The document analyzes and compares the contents pages of two teen pop magazines, We Love Pop and Top of the Pops. It discusses the layout, visual design, language, and conventions used on each page to attract their target audiences of teenage girls. Both magazines employ bright colors, images of celebrities, and brief article descriptions to grab readers' attention. However, We Love Pop uses a busier, more image-heavy design while Top of the Pops focuses more on information. The analysis shows how each magazine effectively brands itself and connects with readers through their contents pages.

1. The contents page of We Love Pop
should continue to maintain brand
identity and provide readers with an
extended insight into the
magazine's contents, conventions
should clearly reappear throughout
different issues of the magazine
allowing the reader to establish
common occurrences. The contents
page is divided into different topics
giving away brief details for each
article.
The simplistic phrases such as
“inside this month” and “four looks
one Fearne” give a compact
summary of the contents and allow
the reader quick access to pages
they are instantly drawn towards by
revealing images and small details
that will feature in that article, this is
why a contents page is vital,
readers should be able to decide
what interests them primarily from a
brief title and be able to rapidly get
to the page. The first thing that the
reader is presented with is the bold title “we love this”, instantly the audience can sense
belonging as the pronoun “we” allows the reader to feel involved and adds a personal touch.
The use of direct address through eye contact and wording makes the reader feel as if they
are personally being spoken to and lures them in.
The logo from the front cover is seen being used again on the contents page, this
strengthens brand identity, as the magazine constantly uses their logo the target audience
can therefore associate the logo with style of writing and pick up on what sort of language is
used. The type of language used creates a desirable effect as it makes the magazine seem
unique and special, the first words in the top left corner puff are “for you eyes only” this
makes the audience feel special as the use of “your” allows them to fit in and encapsulates
them to read more. implementing ellipses creates a sense of anticipation for upcoming
articles and photos, leaving the reader wanting to find out more.
The page is rather busy with images, this adds to the overall “bubblegum pop effect” that is
in place and represents how the magazine is aimed at a younger target audience who often
connect with images rather than text. The almost cluttered look is a perfect example of how
‘We Love Pop’ employs femininity by using various images of teenage boys and fashionable
women, young girls will enjoy the general aesthetics and take advice from the fashion tips.
Blue is a colour often made out to be a masculine colour, it opposes what a stereotypical
young girls magazine would use, but it is a complementary colour to orange, therefore
perfectly fitting the genre of music being portrayed, because bright complementary colours

2. are often used on pop magazines alongside mise en scene that stands out against the
background.
The image that catches the audience's eye from this example of a contents page is the
photograph of Tulisa and Kelly Rowland stamped with the giant number 28, this clearly
indicates that they have a featured article on page 28 and impacts the reader's decision to
read the article, talking about the layout the page is presented in a manner which shows who
the target audience is, the reader will be drawn towards the bold text first and it has to
interest the reader, the idea of putting important information in bold text that stands out
reinforces the well known pop genres theme of vivid bold text. The images that have been
used are images of artists that are featured in the magazine connected to an article. There is
also a quote from the article on the image which gives the reader an insight into the contents
linking to the picture and the artists.The quote is often shocking or unusual to grab the
reader's attention. Along the bottom of the contents page it features a series of images
which are advertised as posters within the magazine, posters are a great way to draw in new
customers who love bright colourful images.
Each component of a We Love Pop magazine works effectively together to establish the
magazines house style and brand identity. For example, colour schemes rarely feature
similar colours and complementary colours are almost always used to convey the uplifting
mood throughout each issue. Featured artists from the pop industry will always be wearing
clothing items that stand out against the background furthermore contributing to the colourful
display that the magazine aims to create. Bold text and conventional sell lines such as “We
Love This” maintain brand identity for the audience and conveniently links back to the
magazine's brand name.
There is an informal feel with the way the editors note looks, it is written almost like an
autograph or signature which can link with how magazines have close relationships with
their audience. A close relationship is important in pop as the genre is known for enforcing
friendship and positivity, for example on this particular issue the focused image on the
contents page shows Tulisa and Kelly Rowland smiling and conveying friendship, the theme
of friendship is vital as young teenage girls can be heavily influenced by their celebrity idols.
The editors note and signature contributes to adding a sense of brand identity and makes
the magazine feel more realistic. The contents page can overall be classed as an exemplary
example of the pop music genre as it has the freshest information, constantly keeping on top
of all the latest news and gossip, furtherly transmitting the information to fans and
encapsulating them to read each issue published.

