Billboard Audience Research

I have created a SurveyMonkey survey and received feedback from my audience on information regarding themselves, as well as what they'd like to see from a regional magazine billboard.

I asked my audience if they were 'male' or 'female', and in response I got a 50/50 result, meaning that I need to represent my billboard designs towards both male and females. This is helpful as elements such a text and colours can be effected by this. 

I asked my audience how old they are and in response found out that the majority of my audience are over 40, and a section of them are in the 25-40 age bracket. This tell me that themes and ideas need to pull towards this area of representation. 

By finding out the approximate average household income of my audience, I am able to understand the types of people who buy and read my magazine, henceforth understand the level of reading age which they acquire. Furthermore, colour and content can be fitted to a higher social class of reader.

My feedback has informed me that 100 percent of my audience are white British, this means that the content of my image, as well as content of my articles and text can be based around white British traditional themes.

The majority of my target audience currently ready magazines which allows me to place my advertising in the market place more easily. This is down to current conventions and ideas set by current media producers.

The majority of my audience have decided that it's not entirely important for an image of the magazine to be shown on the billboard - I could perhaps instead represent the magazine through similar type and colours. 

A resounding result has informed me that my audience want to see grey and white as the primary colours on my billboard. I will incorporate these colours into my design to allow it to represent my chosen target audience.

My target audience have decided that they want to see a traditional type style which fits current conventions and ideas, and also a type face which links in to the magazine's font. 

Finally, I have understood that my target audience are interested in seeing coastal images on a new regional magazine billboard - this feedback is imperative as I can now create a product which fits my audience's desires and interest.

Website Audience Research

I have created a Survey which I have posted to my audience and as a result, got feedback on each question. The feedback tells me about the demographic of my audience as well as what they want to see from a regional magazine website. 

Firstly, I asked my audience if they were 'male' or 'female' and in response, got a 50/50 feedback which tells me that I need to represent my website's themes towards both male and females. 

My second question's feedback tells me that my audience are aged 25+, with half of them falling in the 25-40 age bracket. I will need to understand their needs and desires regarding colour, text and stories to ensure I represent this age group correctly. 

This question tells me that my audience are mainly based in the higher social brackets. This is important to know as I can shape content to fit their needs and desires. The larger proportion of my audience are in social class B.

I asked my audience what ethnicity they were and in response found out that all of my audience are white British. 

This chart shows me that the majority of my audience read regional magazines which is good because I can shape content and ideas according to what they already like and dislike form current media products.

My audience replied with mixed feedback for this question. 50 percent replied yes, whereas 50 percent replied no - this tell me that I need to go to special lengths to ensure that everyone who replied no explored content on my website which appeals to them.

My audience responded to this question, informing me that white, black and blue was the best option to choose when picking the colour scheme of my website. 

I have also received mixed feedback concerning what my audience would like to see in terms f articles from a new regional magazine. 'Place to visit' was the highest ranking option, and all of the other options are relatively similar in terms of responses. I will need to investigate further to get a clear understanding of what I want to primarily include in my magazine.

It seems that my audience's top priority from a regional magazine website is that it runs quickly, and they don't have to wait for graphics to load. They also think it's important to have a good level of interactivity in a website, so I will try and include this. 

Finally, my audience feel that articles and images are both just as important from a regional magazine website. Therefore I will try and keep an even balance when I create the content for my website - incorporating lots of articles, alongside an image gallery.

Audience Research

From looking at the following quote from Hall & Holmes (1998) I can see how it is extremely important for a magazine to have a specific target audience so that your content can appeal directly to them. As stated by Hall & Holmes, 'Any media text is created for a particular audience and will usually appeal most to this particular target audience'. I need to focus on my target audience and their interests to ensure that I produce a product which focuses on every aspect of their needs and desires - without my audience there would be no final product. If I were to target my product to the wrong market, it wouldn't succeed, therefore I need to ensure I target it correctly. One specific element to look at when targeting your audience is to differentiate whether they're a niche audience or a mass audience. I have come to the conclusion that I want to aim my magazine at a mass audience - this is because I believe that this market place is relatively niche at the moment, therefore if I am my magazine at a mass market I may be able to secure a larger percentage of the larger audience.

