Evaluation Question 5 DRAFT

How did you attract/address your audience?

When designing my front cover I chose to use a minimalistic style so that the cover image would stand out and catch the readers eye, attracting them to both the magazine and the artist. I have styled my artist almost unconventionally  due to the fact I have not adhered to the male gaze in which the artist is sexualised, as I feel a role model that girls can aspire to, instead of a pin up girl, shows 'new' music artists in a good light. The bright coloured background is unusual due to most covers being either white or grey, and this provides a unique selling point that targets the female 16-24 audience.

The bands and artists mentioned on the cover will also appeal to the audience as they belong to the alternative/indie genre and fit in with the theme of the magazine. If the reader likes finding out about new bands they can look on the front cover or flick to the contents and then read about what's inside, and get a flavour of the different bands and styles of music covered throughout the magazine. The mention of 'Hazel Grace, Touring Fashion and Artefact' draws the reader in as it explains a little about what they can find out by reading the article on Hazel Grace. The mention of fashion would catch the attention of the female readers as they may have interests in the fashion world and want to discover what their favourite music artist wears.  

I have priced the magazine at £4.00 and this would be affordable to 16-24 year old females, as it is monthly therefore they don't have to pay it once a week. Also, many of them would have jobs just like the girl in my audience profile, and therefore be able to spend money on items such as this magazine. The high-end style of the magazine also means the readers get their money's worth, especially since I planned to include around 150-200 pages in the magazine. 

When creating my contents page I included content such as 'read about the nominations...', 'get our exclusive covers sent to your door' and 'say hello to...' as these things address the readers directly and connect with them on a more personal level, instead of being a magazine full of factual and un-interesting information that the reader can't engage with. Also, when writing the double page spread article I designed it so it would be Hazel Grace talking to an interviewer, but it also feels like she is talking to the readers, and answering the questions directly to them, as they are the ones reading about her and making their own opinion on what she is like. 

The lack of coverlines on the front cover of STATE magazine would provoke curiosity in the reader due to the fact they can't automatically see what is inside. The reader can then pick the magazine up and have a more thorough look, instead of being put off instantly by large adverts or strap lines. When gathering research I created an online market research survey and asked my twitter followers to fill it in, as they mostly into indie music and are teenagers in the 16-24 year old category. The majority of my surveyed audience were females and selected indie as their preferred music type, therefore I found that for my magazine to be successful, I would have to cater to these types of people. When asked 'what do you like/not like on the cover of magazines' the audience replied with the following responses: 

From this survey I found that the best way to appeal to my audience would be to make my cover simplistic, and the survey shows they don't enjoy overcrowded pages with too many pictures or too much writing.  

When designing my magazine I found the audience survey helped (see post here: http://hollyarmitagelccw13.blogspot.co.uk/2013/01/market-research-survey.html) as I developed a clear idea of what would attract and appeal to the age group and gender I wanted to aim for. When writing my article for my double page spread, I used ideas and thoughts that the survey provided, as I asked the audience what they like finding out about. 

I used things such as inspiration, upcoming tours and albums, what music they're into and personal stories when writing the interview with Hazel Grace, as I knew these things would be enjoyable to find out about from the point of view of myself as a reader, and the audience, due to the market research. This helped me decide what would appeal and attract the audience, as also what the anchored cover line would be to base the interview on: 'touring, fashion and artefact' - upcoming tours, personal hobbies and likes, new album. 

Once I had completed my draft I then got peer feedback from my peers who are also in the target audience for my magazine. Two of my peers said that the colour palette used was good  as they compliment each other and appeal to the target audience as the front cover is bold due to the purple; which leads me to believe the magazine is eye catching and appeals to the target audience, enticing them to buy my product.