Audience Research

1. AUDIENCE RESEARCH
BY OLIVIA WEBSTER

3. Q

4. MASTHEAD
Q have used their logo as their masthead, they have
placed it on the left hand side this due to that
people read from left to right so this will be the first
thing they see when they look at the magazine, also
when magazines are stacked on a shelf they are
placed in front of each other and you are only able
to see the left hand side of the magazine. They have
also made the masthead the largest piece of text on
the page this is so that people will be able to
recognise the magazine from a distance. Also the
font that they use for the masthead is unique to this
magazine, they use a serif font which is more
sophisticated.
MAIN IMAGE
There is just one image on the page, this make the
photo stand out as if there was numerous images
there would be no main focus on the page. The
image covers the whole page, also the celebrity's
face is actually placed in front of the text, this is
trying to highlight him even more may be perhaps
they have a big story about him in the content of the
magazine.
COVER LINES
The cover lines are all placed on the left hand side of
the page this is due to people reading from the left
hand side of the page like previously mentioned.
They are all also placed in quotation marks this may
interest people to buy the magazine as they may
want to know more into who has said them. They
have also used two colours on their cover lines, they
have used the colour red to emphasise the part of
the sentence that is most important. The cover lines
are also in a bold font this makes them stand out on
the page.
MISE-EN-SCENE
They have used a completely white background and
dressed the celebrity in a black formal suit jack and light
blue shirt this may be suggesting good and bad, also the
white background makes him stand out more as the
contrast between his skin colour and the background, by
dressing him in a suit it may perhaps be trying to
suggest that he is wealthy.
SUBHEADINGS
They have used a sans serif font, this font is more
modern style of font which may incorporate with Jay-Z
being a modern artist. they have used the colour gold
this may be relating Jay-Z to wealth as gold is expensive.
It is also the second largest font on the page, this will be
one of the first things customers will see after
recognising what
COVER LINES
They have used columns to structure the cover lines this
makes it clear. They have also placed all their cover lines
in the left hand side column this is because people read
from the left hand side and also when the magazines are
on the self the left hand side is the only side that is
visible. They have also used the colour red to emphasise
the most important part of the sentences which is the
artists names this will draw peoples attention to these
parts of the sentence.
AUDIENCE
The audience of Q usually lives in the city
Median age; 34
In employment; 70%

5. LAYOUT
The date/issue number is usually presented on the contents
page this allows the reader to see when the magazine was
published. Typically at the right hand side of the page in a
smaller text font as it is not one of the most important
pieces of information on the page. The title is not as big and
eye catching as the masthead on the font page however
they have used a sans serif font therefore it is still bold and
clear for the audience to read. Also is writing on a white on
black background which makes it clear and white and black
are both feminine and masculine colours so will appeal to
both genders of their audience. It is positioned in the top
left hand corner to make it look more formal and
professional. The magazine masthead is also placed next to
it this is to show consistency throughout the magazine.
They have an equal balance between the size of the image
and the amount of text they have on this page, the image
makes the page more attractive and exciting.
MAIN IMAGE
The main image is located on the right hand side of the
page and is very dominant on the page. they have used a
well known indie rock band. This image is the largest
because the publishers want this to be the first feature the
audience sees when opening the page so that they have a
brief idea of what will be featured in the magazine , they
also have a brief quote in the bottom left hand corner of
the image this is to give them an idea about what will be
featured in the article. This use of this common pull-quote
might also make the reader relate to the magazine and feel
like a friend also can make the reader feel curious about the
gossip about the band and want to read on.
They have also included a smaller image at the bottom of
the page of a famous Australian artist, this may interest
other people due to him being a different genre artist that
parts of Qs audience can relate to more. Also the use of the
horizontal box at the bottom next to the vertical box on the
left hand side helps to frame the main image of the band
MISE-EN-SCENE
They have made it clear to the audience who the main
singer of this band is by placing him in front of the others
also the tops of the other three singers are darker colours
by putting the main singer in a white top it makes him
stand out more likewise they have added additional props
to the main singer such as sunglasses which emphasises
more to the audience that he is the main singer. The
background behind them may be trying to relate to their
genre of music as it is more diverse, for example if it was a
R&B group the background would not be on the hills
outside.
They have chosen an all male indie rock band which may be
because they are aiming this magazine at a masculine
audience about 30 years of age.
SUB-HEADINGS
They have put the sub-headings in capitals to make them
stand out from the other text. They have also put the
numbers in the same colour red as the masthead this is so
that they continuity throughout the magazine and the
brand identity. They have also shown continuity in their
design by using the same colours but reversing them so
that it is black writing on a background and the title on a
red background.
However they have presented one sub-heading in gold this
is to show the audience that this feature is special as it
claims also they have not used the golden colour previously
therefore will stand out to the audience.
EVERY MONTH
They also have an every month feature on the contents
page. This informs people about subscripting to the
magazine so that it will be delivered to their house and also
for a lower price than buying in store. It also give the
audience a brief idea about what will be featured in the
magazine monthly.