In terms of theories relating to audiences and the qualities they possess in terms of media representation, I have been looking at the Hypodermic Needle Theory in particular. This theory states that ideas and interpretations are presented by the media, to the audience, in such a way so that the audience's behaviour and thoughts are adapted and changed as a result. When regarding my text, I feel that this theory wouldn't be an accurate fit in terms of representation. This because I believe that my product wouldn't have the kind of content which would fulfill this theory idea. Despite this, they may not be as open minded as perhaps a niche audience would be, so it might be something to take into account when creating my magazine.

Furthermore, Blumer & Kats' Uses And Gratifications theory is another theory to take into account when making my product. This theory states that my audience - the consumer - use and purchase media for specific reasons and purposes. A few of these reasons which will relate to my magazine include entertainment purposes as well to inform my audience.

When looking at who my target audience is going to be, I think that it's going to be people ages between 25 and 50 in the county of Cornwall. The reason why I've decided to opt out of trying to represent the higher aged bracket and also the lower aged bracket is because this would make my magazine too vague in terms of who it's for and what it's trying to say. Therefore, the content of my magazine will stray slightly away from the traditional magazine, as I want to include more information based around live events, more modern holiday destinations etc.

I would like to keep my magazine gender neutral in terms of who I'm appealing to as this will allow my magazine to become more popular and represent a larger audience. So hopefully, my magazine will stray away from theorists such as Stanley Hall who stated concerns regarding depression in young people as my magazine will represent the age group just above them. This will mean avoiding colours such a black and grey. I will also need to incorporate bold typography styles as well as thin weighted, archaic ones, to ensure that it connotes both males and females.

I would like my magazine to represent a wide range of social classes, this will allow the stereotypical audience to become involved in my product, as well as attracting an audience who aren't interested in 'finer cuisine' and expensive 'days out'. I would like my magazine to appeal to people in social grades B-D - this will allow me to incorporate a mix of content in my magazine, however not so much of a mix to put people off. 

From looking at my analysis of magazines such as Cornwall Today and Cornwall Life, I could see that both of these magazines fell into social brackets A-C1. This meant that a large area of the market was unexplored. This is something which I hope to cover throughout this process. I think that these magazines portrayed this audience because they wanted to make magazines regional culture based, which is something which stereotypically appeals to an older age of people/people of a higher social grade. I will try to make my product more unique than these two, despite trying to present itself to a mass market. I will try to incorporate issues and ideas asked for by my audience to ensure it's a product they'd want to buy.

From looking at magazine publishers, I have begun to understand how they 'audience profile'. This process explores the demographic of their audience and main features of their audience e.g. age, sex etc.

As magazine publishers would think about, I am now going to explore the following questions when developing and creating my magazine:

1) What is the social class of the primary target audience?

2) What is the gender of the primary target audience?
3) What is the age of the primary target audience?
4) What is the nationality of the primary target audience?
5) What is the ethnicity of the primary target audience?
6) What is the sexuality of the primary target audience?
7) Do you read regional magazines?
8) Is the prospect of a new regional magazine exciting to you?/would you read it?
9) What type of stories would you like to see in a new regional magazine?
10) What do you think would make a good name for a regional magazine?

I am now going to conduct my own primary research through use of SurveyMonkey - this will allow me to understand who my primary target audience is.

To ensure that I portray my audience correctly, I have created a SurveyMonkey survey. This will allow me to ask my audience directly what they would like to see on my magazine. It will allow me to accurately understand who they are and what they want to see. I have posted my survey onto social media to ensure that my survey goes out through an accurate source as well as getting to my target audience and getting accurate answers to my questions.

Here is the survey which I created - https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/BD8MGLK

I am now going to analyse the feedback which I got from my audience which I had received after they had filled in my survey.

My first question, 'How old are you?' shows me the age demographic of my audience. From looking a my results I can see that my audience are aged a variety of ages, however more of my audience is of an older age (30+). This tell me that the content of my magazine needs to full fill a slightly older audience's preferences, however due to 22% of my audience being 20-30, I want to incorporate ideas and stories associated with this age bracket. 

This graph shows me that the balance between male and females in my audience is roughly the same. The reasoning for males appearing slightly higher on my graph is because I posted the survey on Facebook, and I have slightly more male friends than female ones. I will target my magazine at a neutral demographic of sex of person nevertheless. 

These results show me that the social grade of my audience is between brackets B-C2. From looking at this I have decided to target my magazine at this social class bracket. This will mean that I will need to incorporate a range of stories - these will range between traditional Cornish cultural stories to stories aimed at people who have stereotypically different interests/desires from a regional magazine. 

