Audience Research

Question 1: How old are you?

As this is an audience research for a college magazine I had to base this survey on the opinions of students therefore it was vital that I knew what age group they came under, to see if this survey would apply to them.

The majority of the people asked were 16 years of age which were 13 people out of the 20 people asked which shows that the majority of the people I’ve asked were new students in their first year. As it is still a magazine for the whole college I’ve tried not to be biased and asked for the opinions of those who were either 17 or 18.

Question 2: What gender are you?

This is a very important question as it would have a major effect on the answers given as both male and female have similarities and differences and I wanted to see how this may affect my results. I wanted to see which aspects may appeal to one group yet may discourage another

As you can see in this chart, I have chosen an even amount of people from both genders to make my results fairer by taking the opinions from both groups. I have further enhanced my chart to show how old each of the males or females are so that there are both reliable sources from their age as well as their gender

Question 3: What grabs your attention the most on a magazine front cover? 

As the front cover is the first thing you see on a magazine I wanted to see what is it that appeals to them and attracts them the most therefore I can use this and work on the most popular feature that they allow their eyes to rely on the most and therefore grab their attention

From this research I found out that what grabs their attention is the images displayed on the magazine for example the main image and additional images also. As for the Mast head and the cover lines they don’t really value it therefore as my survey evidently states, the musts that I need to work on are the images. As for the freebies logo a few people still look out for this especially the male students meaning I must either make it more appealing to the males or equally reach out to the females.

Question 4: What colours appeal to you most?

In order to display this magazine to the students the colours used must appeal to their eyes, colours that will attract them. Therefore I have asked for a range of colours that naturally appeal to everyone but also colours that will represent the school

I found out that the majority of people prefer a bright magazine with a range of multi colours. However there are two equal categories that the people like which are electric colours and natural. This means that as well as it being brightly coloured I should also use electric and neon colours. However as a few still preferred a natural colour I need not to make it too bright which won’t flow or complement the natural look of the school.

Question 5: Which of these topics interest you most when you read a magazine?

I wanted to base this question on what types of things people engage well with or skip to in a magazine. Therefore I can use these topics and of course turn them into a school related topic therefore they may enjoy reading the usual topics they read incorporated with school topics

From my research I’ve discovered that many people enjoy gaining knowledge of events they feel they can participate in. There is an equal amount of votes where people enjoy their gossip, interviews and advice and through this I’ve learnt that many people prefer reading others opinions where they can listen to their voices and also gain information from sources that they couldn’t get a hold of without the magazine

Question 6: What topic would you like a college magazine to feature most?

I’ve asked this question to see what students feel they would read into and see which topic they like the most therefore I can put detail into the ones they would most likely to read and also which they like least to see if I should not feature them as they may not read it and therefore would be a waste.

I’ve used the chart format showing peoples gender so it would be easier to see and compare which group likes what and see if this has an affect on the results. I found tops tips and school news are highly preferred by the students meaning that they prefer to read notices and anything that may help them succeed where they can find a solution. In the top tips section more females preferred this and therefore the majority of top tips should be aimed at them but also with a balance where the male students can still gain knowledge

Question 7: Which V.A.K are you?

I’ve chosen to ask this question to match people’s brain skill or observations with how the magazine should be advertised to them. If more people were visual learners I would incorporate this knowledge and add more pictures and make it more striking to attract them. If they were auditory, although this would be impossible to put into the magazine I could try and put articles that could be read aloud or that you could imagine being read for example interviews, Question and answers. If many were kinaesthetic I could add games and quizzes or strategies that will keep them active.

It is clearly shown that many of the students are visual learners and no one was auditory therefore I would have to make this magazine aesthetically stunning including the images, colours, layout. Although there are some who are kinaesthetic and even if there aren’t many who are, I believe that people would still like to do quizzes as it would bring more fun into the magazine

Question 8: How often would you like to receive a magazine?

This question is to determine how often they would read it therefore knows when it will be available but also to see how long the editors and writers will have to complete it by.

I found out that most people would prefer a magazine that they can receive monthly therefore the magazine should be able to last up to a long amount and include key features that would happen after the magazine is given but also new things that may not relate to the month previously therefore they would know all the important notices.  

Question 9: What type of freebies would interest you?

This question was in relation to the one about what grabs people’s attention the most. I wanted to find out what would further hook the reader to make them interested in receiving the magazines

Although I realise that people may just take this magazine just to gain something I can use this to draw them into knowing that they’ll gain something where they may give the magazine a chance. I’ve tried to give them an option of resources they could use for school. Although USB’s could be expensive I could use this and find another solution to something that they may need

Question 10: How long would you like the magazine to be?

I’ve asked this question to see how long they would lose focus on and to see if the length of the magazine would interest them or otherwise make them walk away from, thinking that it’s a boring and long magazine

From this I’ve learnt that many students would prefer a laid back magazine with minimal pages and therefore writing therefore the magazine needs to be short and concise

Question 11: Would you prefer the magazine to be more educational or entertaining?

I wanted to find out what sort of things they would like to learn from as they read, the style of writing used to see which one they would adapt better to

From this I could see that the as teenagers of course they would prefer some humour and fun but also I can see that as they are students they would like to learn and gain some knowledge but also so they can be alert and entertained on the side

Question 12: Who would you prefer to read from?

I wanted to see if students would prefer to read from students who have newly joined the school, students who are more experienced or teachers who would know more facts and therefore give guidance

I can see that the students would prefer to read from sources who are similar to them instead of a teacher who may not know their sort of style; older students who aren’t in the same position as them although they may have more experience and quality advice.

Question 13: How much are you willing to pay for a magazine (considering that it is of a good quality)?

