Reader Profile

With the help of the results from the questionnaires, I can now form a reader profile for the typical image of a person who listens to my genre of magazine, which is R'n'B, and also, can relate to the music, and has a passion for it.

Yazmin is a 17 year old girl, who is currently doing her A levels at college. She studies English, Media and Art, and takes high interest in each subject, as she feels that the subjects reflect her personality. After passing all her GCSE's with good grades, Yazmin feels more relaxed now, as she sees college as a whole new start, with new friends. She thinks now is the time to have some fun, but at the same time, she makes sure that she's focused on her studies as well.

Yazmin is young and energetic. She's always up for trying new things, and loves an adventure. Her friends label her as a 'dare devil,' and Yazmin certainly lives up to this title. She believes that these are the most important years of her life, therefore, each day should be lived to its fullest. She spends her free time watching TV, such as MTV, browsing online, or going out with her friends, whether that's just to the local park, or parties.

Fashion. Yazmin tries to create her own look, not following the stuff you see in fashion magazines. She wants her own identity, which stands out from everyone else. However, she will look at what artists such as Christina Aguilera, Ciara, Nicki Minaj and Rihanna, wear on a daily basis, and then customises it to suit her style. This will consist of skinny jeans, t-shirts with logos, jumpers and hoodies. Occasionally, she'll wear dresses, but it depends on where she's going. However, she will have days when she decides to wear boyfriend jeans and tracksuits. She likes to experiment with different looks, such as grunge look.

While Yasmin's out, there are some essentials that she could never leave the house without. This consists of her BlackBerry, iPod Touch, headphones, money, bus pass, eye liner and house keys. Her most prized possession has to be her iPod, as this contains all her music from all her favourite artists such as Akon, Alicia Keys, Chris Brown, Drake, Jay Sean, JLS, Rihanna, alongside many others. When these artists are touring in the UK, Yazmin tries to attend as many gigs as she can. When listening to R'n'B / Hip Hop, Yazmin finds herself far from reality, as she becomes deeply engrossed in the music. Whenever she has the opportunity, she will take her iPod out and stick in her headphones. If she could have it her way, she'd do this while at college too.

Even though Yazmin is flexible when it comes to music, this particular genre of R'n'B / Hip Hop appears to inspire her the most, as she can connect with the lyrics. Music has always played an important part in her life, as she grew up listening to all types of genres. However, as she grew older, she found R'n'B / Hip Hop different from the others, as she found it unique, and instantly began to develop a keen interest in it. At college, Yazmin really wanted to continue studying music for A Levels after doing it for GCSE, and thoroughly enjoying it. Unfortunately, her college didn't give her the opportunity of taking music, as they don't teach it there. But, determination is one quality that Yazmin carries strongly. She daily goes on music tutorials online, such as www.jamstudio.com, to compose tracks. She loves playing around with new beats and creating music. She then uploads these tracks onto her MySpace and YouTube page, and tweets about her thoughts on the song and the process of it. Furthermore, she can also sing and rap, so adds this into her music as well. Yazmin learnt how to play the guitar and piano at a young age, which are instruments used in R'n'B / Hip Hop music, and she uses this to her advantage when creating music.

In the future, Yazmin plans on studying music at university, then to go to America to pursue her career in music. Yazmin is courageous, and wont let anything get in her way when it comes to something that she really wants.

I will base my magazine on this reader profile, attracting my target audience, such as the use of colours and the overall format of the magazine.

Market Research - Results

Once the questionnaires were completed by my target audience, which is aimed at the age group of 16-25, I evaluated the data, and could clearly see what people chose as their answer to each question. There was a variety of results, which can be illustrated below.

To represent the data more efficiently, I created pie charts for each question, so that its easy to see the range of data.

1. What attracts you towards a magazine? If you chose ‘Other,’ please specify

m  The name

m  Celebrities included on front cover

m  Articles inside

m  Colours

m  Other

I chose this question as I was curious as to what my target audience are most fond of in magazines, as there is so many aspects to it. My results showed me that its the articles that attracts people, as well as celebrities who are featured on the front cover and inside. This means that i need to make sure my articles are fun and brings justice to the magazine, as well as the images used.