The response to this question has told me that my audience is going to be completely white British - meaning that images and stories should be based around white British males and females. I think this question was unanimous was because of the percentage of people who aren't white British that live in my region. This is an important factor to consider when making my magazine. 

Following on from the previous question, these results are also one sided - again, it is probably because of the lack of diversity in my region. I will make sure that my magazine is aimed at heterosexual, white British males and females in order to accurately portray my audience. 

This question in particular is particularly interesting because a larger percentage of my audience don't currently read regional magazines. This highlights how important the digital platform is to my magazine - I need to concentrate on the website to entice this area of my audience. 

From looking at this feedback, I can see that a larger percentage of my audience is more excited about a new magazine - this may suggest that they are looking for something which is new and incorporates content which is aimed at more of a neutral audience. I will now need to create a product which engages this area of the market. 

This question, similarly to the last, also shows me that my audience are potentially 'fed up' with the current range of regional magazines on offer to them. Therefore, I will need to create a product with content best suited to their needs and desired. 

This chart shows that my audience want to see 'music' and 'things going on in your community' as their top priority. These stories are however, different to stories currently seen in stereotypical magazines, therefore my slightly changed audience are wanting to see new content as well as content currently on the market.

Finally, in terms of a name for my magazine, my audience have chosen the name 'Cornwall Bys Vyken', meaning 'Cornwall Forever'. I think that this shows me that despite my audience wanting to stray away slightly from conventional topics in regional magazines, they have voted for a cultural name for a new regional magazine. This shows me that I am going to have to stick to conventions as well as break them slightly to represent my audience to the best of my ability.

Analysis of Magazine Billboards

Analysis of iPhone 5c Billboard:

In order to understand regional magazine billboard designs, I want to explore a range of other billboard designs to understand how they're laid out, the colours they use as well as type and representation. This advert in particular presents connotations attached to youth and a new, vibrant product which aims to grab the audience's attention through colour, modern design and styling.

The layout of this design is highly simplistic, as it only really incorporates three main sections. Images are laid out alongside text, leaving a clear section of space for both. Spacing alongside text leaves enough room for the advert to look professional and interesting, without detracting from its aesthetic beauty. A logo is presented in the bottom right corner and this connotes a specific corporation. 

The image on this billboard is bright and vibrant, grabbing the audience's eye straight away. The styling, shot type and framing all look original and the image is easy on the eye. The image shows the product clearly, giving away clear visual details about its design and how it looks. As a new product this is important for an advert's success. The image works with the background as it opposes it and stands out clearly and coherently.

Colours shown throughout this design are bright and grab the audience's attention straight away. The range f colouring grabs the audience's attention and draws them into the advert. This diverse range of colouring stands out from the white background well, as, this alongside the black text grabs the audience's eye. Black text is used to present the idea of opposition to the reader, meaning this gives the advert another dimension.

Type on the billboard is presented through corporate themes and corporate fonts. There is very little text on this page due to the company's massive following and well know product background. However, the text that is shown is stylish and connotes a youthful, informal nature.

Analysis of Legion Billboard:

With a traditional film billboard layout, this design is typical in style and connotes an archaic design which is grand in nature. The billboard stands out and grabs the audience's eye, attracting them to the film and persuading them to watch it. Furthermore, the billboards breaks convention as it explores a state which isn't typical of that of most billboards.

The layout Legion's Billboard stands out and grabs our attention. It is laid out very simply with one line of type laid over an image. The billboard's image is sized over the basic rectangle used for traditional billboards. This allows it to become three dimensional and stand out. Due to the simplistic nature of the billboard it means that cars passing don't have to look for long before they understand the genre of the film. Text and images are centred on the billboard to create a sense of convenience as well as balance. The layout follows a conventional design. 

The one main image on this billboard presents themes concerning perhaps a horror/fantasy film - this is done through lighting, colour scheme of the image and also context of the image. Wings, connoting fantasy, alongside dark colours, opposed by brighter ones in the centre of the image all connote darker themes. Lighting in the image also presents themes similar to this. Moreover, the shot type is a medium-long shot which allows the audience to see the subject and understand the context of the film. 

With regard to colour a simplistic colour scheme is used made up of four colours, blue/green in the image, and creamy font - these colours work well together. The light of the typography contrasts the dark image and allows it to stand out. 

The mast head and font is archaic in style and looks good in terms of standing out and presenting the genre to the target audience - this is through convenience of genre as stated by John Friske. There is a serif on the type which makes it fit the genre and also ideas of imagery attached to the image. 

