Audience Research

Reader profile

View more presentations from Katrina Stapleford.

Questionnaire questions 7,8,9,10

 The seventh question is way of finding out what the readers interests are outside of music and if I could incorporate it into the magazine. The most popular genre was 'Comedies' by a margin of about 35%, this took me by surprise as reality TV is usually the most talked about thing between teens. This is useful to know though as it means I can incorporate items such as reviews of new comedies, recommend comedy shows, tours, films, books or even comedy bands.

The eighth question was about spending money on music, it told me that most people spend as little as £5 on music per month and the votes decrease as the money goes up. >£30 received no votes which shows me that the readers will most likely not be elaborate spenders.

This question showed me that the readers are interested in festivals/gigs and the only thing restricting them from going is the cost and the opportunity. It could therefore prove useful to show relevant information about upcoming gigs in the magazine and show ticket prices or even pick out shows which at a lower price. This question was useful as it showed me that the interest was there for live bands.

Question ten is the most important question as it will help to shape the magazine, give it a house style and develop character. This question was about peoples preference to styles and layout. The choices which proved most popular were 'Lots of imagery' and 'Easy to read', I must now use these styles to influence my design and try to avoid, 'Newspaper format' which received no votes.

Theses choices reflect how teenagers/young adults like lots of imagery and information presented in way that is fun yet easy to navigate.

Questionnaire questions 3,4,5,6

 The third question is about which type of websites people spent time on, the results showed that over 90% went on social networking sites and was the most popular by nearly double. The second most popular choice were video sites; primarily YouTube. The two most popular results show that nearly everyone wants to stay in the loop with others and behave in a sociable manner, interacting with video, personal updates and messages. This very much reflects the culture of today and was entirely what I expected to see. There was a slight interest in shopping and music websites but not enough to make it a priority in my magazine, it also makes me question, is there a point in including fashion items if they have no intention of buying them? 

The fourth question was about the resources people have to access music. Do they rely on friends to provide new information? Does the media showcase enough new music? The most popular choices were 'From Friends' and the 'Media', this means that these are the two most reliable sources; this could lead to having a readers forum where people can put forward new artists they like, as the readers could trust the suggestions, because its coming from a media source and real people similar to themselves, it could be the most effective way to showcase new talent.

 The fifth question was about priority of articles in my magazine. The parts of a magazine which proved most popular were quizzes, and interviews. I think the quizzes section was most popular because it's a way for the reader to connect with the magazine, also it's accepting to know others have taken part in the same quiz, therefore there is a feeling of inclusion. The interviews section did well as it provides information on interests and shows readers that they have a common interest. This is also why posters/photos received a lot of votes.



The sixth question was about finding out how much the readers would respect music. The majority of people, when asked 'Do they illegally download music?', answered 'Never'. The second most popular answer was 'Sometimes but I pay for some', both answers show me that generally people do respect the music industry and pay for music. This means that they might be willing to pay a bit more money for the magazine, they wouldn't mind paying for lesser known music in which they wouldn't find free downloads of, and that they have a strong interest in music.

Questionnaire Evaluation Questions 1&2

This is my questionnaire I devised to find out information about magazines. This research will help me to design my own magazine which attends to the majority of the readers needs. I chose to give the option of multiple answers as I wouldn't want to limit their opinions. The first question is 'What magazines genres are you interested in?', I chose this question because it can help me decide on the best house style to use, the best angle to come from, and what type of language to use.                                     The response I received was varied, the most popular choice were 'Gossip/Celeb magazines', and the weakest choice were 'Classic Music magazines', this may be because the target audience is younger than average, popular culture is more relevant and interesting nowadays, and magazines such as Q and Rolling Stone are very sophisticated and mature. 'Fashion magazines' came second with 50%, this is also a youth interest, fashion and appearance is much more associated with music now than 50 years ago. It is important for readers to sense artists' personal fashion styles to relate to them, especially for the younger generations. 'Womans magazines' and 'Contempary Music magazines' were in the middle with about 30% each, this shows these are more secondary interested, and not as important for me to take into account.

The second question was 'What genres of music are you interested in?', this question can help determine which musical style to focus on, how the photography should represent the artist, and what questions put to the artists would be interesting to the reader. The results I got were quite easy to read, the most popular choices were Pop/Dance/Electronica, and Contemporary R&B/Hip-Hop/Rap, these are the genres which have dominated the charts for the last 5 years so this was no surprise.

