).

Colour Schemes:

I think I will determine the colour scheme by the fonts I use, what my masthead/magazine logo is, and the colours of the images I use so they don't conflict too much. So far I think that shades of green or purple with black are a possibility, but again I think it will depend on what is featured on the front cover so that it looks consistent. I would like to break the convention of black, red and white so that my magazine looks fresh and new, something my target audience would notice instantly is different from the rest.

Contents Page

Bands Likely to be Featured in Article Names:

- Mallory Knox
- KoRn
- Marilyn Manson
- Three Days Grace
- Breaking Benjamin
- Panic! At The Disco - I could do an exclusive on their upcoming album
- Any other bands that have recent news
- Fictional band names that sound like they are of the rock/metal genre

Other

Possible Ads I Could Feature:

My ideas for adverts in the magazine are the new Guitar Hero game, upcoming band tours, merchandise and generally adverts that don't appeal to a particular gender. This means I will be able to keep my potential audience and reach as open as possible.

Double Page Spread:

Article Ideas:

My ideas for articles so far are:

- An exclusive interview with an artist or band about their upcoming tour/album - For the interview I would be making up a band rather than doing it on one that already exists because I wouldn't be able to represent a real band's views and so a made up one would be easier to produce. For the image on the double page spread I could get some friends to pose as said band according to conventions of how bands are usually arranged in magazine photos (representing different character types, for example the leader, the mysterious one, the pretty one, etc).

- A review for a game or album - For this article I could review a popular game or album such as the new Guitar Hero or a new album of a band's that has came out recently, providing I have played/listened to it. I think this would be a good option because it would be fairly easy to structure in terms of what I could write about, although if I were to produce my own images for the article it might be difficult because I would have to show the front cover of the CD or game. I would have to also keep in mind the different platforms the game may be on, such as X-box or Playstation.

- An account of a concert - I think that an account of a concert would be a good idea as I have been to one very recently (November 20th) by Marina and the Diamonds. Although the band isn't strictly in the rock genre, I have photographs of a supporting act that are more of the rock genre. However, if I wanted to I could give an account of a Mallory Knox concert I went to not long ago that I still have photographs of the venue and band for.

- A list recommending things to people who like the rock/metal genre - This list could include things such as a list of albums all rock fans need to hear or a list of bands that are a must-see live. This overlaps into my article ideas for an account of a concert and a review for a game/album idea so I think combining these into one article is a possibility, although it might be difficult to keep the tone of the article consistent all the way through because of the topic changes.

Flat Plans

Above are the flat plans I have drawn as a rough design of what I think my magazine will look like. I will now be moving on into my production stage. 

Research into Institutions that Distribute Similar Products

NME Magazine:

Owned by: Time Inc. UK

Other magazines owned by Time Inc. UK include magazines targeting a mass female audience such as Woman's Weekly, Pick Me Up, Chat, TVTimes. They also own a range of magazines that cover specific interests, and are mainly directed at men, such as Rugby World, Cycling Weekly and Amateur Photographer although Amateur Photographer is arguably non-gender specific.

Time Inc. UK don't publish any other music magazines, which I think is unusual as their other areas such as the ones that target women cover such a broad range and it would make sense to maximise their profit by covering music magazine genres other than rock/metal. However, this also means that they may be interested in a new magazine that would help to fill the gap in the market, although mine is also of the rock/metal genre, so it would be better to aim for a publisher who has either no music magazines or no music magazines of that genre.

Source: http://www.timeincuk.com/brands/#iconic-brands - 09/11/15

Classic Rock Magazine:

Owned by: Team Rock

There is only one other magazine owned by Team Rock which is Metal Hammer, although they also own an internet rock station, Team Rock Radio. Their target audience is very niche, as it only covers an audience who is interested in the rock/metal genre, so for this reason, if this company were to publish my magazine, I would have to acknowledge the competition against Metal Hammer and Classic Rock and make sure that my magazine is more unique and covers a wider range of sub-genres. I think the target audience is also most likely an age range of 16-20+. Team Rock don't publish any magazines of any other genre, making their distribution and potential reach quite small.