2. What type of genre of magazine do you read? If you chose ‘Other’, please specify

m  Indie/Rock         

m  Grime

m  R’n’b/Hip Hop

m  Pop

m  Rap

m  Other

With this question, I wanted to see what genre of music my target listen to the most, which is reflected by their choice of magazine. Above it shows a variety of genres. However, the highest percentage is in aid of R'n'b / Hip Hop, which is perfect, as this is the genre my magazine will be based on. However, due to this being the most popular genre being bought, I will have to make sure that my magazine is different from the others, attracting my audience towards it. 

3. How often do you buy one issue of the magazine?

m  Every week

m  Every month

m  Once a year

I thought that this question was necessary as it will help me decide as to how often I should publish and distribute a new issue of the magazine. By the chart, it clearly shows that most people purchase their magazine every month. This makes it easier for me, as I have come to the conclusion that I will make my magazine a monthly issue.

4. What is the price of the magazine?

m  £0.99 - £1.50

m  £1.50 - £2.00

m  £2.00 - £2.50

m  £2.50 +

I decided to include this question, as it gives me an idea of how much other magazines of different genres, as well as R'n'B / Hip Hop cost. Majority of the people said that the magazine they purchase, is between the price range of £0.99-£1.50. However, the next question will also help me choose a price for my magazine, also taking into consideration the result above.

5.  How much would you be willing to pay for a magazine?

m  £0.50 - £1.00

m  £1.00 - £1.50

m  £1.50 - £2.00

m  £2.00 - £2.50

m  £2.50 +

This question is relevant, as its directly asking the consumer how much they would like to spend on a magazine of their choice. The prices given are fairly reasonable, and there is a variety of answers. However, majority of the people chose to pay between £1.50 - £2.00 for the magazine. Comparing this to the answer of the previous question, I've come to the conclusion that the price of my magazine will be £2.00, as i think this is a reasonable amount to pay for this type of magazine.

6.   Out of the following colours, which ones would attract you towards any genre of a music magazine? (Tick three) If you chose ‘Other,’ please specify

m  Black

m  White

m   Red

m  Pink

m  Green

m  Yellow

m  Orange

m  Grey

m  Blue

m  Other



I included this question as i was confused about what colour scheme my front cover should consist of. I allowed people to choose three colours, to bring more variety to the final results. The three most popular answers were Black, White and Red. These colours are typical for a magazine, especially for the cover. This is due to all three colours being bold and grabs attention to the reader. I will use these colours, however, I may bring in another colour, but not use it as much as the others, like Yellow for example, just for extra effect.

7.   Are you interested by the competitions that are included within the magazine?

m  Yes

m  No

All types of magazines usually have some form of competition inside, and this can sometimes be included on the front cover, or contents page. Therefore, I decided to ask my target audience whether they are interested by the competitions. The result was very close, as there is only a difference of 12%. Due to this small percentage, I've decided to actually include a competition in the magazine, and its up to the readers whether they want to take part in it or not. However, as its a music magazine, I think my target audience in particular will be interested by it.

8.    Do you prefer the contents page to be simple, just including the title of the articles, with no added detail?

m  Yes

m  No

Contents pages can have different layouts, depending on the style of the magazine. Some magazines just have the names of the articles, whereas some also say what the article is about underneath. Some people have different opinions on this, hence the question being asked in my questionnaire. The result given is rather interesting, as 50 - 50 on either side. Therefore, taking both answers into account, I will include extra added detail under the articles name on the contents page. However, the reader can decide whether they want to read this, or straight away go to the main article.

9.  Who would you like to see featured on a double page spread?

m  A variety of artists/bands

m  A solo artist

m  A signed band

m  An independent artist/band

This question is in aid of the double page spread. I asked people who they would like to see featured on this page. The results were close between 'A variety of artists/bands' and 'A signed band.' This gives me the opportunity to include more artists, as it will also attract a larger audience.

10.  What would draw your attention away from a magazine? If you chose ‘Other,’ then please specify

m  The colours used

m  Celebrities featured

m  Articles included

m  The pictures

m  The price

m  Other

As well as attracting people, magazines can also distant buyers. This can be due to various aspects regarding the magazine, and the main options are shown above. The most important factor which stops people from purchasing a magazine, is the price. Due to this, I've decided to stick to my price of £2.00.

11.  Is there anything else that you would like to see on the front page, contents page, or double page spread? If you chose ‘Yes,’ then please specify

m  Yes

m  No

Finally, I thought that this was a relevant question to include, as its what the consumer wants. Furthermore, I thought that it was also a good way to end the questionnaire. Majority of the people stated that they wouldnt like the magazine to consist of anything else. However, those who chose yes, had similiar wants, which consisted of freebies, and articles and pictures on celebrities such as, Justin Bieber.