6. LAYOUT
The text font on this page is small and there
is a large amount of it , this may be
intimidating to readers and discourage
them to read further. Also using the same
sized font gives the magazine more of a
formal and professional appearance.
However they have used two drop columns
which makes a large amount of writing look
more appealing to read. They have kept the
consistency of red, black and white theme
this represents the brand image. They have
also placed the letter J faded behind the
text on the right hand page, this feature will
be eye catching to the audience when they
turn over the page. The publishers have
used a sans serif font this is clearer to read
and also more formal, likewise they have a
black on white background these are good
colours to use as they are both masculine
and feminine therefore will appeal to both
genders.
MISE-EN-SCENE
The background behind the artist is red and
blue, connotations of red is leadership,
courage and danger however blue; trust,
loyalty, wisdom, confidence. They are
complete opposites which may be trying to
represent both sides of his personality, they
have also chosen this image out of a
number of photographs taken in a shoot
this will be because his facial expression
represents him best. They have used
sunglasses as a prop in this image this hides
his face which may be implying that he has
something to hide. This might make readers
curious and make them want to read on.
The red in the background of the image also
represents the brand image.
The headline is centred at the top right hand page, they have used both red and black this makes
it stand out more. The font is very plain and easy to read, underneath the headline Jay-Z is
introduced instantly. They have also kept the magazine logo on the page although it is small it
shows consistency throughout the magazine and also its a good way of advertising the magazine.
MAIN IMAGE
They have placed a pull-quote in the bottom right hand corner of the image, this gives the reader
an idea of what the article will consist of. They have placed the image of Jay-Z on the left hand
side page this is because the publisher will want this image to be the first feature that the
audience sees when turning the page and also shows that this artist has significance it also gives
the read a brief idea of what this article will be about. Jay-Z does not fit into the rock genre that
this magazine usually consists of however the image is similar to one that you would take of a
rock artist; pulling a stern face, showing strength and even intimidating.
Jay-Z is a well known artist therefore will instantly promote the magazine, they also try to make
the artists look as good/attractive as possible to intrigue people to read on.