Source: http://www.teamrock.com/commercial-terms?ns_source=global&ns_mchannel=desktop&ns_campaign=footer-tracking&ns_linkname=commercial-terms - 09/11/15

Imagine Publishing

In my research I also found a publisher that may be more likely to benefit if they were to distribute my magazine. Imagine Publishing are UK-based and publish magazines of the creative, video game and computing genre. For example, they publish Advanced Photoshop, Digital Photographer, Retro Gamer,  Play and Smartphone Essentials. I think they may be interested in my magazine as they don't currently publish any music magazines, so mine would be a way to gain a larger audience and perhaps more interest in other magazines they publish as well.

Sources: https://media.info/organisations/names/imagine-publishing - 10/11/15
http://www.imagine-publishing.co.uk/at_a_glance - 10/11/15

How this research will influence my magazine:

From this research, I now know that I will have to aim for a publisher who distributes magazines of a similar genre to mine- as although it is preferable to be the only rock/metal music magazine on the market, I know that this is unrealistic and there will always be competition. I will therefore make sure that my product has unique qualities that appeal to more niche sub-genres as well as the mass appeal of the genre in general that magazines like Kerrang! tend to go for.

For these reasons, I have chosen Team Rock as my distributor. Although Imagine Publishing and Time Inc. UK were both equally good choices, I thought it would be a wiser decision to choose a publisher with an already well-established readership. This also means that although they already cover the genres of rock and metal magazines, they may be more likely to be interested in widening their potential reach by distributing my magazine that covers a wider range of sub-genres for niche audiences as well as mass, so it would give them a more well-rounded distribution. To set my magazine apart from the rest, I will aim to make my content more unique while at the same time keeping the main conventions of the genre to keep my target audience consistent with Team Rock's likely audience of 16-20+.

3-Point Lighting Research

3-Point Lighting Definitions:

Key Light: The main light which is usually the strongest and has the most influence on the look of the resulting photograph. Key lighting is placed to one side of the subject so that this side is well lit and the other has some shadow, and provides most of the contrast in the photograph.

Fill Light: Fill light is secondary lighting which is placed on the opposite side of the key light to balance it out. It is used to fill in shadows created by the key. The lighting of this is softer and less bright.

Back Light: Back lighting is placed behind the subject and rather than providing direct lighting, its purpose is to provide definition and subtle highlights. It helps to separate the subject from the background and gives a 3-dimensional effect.

Below is a diagram I found that illustrates this:

Found image examples of the different effects the lights have:

Other Lighting Definitions:

High-key Lighting: A lighting scheme where the fill light is raised to almost the same level as the key light. This creates bright photos and there are few shadows on the subject.

Low-key Lighting: A lighting scheme that has very little fill light, which creates strong contrast between the brightest and darkest parts of the photo. It also often creates strong shadows that obscure parts of the principal subjects.

High/Low-key lighting examples:

How this research will influence my shoot:

This research will help me to understand the effects of different lightings I use when I do my own photo shoot for my magazine's photos and help me to make them look professional. I will most likely use this 3-point lighting technique for any photographs I do in a studio, although I will try to experiment to see what looks best and gives the effect I want, for example if I wanted half of the subject to be in shadow or if I wanted the subject to be illuminated by just the back light. I also think it will depend on any incident lighting there may be if I chose to do a photo in a setting other than a studio. I will also experiment with high-key and low-key lighting and see if it is a possibility for any of my magazine's photos.

Costume & Props Research & Planning

For inspiration for my costume & props planning, I first of all did an image search to find out the typical type of clothing and make-up for someone who likes rock/metal music, or is in a rock/metal band themselves. I also looked at sites such as http://asylumindustries.net/ who describe themselves as being a shop for "alternative clothing and band merch".

I found in this research that the kinds of clothing items that are typical for people into this genre to wear are leather jackets, boots, eyeliner and sometimes checked shirts, so I will use something similar to this for mine as it will communicate the genre to my target audience easily. Below are some examples of the images I found that gave me this impression:

I also think that I may use a prop such as a guitar or microphone to make the genre more obvious to my target audience.

In terms of models, I plan to have both males and females so that my potential audience isn't limited by gender. For the setting I may use either somewhere outside, such as having the model posed against a wall, or in a studio, but I think it will depend on the props I use and the impression I want to give.

My ideas for an outfit for my models so far are:

Male model: Black jacket, a t-shirt that shows a band name, black jeans and possibly a small necklace of some sort. Props I may use include a microphone or a guitar. The hair won't be styled in any particular way as I don't think it matters as much for male models and won't connote anything.

Female model: Black leather jacket, ripped jeans or a skirt, accessories such as bracelets or earrings most likely with spikes, high-heeled boots, and a casual top. I will probably use a microphone for a prop with them or have them posed naturally, and feature them as an exclusive interview.

