Front Cover layout Plan

This is my initial plan for the front cover of my music magazine.

Contents page analysis

NME CONTENTS PAGE

This magazine's contents page features a number of different images; these images each have a notable quote associated with them and some interesting information about the person or group. This gives the reader a little taste of what’s in this edition and makes them want to read the rest of the magazine.

The fact that images overshadow the text shows that this magazine is relying on imagery to entice the reader rather than the text, and it also shows that the editors believe that the readers prefer images rather than a large amount of text on the contents page. However, there is also quite a bit of descriptive text featured on the page considering that the contents is a single page, so overall I think there is a fair amount of text for the size of the page.

The main colours used are black and white. This symbolises the fact that this magazine is not over elaborate; it is simply a rock magazine which their target audience wants. The fonts used are mostly serif fonts (Times New Roman etc.). These fonts make the magazine seem more sophisticated and professional, making it appeal more to the reader.

The layout of this page intentionally puts more emphasis on the main features articles and interviews, by accompanying larger font with large image. The purpose of this is to help the audience know where to locate the main articles which they would want to read. All of the other content in the magazine is located an index with page numbers at the bottom of the page so that the audience know where to locate that content.

The contents of this page are separated by black lines. The purpose of this is to make it more organised and easier for the reader to distinguish between the different articles. The contents page also has a promotional offer in the bottom right corner of the page offering the audience a 36% saving on the full price of the magazine by giving NME £74.99 for the year. These promotional offers are important because it helps gain the magazine money and a larger audience. Also, the promotional offer is in a pink box which is unique on this page. This draws the reader’s eyes to it and makes it likely that they will read it.

The NME logo does not feature anywhere on the contents page suggesting that they are already a well-known brand that they don't need to show their logo again on the contents page.

Ideal reader profile

My ideal readers name is Justin Cole. He is an 18 year old male living in north London. He is currently doing his A levels and is studying music, photography and art. Justin's favourite hobbies are playing his guitar in his band, playing video games and listening to his favourite rock music. His mother is a receptionist in a doctor's surgery and his father is a builder. He also has an older sister, Rebbecca, who is 24 and shares her brothers taste for rock music but also likes R 'n' B. Justin does struggle with reading but is capable enough to read more easier texts. My magazine's interviews and articles will contain text which will be easy enough for Justin to read but still be enjoyable and captivating, making sure it is still of a high standard. I will make sure my magazine contains everything a rock music lover wants, like interviews with popular rock musicians and images that are interesting.

Title Blocks

TITLE BLOCK A

TITLE BLOCK B

TITLE BLOCK C
TITLE BLOCK D

TITLE BLOCK E

These are my title blocks, in which I believe are ideal for my magazine cover. I have created a poll for people to vote for which title block they believe are the best/ideal one for my magazine cover.

Magazine questionare analysis

Analysis of Questionnaire Results

I received 23 reply's from the questionnaire I produced which is a sufficient amount to make the final decisions for my rock magazine. The questionnaire was given to males and females of the age range 16-19 years old. In the first question I asked what priced did they believe to be a fair amount to pay for the magazine that will be released monthly. The majority (35%) believed the price should be between £1-£2 which is a fair amount for a new magazine on the market. 52% of people asked preferred the magazine title to be called LOUD, so I decided that is what I will call my magazine.

61% of people asked did say that they would rather read about established artists rather than up and coming artists, nevertheless my magazine will feature up and coming artists because it is not fully established enough to have interviews with well known artists and people will like to find out about exciting new artists. An overwhelming 77% would prefer to read interviews with music artists, so I will make sure the majority of my magazine will be interviews.

70% of people revealed that they regularly collect magazines. This is a very promising statistic because it shows me that if my magazine is popular with my target audience, there are still enough people who would be willing to regularly collect my magazine. The majority of people said they would prefer my magazine to have a red & black colour scheme, I agree that this would be appropriate for my rock magazine so I will use this.

Lastly, 78% of people said that they would like the magazine to offer the readers the chance to win competitions to meet bands and artists etc. So I will ensure that the magazines will be able to offer readers the chance to meet artists or bands that are featured in my magazine.

Title Block evaluation

The denotation of this title block is that the letters are big and bold and are bright red, which is very eye-catching. The background is black which contrasts with the red letters to also further make the title block stand out as the aim of the magazine's designers is to make a magazine that people automatically notice in shops etc. The connotation of this is that it represents the magazine as also being bold and exciting to read. Also the word Vibe means a distinctive emotional atmosphere which could mean that this magazine is also emotional. The word VIBE could also represent that the magazine is for younger people as that particular word is often used by the younger generation of early teens to early 30's and not people of an older generation.

 

The denotation of this title block is that the letters are bold and yellow and stand out against the black background. Although it is successful in making the title block stand out, it is also very underwhelming and bland, which makes me think that the actual magazine is like this also. The title ‘the source’ suggests this magazine is the best magazine to get everything the reader wants to know regarding this magazines genre, it suggests it is the only magazine to give you information other magazines would not give you.

  

This title block is very interesting. The red background makes the white ‘Q’ bold and eye-catching. Red could symbolise the passion this magazine has for the specific music genre, rock that it centres around. The white colour could symbolise pureness, meaning this is a pure music magazine and nothing else. The ‘Q’ is in italics and seems like it is times new roman, which is a sophisticated font size, this could show that the magazine is also sophisticated and has more class than the other music magazines on the market. The actual title ‘Q’ can also mean a number of things. For example, it sounds like queue, meaning that this magazine is very popular and it also sounds like cue, which is a musical term.

                                               

Kerrang is a music magazine specifically for the rock genre. The style of this title block is very bold and destructive. The letters consists of visible cracks.The connotation of this is to show that the magazine is hardcore and so powerful that it can literally crack words. It could also symbolise that Rock music isn't all happy and perfect, there are cracks in it but that is what makes rock music great. The word kerrang actually sounds like a noise that may be produced when using a musical instrument, connecting the title to the genre. The text is only in black. This colour could be representing the darkness that rock music is generally associated with. The fact that the title block uses just one colour shows that this magazine is simply a rock magazine and nothing else. The choice of colour for the text, black, may also be seen as very stereotypical because it is seen as only goths and EMO's like rock music and they only like the colour black, so this title block is trying to appeal to that specific audience.

Magazine Proposal

I have chosen the main genre for my magazine to be rock music as I believe there is a gap in the market for a fresh new rock magazine and there is still a large audience who enjoy rock music. Many people responded positively to my questionairre based on the rock music magazine I aim to produce, this tells me there is a large audience who would be interested in purchasing my magazine when it is produced. The target audience for my magazine will be multi-gender and from a variety of different social back grounds. The target audience will be from the ages of 16-30 because due to the survey I had done, it has proven the genre I have chosen is popular with people from the ages of 16-19 but I also believe many people over the age of 19 to 30 also enjoy rock music, therefore they are also in my target audience. I believe my magazine needs to be enlisted into the market because many rock magazines are too similar, I want my magazine to be original and something fresh that rock enthusiasts will enjoy to read.