Alternative/Indie/Rock and Metal/Heavy Rock received fewer votes but still compiled a substantial amount of the total. This may because Indie is a popular festival genre and had a surge of popularity a few years ago. Blues/Country/Classic R&B received no votes, which is not surprising as the people I asked were a lot younger, however I was expecting some interest in that category from younger people who had been influenced by their parents perhaps.

The clear musical genre choice would be to design a magazine for Pop and R&B, however since the Alternative/Indie/Rock category received more interest than expected I may choose to orientate my magazine towards festivals, Rock music and maybe a secondary influence to make it differ from other magazines already on the market.

The type of magazine I will design should incorporate gossip, news segments and fashion items as they proved to be the most popular styles.

Questionnaire Results

What Magazine genres are you interested in?	Total
Women's magazines	28.60%
Gossip celeb magazines	64.30%
Classic music magazines	14.30%
Contempary music magazines	35.70%
Fashion magazines	50%
What genres of music are you interested in?	Total
Alternative/Indie/Rock	35.70%
Metal/Heavy Rock	14.30%
Pop/Dance/Electronica	57.10%
Contempary R&B/Hip-Hop/Rap	57.10%
Blues/Country/Classic R&B	0%
What type of websites do you use most often?	Total
Video - youtube	57.10%
Social Networking	92.90%
Music/Radio	21.40%
Shopping	21.40%
Information	42.90%
Where do you hear about new music?	Total
From Friends	71.40%
Media	64.30%
Research	28.60%
Charts	50%
From other artists	35.70%
Do you illegally download music?	Total
Yes its easier	14.30%
Yes music is too expensive	21.40%
Sometimes	14.30%
Sometimes but I pay for some	28.60%
I have done but rarely	14.30%
Never	42.90%
Which parts of a music magazine to you skip to?	Total
Reviews	23.10%
Interviews	38.50%
Information	15.40%
Posters/ Photos	30.80%
Quizs	46.20%
Which TV genre do you like?	Total
Dramas	42.90%
Soaps	28.60%
Comedies	78.60%
Reality	28.60%
Chat Show	21.40%
How much do you spend on music per month?	Total
<£5	57.10%
£5<n<£15	35.70%
£15<n<£30	14.30%
>£30	0%
Do you attend gigs?	Total
No it doesn't interest me	14.30%
If the right band came along	57.10%
I would if I could afford it	7.10%
Yes all the time	28.60%
How do you like information presented?	Total
Messy; a lot of information with lots of imagery	14.30%
Easy to read with simple layout and few images	42.90%
Lots of images with captions	57.10%
Newspaper format; cells with correlating images	0%
Sparse; one article with one image per page	7.10%

Music Magazine Questionnaire

This is a screenshot of my questionnaire as part of my research for my music magazine. I asked 10 questions, and gave the option of mutilple answers. This has resulted in getting more information from fewer people. The left shows the first two questions' results, from here the first question has a slight favourite and a more obvious lesser preference.

The second question shows a tied favourite with another answer not far behind, there is also one answer without any votes.

Above I had explained each question and evaluated the results individually.

Magazine Contents Page Analysis

This is the contents page for a Home Improvements magazine. This is a good example of a well designed magazine.

The images are clearly celled and the rounding of them makes it softer and more aesthetically pleasing. The large numbers on the images also suit as they are in a soft font and white is a colour which doesn't clash with anything. The magazine should be very visual and inspiring so the images should not be distracted from, and this magazine succeeds in this. It engages the audience by not giving too much away in the images thus the reader will be curious and read on.

The listings are simplistic, easy to read and do not get lost in the over-powering imagery. The way the text and numbers are spaced apart is very clever as it eludes the idea of space and relaxation, which is what the reader wants from a home improvements magazine. If the reader feels the magazine stays true to its intentions then they will be more likely to respect it and buy it again.

The only bold colour used outside the images is the red bar running across the top of the page and the numbering. The colour used is warm and natural; this is a suitable colour for a magazine based on the home, a blue colour would be cold and a green would feel too outdoors. The numbers are written in the same colour which gives the magazine its house style and connects the different parts of the page together.

Overall the page works well as suited to its theme, the colour is not over used and the emphasis lies within the imagery, an ideal way to present a home design magazine.

Centre Number 18125