To experiment further, I will be making a collage of different ideas and seeing which outfits look best and which ones connote the genre and appeal to the target audience the most efficiently to make the photo shoot look professional. I don't think buying the clothes will be a problem as I will make sure that the outfit I want to put together is similar to items I already own, or that my sister already owns as I may ask her to be my model because she is older and would relate to my target audience more.

Primary Audience Research - Questionnaire & Analysis

Primary Audience Research – Questionnaire & Results Analysis

The Questionnaire

    1)     What age are you?

__________

   2)     What is your gender?

___________________

   3)     How often do you purchase magazines?

[   ]                   [   ]                    [   ]                    [   ]

Always      Most of the time      Occasionally      Never

   4)     What magazine genre do you usually purchase?

Celebrity	TV	Health	Sports	Cars	Science	Technology	Music	Other

   5)     If you were to buy a music magazine, what genre of music would you want to be featured?

Rock	Metal	Classical	Hip-Hop	Rap	Charts Music	Pop	Alternative	Other

   6)     What topics would you be interested in reading about in a music magazine (not considering the music genre)?

Gigs/Tours Information	News	Band Gossip	Interviews	Merchandise (clothes, jewellery, etc).	Music Reviews	New & Upcoming Bands

   7)     What do you consider a reasonable price for a magazine?

£0.00-£1.20	£1.21-£2.00	£2.01-£3.20	£3.21+

   8)     What features or topics would you want to see in a new music magazine?

______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

   9)     How often do you purchase a magazine solely because of the celebrity/band/actor/actress featured on the cover in the main image?

   [   ]                      [   ]                      [   ]               [   ]

Always      Most of the time      Occasionally      Never

   10)  What kind of adverts would you be interested in seeing in a music magazine? (for example: band      merchandise, fashion, upcoming albums, etc)

______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

   11)  How likely are you to subscribe to a magazine?

             [   ]                   [   ]                [   ]              [   ]

Almost definitely       Likely to       Possibly       Never

   12)  How likely are you to enter competitions you see in a magazine?

             [   ]                   [   ]                [   ]              [   ]

Almost definitely       Likely to       Possibly       Never

13)  How often do discounts, offers, free or exclusive items influence your choice when buying a magazine?

   [   ]                   [   ]                        [   ]                [   ]

Always      Most of the time      Occasionally      Never

The Results:

I conducted my survey in-person and asked 16 people of varying ages, but mostly people of my own age group and slightly above as my target audience is ages 15-25. The median age from the data I gathered was 18. I surveyed 7 males and 9 females. My results were:

1) Age:  Median age: 18

2) Gender: Male - 7
                  Female - 9

3) How often do you purchase magazines?
    Always: 5

    Most of the time: 4

    Occasionally: 6

    Never: 2

4) What magazine genre do you usually purchase?

     Celebrity - 2
     TV - 3
     Health - 0
     Sports - 2
     Cars - 3
     Science - 1  
     Technology - 1    
     Music - 4    
     Other - 0

5) If you were to buy a music magazine, what genre of music would you want to be featured?

    Rock - 3
    Metal - 3
    Classical - 1 
    Hip-Hop - 1
    Rap - 2
    Charts Music - 4
    Pop - 2 
    Alternative - 0
    Other - 0

6) What topics would you be interested in reading about in a music magazine (not considering the            music genre)?
   
     Gigs/Tours Information - 2
     News - 3
     Band Gossip - 1
     Interviews - 4
     Merchandise (clothes, jewellery, etc) - 2
     Music Reviews - 1
     New & Upcoming Bands - 3

7) What do you consider a reasonable price for a magazine?
    £0.00-£1.20  - 2
    £1.21-£2.00  - 7
    £2.01-£3.20  - 5
    £3.21+ -  1

8) What features or topics would you want to see in a new music magazine?
     Most Common/Interesting Answers:
     Advice column – advice given by music artists

     Concert reviews, album reviews

     
9) How often do you purchase a magazine solely because of the celebrity/band/actor/actress featured       on the cover in the main image?

    Always: 2

    Most of the time: 5

    Occasionally: 6

    Never: 3

10) What kind of adverts would you be interested in seeing in a music magazine? (for example: band                      merchandise, fashion, upcoming albums, etc)

             Most Common Answers: Merchandise, fashion, upcoming albums

      

      11) How likely are you to subscribe to a magazine?