I will be taking all these results into account when coming to make final decisions of my magazine. It's absolutely vital that I do this as these answers have come directly from the target audience, and it's what will attrac them to purchase my magazine.





Market Research Questionnaire

For my market research, I created a questionnaire based on 11 questions, regarding different aspects of a magazine.

The aim of the survey was to see what my target audience like and dislike about music magazines. By collecting the data, I can compare them to one and another and form an overall analysis.

I feel that all questions are relevant, as they'll help me when it comes to making choices based on these situations for my own magazine. In total, 18 people took part in this survey.

The numbers in purple represent the overall results for the answers to the questions.

Music magazine questionnaire results

View more documents from rosheen29.

MOJO - Then and Now

For further analysis on MOJO magazine, I decided to create a post featuring the first ever front cover to be created, and the one that's the most recent, and then compare the two and see how they've drastically changed over the years.

The first front cover to be published was in November 1993. The masthead is still the same as all the other covers. The colour scheme consists of black, white and yellow. However, red is also present briefly, but as part of the background. It doesn't consist of many headlines, but instead, only has one main headline written, alongside some detail. Furthermore, the font used is also quite simple, but overall, there isn't much text included on the cover.

The latest cover yet to be published, is the issue for March 2011. Once again, the masthead is the same, as well as the colour. However, with this cover, the image of the band is placed over the masthead, whereas on the first cover, the image is placed behind the title. The colour scheme uses the colours black, white and yellow. Unlike the first cover, this one includes a variety of headlines based on different articles within the magazine. The font used on the cover is consistent, as its the same font for all the text, just in different colours, depending on what it is. 

Evidently, the front covers have changed significantly, from nearly every aspect. The two things that remain the same is the style of the masthead, and also, the position of the bar code. Just like the other front covers, the bar code is placed in the corner, whether its horizontal or vertical. This is convenient as its separate from the rest of the magazine, and doesn't get in the way. The quality of the images have changed as well, which shows that technology became more advanced over the years. Furthermore, by looking at the editing of the images, it illustrates that photoshop has also changed, which was created 1987. The usage of the colour yellow in the second cover is rather clever, as it immediately attracts attention. Yellow is also used in the first cover, but not as much. Also, the second cover includes a free CD, which isn't available on the first one. This shows that ideas were developed on how to attract a larger audience.

 Both covers are very different, and this is noticeable even by one glance at each cover. Its clear that as years go on, and technology becomes more advanced, there will also be more changes added to the magazine However, seeing as the style of the masthead hasn't changed, as well as the position of the bar code, it's possible that some qualities may not change in the future.

Check out the website for all the other covers from 1993 - 2011

http://cover.mojo4music.com/Default.aspx?year=1993

My very first post :)

Hello bloggers!

Welcome to my official blog :) this has been created for my Media Studies AS Level Coursework, which is based on the magazine that I will be producing throughout this course. I will be updating my blog regularly, posting various things in relation to the magazine, and how I went about creating it.

Last week, during the 17th - 21st January, my class and I were given a task of working in pairs, and creating a PowerPoint Presentation based on a current magazine, which were assigned beforehand by our teachers. My partner and I were allocated MOJO magazine, which to be honest, I had never heard of before. Therefore, I saw it as a challenge as I had to research deeply on something which I had no knowledge about whatsoever. There were different aspects of the magazine which we had to explore on and analyse, so to make it easier for us, my partner and I split the bullet points given amongst us.

Finally, once we had all the information we needed, we then transferred this onto a PowerPoint document, and made some minor adjustments. Then, on Friday 21st January, we presented this to the rest of the class, as well as to our teachers.

Overall, I found this task interesting as I learnt a lot and gained more knowledge, not just about MOJO magazine, but also about other magazines in general, by watching my peers' presentations. I am now familiar with a variety of different techniques used within magazines, in order to attract attention from the audience. For example, by having a specific colour scheme on the front cover, contents page, and sometimes on a double page spread as well. I found that the colours black, white and red are very popular with magazines. This may be because all three colours are eye catching and attract attention immediately.

This task has helped me to form an idea of what I would want my magazine to look like, and what should be involved within it. However, I will still need to do further research in order to get the best possible outcome in the end.

The PowerPoint I created is available above.