9. MixMag tends to keep the variety of colours they use on the front cover of their magazines to a minimum, this is so that there is
a consistency throughout their magazines therefore allows their audience is able to recognise their magazine easily.
magazine easily.
MASTHEAD
They have located their masthead coming from the left hand side of
the page this is because people read from the left hand side. They
have also made the font larger than the rest of the writing this
makes the heading stand out, also people will be able to recognise
the magazine from a distance. They have also used a little selection
of colours on the front cover for example they have used white,
black and orange these colours contrasts together very well and
also the orange allows t
he text to stand out.
MAIN IMAGE
On their front cover they use a medium close up of a celebrity, this
shows that they have a story in this magazine that focuses around this
celebrity. The photo covers the whole front page of the magazine and the
celebrity used is very centralised and the text is positioned around the
woman's face this emphasises her more.
COVER LINES
The cover lines are usually in the smallest font this draws people in,
makes them come closer to the magazine to see what the content of the
magazine is. They also use buzz words such as ‘WIN! 'these words
stand out, They use two colours orange and yellow, this may be
because they are trying to emphasise part of the sentence, they also
usually use small sentences/phrases this is to draw the audience in,
smaller sentences give people a slight insight into stories so that they
want to read the rest for example ‘DIZZIE TEARS UP IBIZA ROCKS’
AUDIENCE
The audience for Mixmag is 28% male, 72% female. They are usually
single and live in the city. The median age of people reading Mixmag is
24.
SUBHEADING
the subheading is in the second biggest font on the page after the
masthead, this will make it stand out more and will most likely be the
next thing people will look at straight after recognising that the
magazine is Mixmag, this subheading will relate to the photograph
that is placed on the front page, this will emphasise the celebrity
more and direct the main focus around her
MISE-EN-SCENE
They have dressed the celebrity in a black top which might suggest
that there is a dark side to her, they may have tried to emphasise this
more by placing her hair over half of her face. This may imply that
she is hiding something from her fans, this may draw the audience in.
also they have placed a chain round her neck, half of it gold and half
black this may suggest bad and good and also trying to emphasise
her wealth as she is wearing a ‘golden chain’ which will be
expensive.
GENRE
The genre for this magazine is most likely to be pop/ R&B, these
genres of music are usually aimed at a younger audience. The mise-
en-scene, fonts and colours they have used allows the audience
recognise that this is the genre of the magazine. Things such as the
font is very blocked, big and stan where as possibly on a classical
magazine the font would be a lot more gentle on the page.
LAYOUT
They have placed their text into columns on the page this is due to
their audience being able to read it easier.

10. Mixmag use a theme colours on their contents pages,
they use black and white which is a good colour as it is
both feminine and masculine. They have also reversed
the colours as on the front page they have used black
font on a white background, however I gives it more of
a feminine approach when it is white on black so may
put some of the male audience off. Also using a white
font against a black background contrast well and
makes the writing stand out. They have similarly used
the same sans serif front as on the front page and
likewise used an equal balance of images and text.
MAIN IMAGE
The main image is the largest subject on the page, this
makes this artist stand out. They have used a long shot
of a very well known artist, the pink colour in the back
ground is very bright this will stand out to the
audience. However the two images on the page are
both of woman which may possibly also discourage
part of the male audience to read on. However they
have most likely chosen these images to present the
artists personality as they have picked these images
from a shoot where they will of taken many images.
They have also made the page numbers larger and
thicker to match the images . The colours in the
background of each image may also be relating to their
personality.
SUB-HEADINGS
Each sub-heading has a brief description of what the
feature is about. Annie Mac Is the artist that is featured
on the front of the magazine, the target audience
might be attracted to this feature which may be why
they purchase the magazine. Also in their sub-headings
they say things that interact the audience with Annie
Mac
The images they have used are linked to stories that
they have inside, the bigger images are most likely the
ones that have the more dominant stories. They have
used these images to make the page look more
aesthetically pleasing and also takes up a lot of space
on the page. Also the use of large images rather than
a large amount of text may be because their target
market is of a younger age.
Also the images of Lady Gaga on this page adds to the
exciting feel of Migmax magazines, the image overall
is very dark however the pink in the background adds
a sense of glitz and glamour that they are trying to
present you with. They have placed a pull-quote on
the top left hand corner image of Lady Gaga this give
the audience a brief idea of what the article about
Lady Gaga contains and is also to make the audience
curious about what gossip the magazine has about
this audience and make them read on. They have used
Lady Gaga as she is a very well known artist therefore
will instantly promote their magazine also making the
artist look as good/attractive as possible will
encourage people to read on.
The vertical and horizontal boxes at the bottom and
right hand side help to frame the image of the artist
so that it highlights her, this makes the image of Lady
Gaga even more significant. They have included a
small part about the artist Annie Mac this will appeal
to a larger audience who may not be particularly
interested in Lady Gaga's music