Analysis of Nike Billboard:

Finally, I am going to be looking at a billboard by Nike, advertising their brand and their diverse shoe range. The billboard, presenting simplistic, stylistic connotations, tells me that they create quality products, however relate to everyday people.

The layout of this billboard is relatively simple in style. By using only one image and two different sections of text, the designer has been able to make a clean-cut, simplistic, however attractive design. By centralising the main image, and adding the company's logo in the bottom left corner, this design fits stereotype and convention. Type is offset to give an idea of movement on the page, it's also positioned towards the centre of the page as this is the area which the audience's eyes are drawn to as they drive past.

One main image is used on this billboard design - it is positioned centrally and connotes the company's brand through use of a take on their world renowned logo. The image is the logo made up of a selection of the companies shoe range, this connotes the area which Nike are trying to advertise, and it also sells their brand through use of their logo. The image is large in size and takes up most of the billboard space. The image is well lit to connote a multi sex range for both children and adults. The image is backed with a white background which makes the image stand out and draws your eye to it.

With regards to colour throughout this billboard advertisement, Nike's conventional shade of blue is used on the logo to make it stand out from the background colour, as well as presenting the corporate colours. Furthermore, black is used for the rest of the typography as this allows it to contrast the background colour - this follows Levi Strauss' theory of binary opposition. The colour palate of white, black and blue works well together as it isn't too bright and allows you to focus on the corporate connotations and ideas presented by Nike.

The typography on this advertisement is is a style which doesn't edge towards either genre in particular. The typography makes a statement in terms of the lexis, whereas in terms of the styling it is relatively casual, informal and doesn't take any emphasis away from the image. Perhaps this is because Nike want the image to be to focal point, or perhaps because this typeface is a corporate typeface, therefore presents their brand. The type is all in lowercase which presents ideas of informality and the audience can feel it's more personal because of this. 

Analysis of Regional Magazine Websites

Analysis of Cornwall Today:

As a regional magazine, Cornwall Today fulfils a range of archaic choices regarding the design - however this is very much alongside modern design themes and easy to navigate layout ideas. Cornwall Today's website is easy to use, efficient and easy to find the information that you're looking for. The images are vibrant and there is a reasonable level of interactivity, regarding gallery images and drop down boxes. Perhaps an excellent website design considering it's primarily aimed at an older audience. 

Regarding the layout of Cornwall Today's Home page, the layout is simple and efficient, it's easy to navigate and easy to operate. The text boxes allow it easy for the audience to differentiate between articles and different information. Image spacing is even all over and connotes a fun, professional idea, which helps the audience to understand the content. A coherent design presents a design which has a main masthead at the top of the page, following on from traditional website designs, as well as touching on connotations attached to magazine layouts, a menu bar just below it and then a range of article and link boxes below. This design allows your eye to scroll down from the top of the page, exploring the content available and allowing the audience to understand the content. This layout design is similar on most pages, it does slightly differentiate on some pages however, I will touch on this later. 

With concern to images, Cornwall Today website uses a range of interesting images which grab you attention and the content represents the stories, themes of the magazine and also genre ideas regarding regional magazines. All of the image present a range of interesting design ideas, the image shot types and framing allow the home page to stand out and grab the target audience's attention. 

The masthead and header section of the page is shown throughout all pages of this website. The same font and styling is used as is shown on the magazine itself. This helps to build a recognition and a resemblance between both the product and the website design, building corporate themes with the audience. Furthermore, the simplistic header also incorporates an advertisement, an important theme for a regional magazine, fitting this genre. 

The colour scheme on Cornwall Today follows a simplistic theme, especially on the home page. Greys are used alongside whites and a turquoise blue. This range of colours allows for contrast and also allows images and text to stand out. On other, lesser pages, text boxes in the colour of orange and shown which highlights important information for the audience which grabs their eye and drawn them in. The colour of orange connotes summer, perhaps relevant to the content and ideas of the article. Text is shown in a variety of colours, mainly opposing the background colour to create a sense of binary opposition. 

The type styles throughout this website present traditional ideas. For example, the masthead follows ideas surrounding an archaic font which uses a serif and a traditional regional magazine styling. For article text, and text used in text boxes and as subheadings, a more modern type style is used which follows maybe a more younger target audience to what we expect from this genre of magazine. Furthermore, a range of fonts in this type face are used in different weights and different colours to allow them to stand out.

