Evaluation Question 5) How Did You Attract/Address The Audience For Your Music Publication?

When looking at ways of attracting my target audience I took into consideration the previous two questions, who the audience would be and where the publication will be distributed. There are many ways in which I attracted my audience. The main way was through use of masthead. My main focus when designing and making the masthead in order to address my audience successfully was typography. Typography being the feature which stands out, makes the masthead work and allows identification of the magazine, this had to be the key to address. During the flat planning and initial masthead ideas, I decided I wanted to use two different fonts to reach my intention of reducing gender inequality. The first font is very masculine, with sharp edges, adhering the male stereotype. The second font is much more gentle, with soft curves appealing to the female population. This feature reaches out to both genders. I also used effects on writing to appeal to both genders and the age group of my target audience. The second font gives an edgy feel, adhering the music genre and target audience of people who love music. The gradient of the second font changing from dark to light shows diversity and appeals to the whole of my target audience. The shadowing on the first font, also shows my target audience is a whole.
For a full analysis on my masthead and typography used, visit here.

I have used 3 fonts throughout my music publication, this successfully addresses my audience as it appeals to different populations in that audience, making my target audience diverse which is what I wanted to achieve.

Another way in which I attracted my audience for my music publication was by use of language. The language throughout my music publication is informal and along the lines of language expected from my target audience. Comments such as 'DON'T MISS OUT' addresses the young generation as this is the short, snappy language they use. Also young people, my target audience, are the generation who are eager and do not want to miss out, therefore, this catchy slogan will attract them.

As stated in my Analysis of Selected Features, I used free gifts in my magazine as a way of addressing my target audience. This addresses them as my audience of young people are less likely to have alot of money, and unlikely to be working. If working they are on minimum wage, and therefore not earning a big income. This leads them to be unlikely to purchase a magazines in general. Therefore, the use of giving away free gifts attracts them into the magazine itself as they are getting more for there money. I have used price in the same way of addressing my target audience. Students have little money and are not going to pay alot for a magazine, so my magazine is at a ideal price. Business men and women aged around 35 are less likely to buy colourful magazines, low price and giving away free cd's. This leads me to my next point of how I have addressed my target audience through use of colour.

I have used the element of colour to pursue the target audience further. I have used pink, grey and black to achieve my intention of reducing gender inequality. This addresses my target audience attracting both the male and female population as pink appeals to females and black appealing to males.

The layout of my music publication addresses the audience. Front cover and contents page both have an organised layout, with large titles and subtitles. Large titles address my audience as it stands out to them. Simplicity also addresses young people as they as less likely to be attracted to a full on striking page, simplicity with strikes is perfect for addressing them.

I have also used photographs as a way of attracting my audience. My audience are a generation which adore celebrities and would love to be part of the celebrity life, because of this, I have used expressive, striking images of my celebrities to make a connection with my audience. The main image on the front cover of my music publication is a striking image using red lipstick to symbolise love and strong eye contact as a way of interacting with the audience. This addresses my audience as because of idolisation, they will feel as if the celebrity present is communication with them and therefore will be attracted to my publication.
To find out more about how my photographs themself appeal to my target audience, click here.