11. TITLE
The title does not make it clear what the double page spread
it about but the use of buzz words in this title might make
people curious and want to read further. However the three
images help to inform the audience that the double page
spread is about the three biggest nightclubs. White and pink
stand out very clearly on a black background although the
title is small
FONT/LAYOUT
They have reversed the colours again to black on a white
background however still using the same colour theme this
shows consistency throughout the magazine. They have used
a sans serif font which is formal and easy to read although it
is small it is still clear this font also links in with typical house
style and helps the publishers to build a brand identify. Also
it is a retro font which represents when this style of music
began. They have used a number of columns to spread out
the writing this makes a large amount of writing more
appealing to read and will not discourage people to read on.
There is an equal balance of images and text on this double
page spread this makes the pages attractive to the audience
also with the target audience being younger they will find
images more attractive than lots of text. The images are also
used to indicate what the articles are about.
MAIN IMAGE
The image on the left hand page shows that the two women
are having fun, the audience can recognise this through their
facial expressions the two women are smiling which implies
happiness. The gesture of the woman on the right of the
photo also adds to the vibe of happiness. They will have
chosen this photo out of a shoot with many photos which
may be because this expresses the nightclub the best. They
have also made this the largest image over the double page
spread this one night club has a full page to its self unlike the
other side where two different articles share the same page,
this emphasises the fact that this is the biggest and most
significant nightclub.
OTHER
In this image they have photographed
a man holding an alcoholic drink
which means that the magazine
identifies with a rebellious
demographic, alcohol usually relates
to people being happy and having fun
which adds to the exciting vibe the
publisher is trying to present you
with. Alcohol also makes people
happy in a similar way to music.
They have included a yellow colour
which stands out, the colour yellow has
connotations like freshness, happiness
and positivity this will add to the happy
vibe. They have also used the colour
pink which can have connotations such
as sexuality this colour would attract
the target audience and it is bright and
stands out on the page it also works
well with the images from the
nightclubs.
OTHER
The image they have used for this article is
blurred which suggests that the girl is still
in movement, it is also a point-of-view
shot so it gives the audience a better
understanding. The women in this image
also has her hands in the air which links
again with the theme of excitement and
having fun. They are all features that the
magazine has chosen to put on this page
to emphasise the party based theme.

13. MASTHEAD
The NME masthead in located in the left hand
corner of the magazine this is due to people
reading from the left hand side of the page
therefore this will be the first feature that people
will see. They have also used a sans serif front, this
is a very clear bold font so will be easy to read. It is
very large in size this means that people will be
able to recognise the magazine from a distance.
They have used a bold red colour this stands out
against Amy's black hair, the colour red also has
connotations of things such as love, passion, desire
and heat.
MAIN IMAGE
They have used a very well known artist as their
main image, by showing an image of her on the
front page they are telling us that there is a story
that links with Amy Winehouse inside. They also
will have chosen this image because It represents
her personality the best as it will have been chosen
out of many photos taken in a shoot. Also unlike
other magazines the image of Amy Winehouse is
the only image featured on the front page, this
could be because they don't want to take the focus
off her by putting other images on the page.
SUB-HEADING
Usually they have put the sub-heading in the
largest font on the page, even bigger then the
masthead. This may be because they are trying
emphasise/highlight Amy as the most important
feature on the page. They have also used the red
font on Amy's name this may be linking her with
passion and love. Also they have only put her first
name, this means the audience they are aiming he
magazine at should know who she is just by seeing
her face.
COVER LINES
They have used columns however have still placed them
around her face so that they make the main focus on the
page Amy's face. They have used the colour red to
highlight the most important parts of the sentence ‘new
album revealed’ these are the parts of the sentences that
people.
MISE-EN-SCENE
The background and the lingerie have a similar pattern on
them and similar colours, they are very famine this may
discourage part of their masculine audience to read on.
The lingerie that they have dressed her In shows a large
majority of her skin this may b trying to reflect her
personality in what she is wearing. Also the light blue
colour they have used in the background and on her
lingerie contrast well with the dark colours of her hair and
the dots. It also makes her face stand out.
GENRE
This magazine focuses around a large majority music
genres such as jazz, hip-hop, indie and more. This is due to
them becoming a free magazine for a younger audience
therefore they will need to cover a large range of genres to
meet the requirements of their audience.
LAYOUT
They have kept the range of colours to a minimum, this is
due to the audience being able to recognise them easily by
seeing the colours. Also the colours contrast together very
well and stand out off the background. They have placed
the sub-headings around Amy's face so that it centralises
and focuses the attention on her. Also organising the
writing in columns makes it easier to read for the audience.