The lexical choices shown through this website present an idea of traditionally, alongside modern themes which allow for Cornwall Today's specific audience to be shown. This is done through use of words relating to content, specific ideas as well as representing specific topics. 

Analysis of Devon Life:

In terms of an overview of DevonLife, this website is music more complex then the previous one which I explored. A variety of information and content makes it look much more like a news website than it does a regional magazine website. Content, layout and design all fit modern ideas which allow for a sophisticated, however perhaps younger audience to be attracted. 

The layout of Devon Life is much more sophisticated and explores a range of different layout ideas as oppose to Cornwall Today. From use of text boxes behind text which allows it to stand out, and attractive content, ordered specifically and coherently depending on importance. Styling allows the page to look attractive and sections such as the menu bar are modern and stylistic. Regarding aesthetic themes, DevonLife presents content laid out in columns as well as information laid out in horizontal boxes which takes up the whole width of the page. 

DevonLife uses a range of different image which aims to attract their audience and pull them into the content, persuading them to buy the next issue and read on. Images represent content of articles and specific ideas presented through monthly issues. Content also represent cultural themes and ideas, however images don't seem to be quite as exciting as Cornwall Life - this may be down to magazine photographer, or perhaps idea connotation. 

The masthead of DevonLife's website is traditional and again, follows that of their magazine. This helps to build corporate themes and create a link between the two mediums. The typeface has a serif and is in the colour of black so that it opposes the white background, following Levi Strauss' Binary Opposition theory. The header on this page also incorporate a search bar, allowing the audience to search for specific content, as well as social media buttons which tell me that this website is designed for a younger audience than the previous one I looked at. Furthermore, the use of colour shown through the links in the menu panel makes the website look create and interactive, grabbing the audience's attention. 

Colours throughout DevonLife follow traditional, simplistic website themes, while also incorporating some brighter colours which stand out and catch the eye. Dark Grey and white are used to oppose each other and are used as primary colours. This is so that one or two other, lesser colours can be used and themes presented which aren't too overpowering. A bright range of colours are used in the menu bar and this stands out. Maybe not too many colours are used throughout this website due to the range of advertisements shown - all of these are allowed to use whatever colours they choose, meaning if the website design was also to incorporate different colours this may come across too overpowering. 

With regards to type and lexical choices, a conventional, traditional type face is used for the body of the text. While a typeface with a serif is used for the masthead. A more casual, informal typeface is used for the subheading font, as this is friendly and allows the audience to relate to the articles. The lexical choices also follow convention - with word choices specific to content and also representing the audience.

All of the other pages on this website follows similar themes and ideas and presents conventional codes and conventions. Layout styles are similar to that of the home page which is good as a link is created between both.

Analysis of Devonshire Magazine:

Devonshire magazine follows similar, however less flamboyant contentions to DevonLife. A traditional however sophisticated design looks attractive and interesting on the eye and attracts and older audience looking for regionally traditional themes. Moreover, this magazine website is aimed at perhaps an older age bracket in a higher social grade.

The layout of this website represents a simplistic design that is easy to navigate and easy to find content and information. My laying content out in columns, it makes it easy for the audience to find information and understand the importance of content depending on where it's placed. By incorporating images in text boxes, alongside 'read more' buttons, it allows for a contact design that draws in the audience and allows them to follow the content. 

Images on Devonshire Magazine website are relevant to content and presents regionally relevant themes. The images grab the audience's attention and they're engaging and interesting to view. There are a mix of photographic images alongside illustrations, which connote Devon's cultural diversity, something their target audience are looking for.

The masthead for this website presents a header with a traditional font which includes a serif. The header itself presents a simplistic, sophisticated menu bar which is easy to use and connotes professionalism. Furthermore, the social media buttons allow the audience to interact and share content with their friends. The white space makes for an interestingly sophisticated design which is simplistic and attractive on the eye.

This website uses only a few colours throughout, which follows the simplistic themes. White, black and red are the primary colours with red standing out from the white and black, grabbing the audience's attention. 

A friendly, informal typeface is used on this website, alongside the main header which uses a formal typeface with a serif. The article type is conventional to regional magazine websites and it looks good both in bold for subheadings, as well as for the bulk of the articles. Lexical choices means that the magazine's content correctly represent their audience, presenting themes which relate to content as well as genre. Word choices are picked to represent the demographic of audience as well as the genre of the magazine and also the purpose, to inform and entertain.