Research for Print

1. Research
Alicja Morawska

2. Front cover
Double Page Spread
Audience Profile
KERRANG! Magazine

3. Existing Product - Kerrang
The content featured in Kerrang is aimed generally aimed towards a long time audience that is watches the development of
the issues. The photography found in the magazine is a mixture between studio and live location, as they have artists come in
for photoshoots ( the front cover) and photographers go to concerts and events to get content that shows the artists at work
( double page spread). The front cover I’ve picked is a special issue passed around Marilyn Manson, front and centre having
the entire page dedicated to him. The main cover line is displaying the big article in the issue with him as the subject, the
entire colour scheme and style based around this Marilyn Manson/Christmas mix. The content of the double page spread
holds the purpose of telling the fans of the band Linkin Park about what they have planned for the future. It has a clear colour
scheme and distinctive appearance, with aspects being a clear indication of what the article is about, such as the font of the
big yellow cover line, which is the font used by the band on their albums. The general colour schemes used by kerrang involve
black, white and generally at least one strong vibrant colour that represents the content of the page.
The writing style used by this magazine is often more casual than other similar publications, as kerrang had made itself a
reputation for being involved with the more of the punk/grunge artists, an audience of outsiders. The writers aren't afraid to
engage the audience in their writing as well as make jokes that they know fans of the subject of their articles will be able to
understand, giving the magazine a more friendly and inviting feeling whilst still upholding the professionalism of a major
music publication.
A good part of why this appeals to their audience is due to the fact that younger readers who have become interested in the
genres that's featured in the magazine are typically seen as 'outcasts' by their peers as they don't follow the mainstream
music scene. A big part of the appeal that kerrang has to it's audience is that amongst similar publications it's the one that
features free posters from professional photoshoots, meaning that with each issue readers can take desired parts of the
magazine out and be able to visually express their taste in music, and in further research I've found that this is a big part of
why mainly younger members of the audience are dedicated to buying each issue as they come out on a weekly basis.

4. MOJO
Front cover
Double Page Spread
Audience Profile

5. Existing Product - MOJO
Mojo is centered towards an audience almost twice the age of kerrang, which will obviously bring new aspects
to the magazine that have to appeal to their readership. From the images on the previous slide this can even be
seen in the content that the publications choses to include, moving away from more alternative artists in the
genre and sticking to the classics such as David Bowie and the well established young artists such as arctic
monkeys. Their color scheme on the front cover although uses bright almost obnoxious shades of pink, is kept
tame by using it as an accent color and keeping the rest of the page rather neutral, ensuring that attention
can't be taken away from the subject of the cover, whilst still complimenting the photography. The cover lines
suggest more in depth interviews and engaging articles that give the reader something to take away with them
into their lives such as "50 essential albums you must own". Similar to kerrang the cover displays free posters
inside the magazine but to bring them closer to what the older audience of mojo may want, it tends to lean
more towards art prints, that would look more sophisticated than the ones that can be generally found inside
of kerrang. The double page spread uses very muted colors and engages the title of the article with the
photography by splitting the subjects further away from one another. Although it's not a big article the page
makes an impact with the interesting sepia photography as well as the rather unusual symmetry. The audience
profile suggests that the readers of this magazine are generally more well established music fans, which a
developed taste towards the classics. It is a safe assumption that the audience for this product may be
subscribed to the publication due to ABC1 profile percentage as well as their age which would suggest a steady
income that would allow for a continuous interest in the magazine.

6. Q magazine
Front cover Double Page Spread
Audience Profile

7. Existing Product - Q
Despite not being the existing product with the oldest median age, the apperarence of the magazine is by far
the most mature and sophistacted. The feel of the product is probably best described as prestigous in
comparison to the other examples, giving reviews of different albums, exlusives and interviews with the
biggest stars and the all time classics, as well as a highly conveted douple page spread that many artists would
aspire to appear on.
The color scheme here is repetitive with red, white and black in the same format on each issue, creating a
strong band identity however taking away from giving the magazine something new and fresh to work with
each week. The layout of the cover is similar in each issue with the same masthead/logo placement as well as
the coverlines being presented in similar ways. The double page spread is a well known visual to readers of Q,
featuring black and white photography of the artist, with a large red letter (typically the first letter of their
stage name) placed behind the interview. This creates an iconic page to be featured on and is held highly in the
music industry.
An aspect of this magazine that is important to mention is the fac that unlike the other two publications, this
one does not vere towards a specific genre of music, and is inclusive of all artists who have come far in their
careers. This opens up their audience profile to a much wider group of people with different interests and
views, which although helps the circulation of the publication, makes it harder to cater to the readers equally.

8. Research Analysis
• What common features do the researched products have?
• What aspects of the research will you include within your on work?
• Bold color schemes featuring black, white and colors that either fit the theme of the issue or the given article
subjects.
• The inclusion of free posters on the front cover, something I wanted to include initially anyway.
• Photography being the focus of each page.
• Casual yet professional writing styles that fit the individual audiences age and ABC1 profile.
• A lot of blobs and coverlines informing the reader about what can be found inside the issue, ensuring that
the current members of the audience know what they're buying as well as gathering new readers that may
be interested by what they see.
• The double page spreads are used for the bigger stories in the issue, allowing them to have more space and
give better photography opportunity.
• A big range in target audience age however I feel like I won't be aiming as high as the median age of Q, as it
would be more difficult for me to find what that audience would expect.
• Kerrang uses additional photography on it's double page spread whereas Q & Mojo give theirs a more
upscale appearance by making the page much cleaner.

9. Bibliography

10. Bibliography
1. Wasted Talent Ltd (2019) Kerrang! https://www.kerrang.com/
2. Bauer Media Group (2019) Q https://www.qthemusic.com/
3. Bauer Media Group (2019) Mojo https://www.mojo4music.com/