I wanted to see how committed they would be to this magazine and in future uses, If it becomes really good it can be charged for. However I wanted to see if the price would determine whether they would buy it or not

From what I’ve found I can see that the majority of people wouldn’t pay for the magazine because they would rather have it for free. From the people who would pay for it I can see that there are some people who wouldn’t mind being charged as they may think that the magazine is worthy of a price. However I can see that no one would pay a lot for it even if it is of a good standard.

Question 14: What size would you like the magazine to be?

A magazine must be portable and held by someone where they can put it in their bags or somewhere else. I’ve asked this question to see which sized paper they would prefer to read from whether it’s the average standard size of A4, a larger version of A3 or a smaller version of A5

The majority of my audience seem to prefer the regular sized magazine of A4 as they are use to this particular size where they can easily read all the contents spread amongst the page. Although a quarter of the audience did seem to have a liking for the A5 size because it’s a different size to which they are use to and because they prefer the inside pages to fill up more rather than have too many  spaces.

Question 15: What design layout would you prefer?

What the audience looks at is vital when they first pick up the magazine therefore if they look at a certain magazine which doesn’t match their personality or doesn’t target them they would not be interested in something that doesn’t relate to them. Therefore I have asked the students if they would prefer the design to be elegant- which would make them seem classy which may reflect upon their work; modern- which would be a design that would suit teenagers for example showing new technology or looking ‘street’; and if they would like it in the theme of the school as it is a college magazine.

From my research I can see that the majority of students would prefer a modern looking magazine as it reflects on their lifestyles therefore they can relate to it more and also would appeal to them further. There were a few who would like it to reflect the college as it would be a good way to advertise to the students who go to that college. Therefore in my magazine I must of course make the magazine look very modern but also to incorporate some idea designs that would illustrate the school.

College Magazine Front Cover Analysis

Masthead

The name of the magazine is most likely to be the college’ name indicating that the target audience are the students who attend the college or even to students they may want to invite to come to the school based on the cover lines that they are advertising. Its typeface is simple and unlike many magazines isn’t all in capital letters which could connote the simplicity of the school and how it doesn’t need to be exaggerated or dramatic to indicate that if offers a good education. The font is in white therefore doesn’t clash with the background but also again to show the simplicity as well as the fact that it’s equally aimed at both sexes. The white could also associate with pureness and ‘perfection’ which connotes the success of the schools education showing that it’s a really good and positive school.

Main Cover line

The cover line ‘Global Learning’ is in a large bold font unlike the masthead but carries on the same colour as the masthead therefore your attention goes immediately to the title it follows. Also the global invites the audience in and keeps you fascinated at the fact that it may be big news i.e. global warming. The ‘Learning’ word instead, changes to blue which connotes that it’s calming, intellectual and that you can trust it meaning that you can rely on what the cover lines are advertising to you. Below this is a brief explanation of what it’s about; and repeats the idea of Ridgewater‘ education. There is also shadowing on the text to further enhance the cover line.

Cover Lines

The ‘why now’ sounds like a rhetorical question or an answer that the audience should know and therefore draws them in to find out why. The cover lines are features about college and what many students are concerned about where they can relate to them to find a resolution to their troubles. The alignment of the three little paragraphs are almost equal, short and looks like it’s in the form of bullet points perhaps to make it easier to read and absorb the information given. The easy straightforward talk may connote that the text will be the same inside the magazine therefore you don’t have to be a genius to understand it but also to show that it can be easily read and therefore can help you without difficulty.

In the bottom right-hand corner there is an image of a man feeding a seal with the additional questioned text associated to the image. Unlike a magazine it doesn’t have many cover lines but instead questions connoting that it’s more factual/answerable with useful information for the reader. The page insertion given shows that it wants you to skip right through to look at it’s recommended page. Unlike the other cover line it’s alignment isn’t formally structured and instead has easy to read short sentence lines like ‘dream career’ on it’s own as it grabs your attention because of the minimal wording. The design layout of this cover line makes it look as though it’s part of the contents page therefore gives you straightforward information connoting that what’s displayed is truthful and this supports the colours that are used of white and blue which connotes honesty and intelligence.

Main Image

We can see that the intended audience are for college students, in particular ‘Ridgewater College’ students as the main cover image is a photograph of a young girl around the age of a student. In this photograph she appears to be smiling with her face slightly gleaming with highlights connoting that she is very happy in her school environment and that she is stress free. The background used in the picture is perhaps of a school common room with the comfy chairs and the plants. We know that it’s a working environment as there is a globe in the right hand corner of this photograph connoting that you can learn yet still be relaxed. Her composition is in the centre of the magazine surrounded by the words perhaps to connote that her education surrounds her and is spread spacious around the page connoting that there is still more room for other things. The ’Ridgewater College’ masthead’ composition connotes that it is at the top of her mind and therefore of the magazine. It also has a little text on the side of the main image stating who the person is; a Ridgewater student to outline that this person is actually a product of the college.

With the composition of the texts and the images, it’s like a cycle where the colours latch on to one another (starting with the white masthead to the white main cover line … to the blue background of the small image to the globe in the main image) therefore the reader has a sequence order to follow in.

Barcode

Seeing as there is no barcode it is most likely to be a magazine that’s a handout given for free where it is normally positioned in the corners on the front page but instead is replaced with a cover line.

Dateline

The dateline is just below the masthead with the addition of the college’ name where it says ‘Spring 2009’. As it is not typed in a particular month or date it’s likely that this magazine is a term/yearly issue.

Selling Line

Although this magazine isn‘t really one to be sold, the ‘Special Insert!’ reaches out to the target audience to make them aware of what this magazine can offer them which is so different to other college magazines as it is ’Special’, therefore this magazine that they should read is promising.