14. MASTHEAD
They have put the masthead in capitals on the contents
page this makes it clear and stand out to readers. They
have used white on a black background which are both
famine and masculine colours so will appeal to both
genders of their audience, they have also incorporated
the colour red in the masthead this represents their
brand image/colours. They have also placed the
masthead so that it helps to frame the main image on
the page. However unlike other magazines they have not
placed the masthead from the left hand side of the page,
LAYOUT
After looking at a few NME magazines I have recognised
that all their layouts are very similar, they have framed
the main image using boxes for things such as the band
index and the masthead, however it is a norm for this
magazine to place the band index on the left hand side it
lists of all the bands that are included in this magazine
therefore informing readers straight away about what
the magazine consists of. Furthermore they have a
consistent colour scheme through the magazine and
each issue likewise the layout of the contents page is
consistent throughout different issues this ensures that
the brands unique brand image is achieved.
MAIN IMAGE
The main image takes up most of the top half of the
page, it links with the headline and paragraph which is
found beneath it. They have taken the photo as if it was
taken by the crowd, this makes it more realistic to the
readers allowing them to imagine it them selves it also
enables them to interact with the magazine more. This
photo could also be interpretation as a unprepared
photo which may be implying that the magazine has
gossip about the magazine that other may not know.
GENRE
This magazine I based on alternative indie music which
features artists that are not In the main stream line of
music . This genre of music is usually based around
people with median age of 23, a large majority of
people who read this magazine are also male, this may
be relating as to why they have a male band on he
contents page.
MISE-EN-SCENE
The main image is taken from the point of view of the
audience this allows the reader to interact more with
the magazine, also the long shot used allows the reader
to establish where the bands location is. The tones and
colours is this photo are very dark and have an old
appearance which may be relating to the genre of music
that the magazine is based on. Also they have used high
key lighting on the band to make them stand out from
the audience which is very low key, shaded lighting
however they have not made one member of the band
stand out more than the others which may be implying
they are all equal.
SUB-HEADINGS
They have placed a sub-heading at the bottom right
hand corner however they have placed it on a red plug
so that it stands out more than others, it will draw
peoples attention.

15. MASTHEAD
The masthead is very large and takes up a large
amount of the right hand page, this could be to make
it appear like there is not much text therefore
keeping their younger interested. The have used a
very serif font for the masthead on this page which is
a more modern style of font they may be linking that
with the fact that Lana Del Ray is a modern artist. It is
bold and clear, the bold and bright font may be
representing her personality.
The masthead is visibly pleasing (aesthetic) likewise is
Lana Del Ray, the colours also attract the readers
attention.
LAYOUT
They have kept the layout very simple, the main
image covers one half of the double page spread.
They have used the traditional columns for their text,
they will use this as it makes the text clearer and
easier to read and also makes it look like there is less
text on the page to prevent discouraging people to
read on.
They have used a plain and simple white background
on this spread, white is a modern unisex colour
therefore will appeal to both feminine and masculine
audience likewise is an up to date colour in fashion
so a mixture of the white with bright colours may
relate/appeal to the younger audience more. The
white background also contrasts well with any colour
including the orange and blue they have used,
likewise fits in well with the black and white image
on the left hand side page. Overall gives the double
page spread a aesthetic finish.
AUDIENCE
The audience of this magazine will be a young
person on average 23 years of age, that likes a variety
of music.
MAIN IMAGE
Similar to the front cover and content page they have only
used one large image that takes up either a whole page or
the majority of the page. NME have a younger target
audience on average 23 years of age, due to them having
a younger target market they will use a larger amount of
photo spreads in their magazines due to photographs be
more appealing to a younger.
MISE-EN-SCENE
They have dressed Lana Del Ray in a white top which
links and emphasises that the magazine is modern
and up to date. Also used all unisex colours so that
they are not discouraging one sex of their audience.
They will have chosen this image out of many images
taken in a shoot, perhaps because this image
represents the artists personality best.