3. Top of the Pops magazine uses
skylines to make their title stand out,
the block pink colour efficiently
creates a background for the title
creating an eye catching convention.
The first phrase that the reader is
presented with is “inside the mag”
this gives the audience a sense of
possession and belonging, through
direct address. The word ‘mag’ is
informal and classed as modern
slang, it sets a warm tone for the
reader inviting them further into the
magazine.
On the contents page, the majority of
image space is taken up by a
photograph of the front cover, this
makes the audiences desired page
easier to find, also the annotated
front cover appeals to the younger
audience as their personal
preference would be to skip to the
featured articles where the most
fascinating information is. The idea of
labelling the front cover with page
numbers reinforces the idea that on the contents page you can simply find the most exciting
articles quickly and they are targeted as the most interesting for the young girls reading it.
Each main sell line has been carefully annotated with a catchy modern line to intrigue the
readers and strengthen the youthful feel.
The contents page of Top of the Pops magazine has followed the traditional grid system to
show and official format to the page. There are clear divisions on the page which help to
divide the categories into sections. The sections are cleverly split into page numbers and
related stories, this is extremely helpful for the readership who only purchased the magazine
for a specific topic.The layout of the contents page is significant because it is similar in
colour and fonts to the front cover, which shows the magazine has continuity. The font used
is curly with no harsh corners, this will most likely appeal to girls as they traditionally enjoy
curly writing rather than block fonts. The colour of the text is white which is a calming pure
colour, again appealing to females. The skyline box which the title is located in is a hot pink
colour contrasting against the plain white background allowing it to stand out to a further
extent.
There are very few images on this page in contrast to a We Love Pop magazine, Top of the
Pops is more about the information, comparing the two covers enhances the simplicity of this
contents page but at the same time portrays how many differences there actually are in
magazine choice. Each heading is written in bold to be easily identified, accompanied by an
interesting phrase or word to entice the reader to that particular story. The subheading on

4. the other hand is written normally just to provide extra information about the articles
contents.
“We (heart) boys” is a convention used in Top of the Pops magazines, it directly addresses
the readerships growing interest in boys, including famous ones such as Niall Horan and
Harry Styles. It also signifies that the magazine completely understands their readers likes
and interests, encouraging them to embrace their feelings, also allowing them to connect
with friends about their shared interest in boys. The magazine could almost be classed as a
friend who expresses an attraction for their friends choice of boy and who they will find
attractive.
The magazine offers a tiny piece of information on each featured article for example “can
you kiss with confidence” and “fit and fabulous”, the details given away are small but just
enough to tempt the audience to turn to that page, while the most relevant part of the
sentence is highlighted in bold to furtherly grab the reader's attention to keywords. The
magazine's brand is constantly kept up throughout the entire issue which reminds the
audience of the tone being conveyed also helping to establish its brand identity. The mode of
address used is characteristically informal and chatty to appeal to the younger generation.
With repeated use of alliteration and also brackets which causes the language to become
friendly. Younger people see slang and chatty language as more relatable.
Each article that has been featured in this magazines contents page displays a perfect
example of modern pop culture and shows the readers an excellent representation of
younger people today. The main articles featured in bold writing are focused on young and
current pop music artists, relevant TV show actors and actresses also appear in some
issues, both of which perfectly link to the target audience of young teenagers. The majority
of young girls enjoy the general aesthetics of pop magazines, Top of the Pops tries to
accommodate for everybody's taste so rarely features the same photographs and colour
schemes, by using a huge variety of colours, photos and sell lines Top of the Pops has too
often conduct research to figure out the hottest trends in the pop industry, this allows them to
keep on top of their audience, remaining relatable and relevant.
Overall the contents page is very easily absorbed and the general aesthetics are pleasant.
The use of pink and yellow provides a feminine look that is fun and youthful, but the colours
are not overly present allowing text to boldly show alongside images and puffs. From page to
page the structure differs helping to secure the magazine's brand identity. Navigation has
been made simple, large numbers are anchored to certain images for easy access to the
page. Primarily medium close up shots are used for pop magazine's, possibly illustrating that
the artists are individual self centered artists who focus on the key purpose of being a pop
artist, which is to perform and entertain through music. Contrarily bands who feature convey
strong bonds to their fellow band members. The angle of photograph also makes the target
audience simply recognise celebrities enticing them to the magazine.
We Love Pop continuously displays an array of layouts throughout every issue, following the
same structured guide but differing the colours and image layout from issue to issue, this
allows the reader to interpret their magazine as a conventional mag that likes to be erratic
and displays a causal mode of address allowing the readers to feel more comfortable and
involved. The advertised articles on the side are there to lure in the young female audience,

5. young teenage girls are attracted to young
modern celebrities such as Justin Bieber and
actors from kids television shows.
Along the bottom of the page there is a
banner that contains pictures of the posters
that will be included inside the magazine.
Bright colours have been used to surround
the posters to grab the attention of the
readership as they are going to be visually
attracted to the posters if they are
accompanied by bright colours. The large
page numbers printed next to the featured
articles are indicating the importance of each
article, on this particular issue pink and black
font has been used to contradict one another,
the use of these two covers efficiently
separates and defines each number allowing
the reader to easily navigate around the
page.
The editor's personal paragraph explains the
contents of the magazine and gives a friendly personal touch, the paragraph has been
signed off with an autograph in the editors handwriting with a small heart imprinted onto the
‘I’ in Emily, the heart follows conventions of the magazine and the autograph makes the
reader feel as if they can relate by showing that an actual person is behind the magazine
making it feel like a reliable source of the latest gossip and news. The elaborate and vibrant
colours represent the magazines house style and reflect the pop genre, the box of relevant
page numbers captioned “inside this month” is a convention used by this magazine to
predominantly assist with navigation.
Overall We Love Pop has created a contents page which is easy to digest for the young
female audience, it is pleasing to look at due the use of various colours and images, allowing
the readership to visually appreciate the page. The magazine has ideally created an
amusing, youthful contents page to entice the reader, it does not come across as too
overpowering yet completely illustrates the pop vibe. We Love Pop has secured their brand
identity by following a conventional structure which demonstrates continuity and allows the
audience to develop a strong sense of belonging when reading.In this particular issue, it is
worded using colours which are fresh, bright and bold. Friendly conversational tone is also
used directly reflecting the youthful readership.