            

             Almost definitely: 3

       Likely to: 2

       Possibly: 7

       Never: 4

12) How likely are you to enter competitions you see in a magazine?

       

       Almost definitely: 4

       Likely to: 5

       Possibly: 6

       Never: 1

13) How often do discounts, offers, free or exclusive items influence your choice when buying a               magazine?

      Almost definitely: 6

      Likely to: 5

      Possibly: 3

      Never: 2

Analysis

From these results, I found out some very valuable information from my target audience, although I did ask quite a few people slightly above this range, but I think this was a good decision because it guaranteed a wider variety of opinions. In my questionnaire I tried to be specific and made sure to include questions that would get me both quantitative and qualitative answers, such as questions that asked for data such as what genre of magazine they usually purchase along with questions that asked for more opinionated answers, such as what features they may look for in a new magazine. These types of questions especially will be the ones to help me to decide on key features and articles in my magazine so that I can maximize my potential reach.

The key information I found were the similarities I saw in answers, even though there was difference in age, as this will help me to narrow down the interests of the majority of the target audience. For example, from question 13 I found that discounts, offers, and free or exclusive items, for the most part, do influence a potential buyer's choice when purchasing a magazine, as 14 out of 16 answered either: 'almost definitely', 'likely to', or 'possibly', meaning only 2 people said it would never influence their choice, and can therefore be disregarded from the majority. From this I can see that free exclusives, or freebies, can most often tempt a reader in their decisions when buying a magazine, and my product would probably benefit from advertising one. For this reason, I will be including on my front cover an exclusive such as a free CD or other perk, exclusive to readers of my product only.

Other findings that will influence my magazine product include the answers for question 8, where I asked what features my audience would look for in a new music magazine. The most interesting answers I got for this question were: 'Advice column – advice given by music artists'. I find this interesting because after my studies in existing music magazines, I don't think it is a very common feature, and there is therefore an opportunity for me to break a convention and make my product more unique. I will definitely keep this in mind when designing my product. The other common answers I got to this question were 'concert and album reviews'. I will make sure to include these in my designing and production stages, as they were most requested.

Overall, this questionnaire has helped me a lot in getting to know my target audience first-hand by collecting my own primary data, and I think it will influence my choices in the design and production process a lot as I can now tailor my magazine to their interests more precisely.

Masthead Research

Q Magazine’s masthead is a single letter rather than a name that may connote a genre, which is quite unconventional compared to magazines such as Rocksound or Kerrang!. However, it is still similar as it is simple but eye-catching. The masthead is in bold white font against a red background, with the catch line “Discover great music” in capitals underneath. This implies that the magazine features a lot of new bands or bands that aren’t very mainstream, making the shade of red chosen in this sense look quite sophisticated and classic.

Having a single letter rather than a word may work in their favour as it most likely won’t have any main images that overlap onto it, meaning that their masthead will be easy to spot and will stand out against everything else on the page. It would also be easy for the audience to see and recognise, helping them create a more iconic brand identity amongst all the others.


NME’s masthead is similar to Q’s in how it is quite short, and the colours black, red and white are typical of these types of magazines. The masthead is in bold capital letters with a white outline to help it stand out on the page against other fonts or images.

There isn’t much to communicate the genre to the audience other than the colours, although when said phonetically “N-M-E” sounds like the word “enemy”, which sounds quite aggressive and these kinds of words are often used by magazines to connote genres such as rock/metal. This may or may not be NME’s intention, but I still find it quite significant in seeing how magazines use different codes and conventions to convey themes.

Kerrang!’s masthead is in a bold white font against a black background, with little letter spacing. I think they may have chose white for their masthead as this means it is easily changeable if they want a certain colour scheme for that issue without readers thinking much of it, and it won’t contrast too much with the rest of the page or main images used. It is in capital letters, which seems to be common for this genre of magazine. There is an addition of scratch/crack lines going through it, which could be to represent the genre of rock/metal music, but also makes Kerrang!’s logo more their own and different from others.

 

Rocksound’s logo is in a bold white font and capital letters. Their logo also has what looks like a stamp mark on the R, with the text “Rocksound TV” around it. I think that like Kerrang!, Rocksound have used an extra graphic here to give them more of a brand identity and to make it more unique. The name itself, Rocksound, connotes immediately the genre of music the magazine features to the target audience.