Research and planning: Magazines and Institutions

NME

The company who publish the NME magazine is called IPC Media. IPC Media produces over 60 magazine brands. The some of the different magazines targeted at male audiences include Country Life, horse & Hound, Rugby World and Decanter.  Women’s magazines contain Look, Chat, Now and Woman.

There produce a wide range of genres from Horses to biking to TV. IPC Media produce only two music magazines NME and Uncut.

Introducing Main Task

Now that I have completed the prelim task, I am going to begin to research and plan for the main task which is to produce a front cover, contents page and a double page spread for a music magazine.

Action Plan

16^th Jan:

• Compare Magazines & research the magazine market place
• Research similar products: 3X front covers, 2X contents page, 2X double page spread

24^th Jan:

• Initial ideas
• Audience research 
•  Writing treatment plan

30^th Jan:

• Layout/ Masthead ideas
•  Plan photoshoot and take photos
• Drafting of pages
•   Audience feedback

6^th- 27^th Feb

• Drafting of pages
•  Audience feedback

5^th March:

• Evaluation

^16th March:

•     Final Deadline

Final Front cover and Contents page

Mock up of front cover and contents page

Results to questionnaire

                                       What is the most appropriate name for a college magazine?                   

How much do you think it should cost?

                                     

                                             What language do you think is most appropriate?

What topics do you want in this magazine?

How often do you want it?

What colours do you think would be most appropriate?

Do you want it in hand or online?

What pictures would you prefer to see in this magazine?

Questionnaire

1. What name is most appropriate for the college magazine?

·      College 101

·      Student 101

·      ChitChat

2. How much do you think it should cost?

·      Free

·      20p

·      50p

·      £1

3. Which language do you think is most appropriate?

·      Formal

·      Informal

4. What topics do want in the magazine?

·      College events

·      Local events

·      Celebrities

·      Music and film reviews

·       Fashion

5. What colours do you think would be most       appropriate?

·      Orange, white and black

·      Blue and purple and white

·      Blue, red and white

6. How often do you want it?

·      Weekly

·      Monthly

·      Every 3 months

7. Do you want it online or in hand?

·      Online

·      In hand

8.  What pictures would you prefer to see in the magazine?

·      Students

·      College area

·      Ludlow

Campus Life- Analysis                 
                                      

This magazine is targeted at students who go to university. The masthead is bold and white, which is very eye catching. Also it is in the background, which connotes that the contents are more important. The title is called ‘CAMPUS LIFE’ which connotes that is covers a lot of topics and targets all genres. The central image is very large and fills the whole page with no other images on the cover. It also overlaps the masthead to show importance. A puff is included to give students an opportunity to win a 8GB Zune that most students may not be able to afford. Also there are cover lines, which vary different topics to interest different people.

The contents in this magazine have a selection of images to show the different topics included in the magazine. Also it is quite formal and grown up by the use of fonts and colours of black and red. The contents show that the magazine has been split into different sections, which could interest different people. They also call the contents page ‘Table of Contents’ which is different and fresh from other magazines.

247. - Analysis

247. Is a student magazine targeted at university students. The masthead is in the top right corner and has a different font to the other writing on the page, which helps make it stand out. Also is it white and bold on a green background, which also helps it stand out. The magazine is called 247. Which connotes that it doesn’t have a target genre.  The central image is very large and fills the whole page. The background is very colourful which could connote student life. It also helps to magazine to be very eye catching. The cover lines are organized on the right bottom corner of the page which makes them easy to read and so that its not to busy.

The contents page has one main image in the middle of the page, which is artwork. This helps the page seem calm and doesn’t make it too busy.  It also includes information to get in contact with the magazine company. There is also a section at the bottom called the ‘Editors Letter’ where the editor sums up the magazine and persuades the readers to read the whole magazine not just certain sections. The contents page is split in to different sections so the readers can easily find what they want to read. The background is orange, which relates to the image and helps the entire information stand out which is in white.