Critical approaches

Different Magazines target different audiences and use different methods to attract their audiences. I have chosen two different magazines to analyse and find what they have done to appeal to their audiences and become successful.

Rolling Stone
The first magazine I have looked at is the very successful, Rolling Stone. This magazine covers all the latest news in popular culture such as music and films. As it focuses on the popular things it is mainly aimed to please a younger audience. The magazine aims at 18- 35 year old's. The magazine's target audience begins at 18 because it contains some content that is quite mature and would not interest a younger reader or be suitable. At 18, viewers will start to appreciate the stories and other content in the magazine and are more likely to subscribe to it to keep up to date with what is going on. Younger viewers might not actually be interested in the stories and only purchase this magazine because they like the person on the cover. This will generally result in them not subscribing. The Rolling Stone also covers popular culture from different eras and a younger audience might not appreciate these particular articles as they are not educated on it or they have not lived through it. Someone as old 35 will have lived through 3 decades and witnessed many different forms of music meaning they would appreciate these articles.

This image shows an example of the articles in Rolling Stone. As seen on the cover there is a main article on Jimi Hendrix who was at his prime in the 60's/70's. This is not an issue from the 60's as at the top it advertises an article on Eminem who has been out from 2000 onward. A younger audience would most likely see this and not realise who this is which is why the target audience starts at 18.

This Image shows the demographic report of the rolling stones magazines. They have researched in to it and the research shows that the biggest audience come from 18-24 year old's and 25-34 year old's. I believe that the ratings start to drop after these age groups because people older than this start to lose interest in popular culture and prefer to stick to what they know and like which is usually what was popular when they were young.

The images used by Rolling Stone are important for grabbing the attention of the target audience. On each issue, the front cover is taken up by an image of a popular celebrity that there is a main article on in the magazine. This an effective use of a front cover because people who like that celebrity will be instantly attracted to the magazine. They always use an image that represents the celebrity in a way most viewers will approve of. For example they would use an attractive image of Leonardo Di Caprio however they have used a silly cartoon when showing Donald Trump and other politicians as a lot of people do not like him and will be attracted to this magazine as it makes him look inferior.

This is one cover of the Rolling Stone. The image used here is of Eddie Murphy covering his mouth. This image has been used effectively because underneath there is a headline that states 'Eddie Murphy Speaks'. The headline immediately makes viewers curious as to what he is speaking about however the picture is particularly effective because the fact he is covering his mouth implies that he is speaking about something he shouldn't which will attract viewers as it is interesting to read his true opinions.

One of the codes and conventions seen in this magazine cover is the style. The colours used in the Rolling Stone magazines are very simple. Most issues use a very basic black and white style such as the one above. This is still effective as it does not take any attention away from the image and the titles. The main title has become a recognisable logo for the Rolling Stone magazine as it has been very popular for many years. For that reason the producer can afford to put the headline behind the main image and people will still know which magazine they are looking at. This helps to keep focus on the image which is handy for the issue above as the image is important for grabbing the attention of the audience.



Nature & Health
The other magazine I researched was of a completely different genre. This magazine was Nature And Health. This magazine is aimed at a more specific audience. It focuses on females aged around 30+. The content in this magazine is all about how women can keep healthy and be happy. I believe it is aimed more at 30+ women because the content includes things based on children and marriage. Things that younger women would not be considering. Women at this age who have settled down will look to this magazine as a time consumer. It gives information on things women can do to keep healthy which is a popular subject amongst most girls who feel their image is important. Younger girls will not have to worry as much about their health as they are young and have a lot of their life ahead to worry about things such as that. They also will not have to concern themselves with keeping a good marriage if they are not even close to getting married.

This is a magazine cover of nature and health. One of the articles is Expert anti-ageing tips. This shows that this magazine covers more older women than young because young women will not have to worry about ageing for a while and would therefore not take interest in the article whereas someone older who is concerned about the effects of ageing will be interested in the articles information.

This is a different issue of nature and health. One of the features shown in this issue is the banner across the top. This banner is advertising a specific article in the magazine. There are other articles advertised across the left side of the magazine however this one has it's own banner. The producer will have purposely done this because they believe this article is more likely to attract viewers who come to look at the magazine. The banner is overlapping the title and the title is the first thing that people will look at if they are viewing the magazine for the first time. When reading the title they will look at this article first and this should then grab the viewer and persuade them in to reading the magazine. This specific article is 'Are Chemicals Making You Fat?'. This is an effective article because it asks a question and when the viewer is reading this they immediately become curious and ask the question themselves. Also, weight loss is a popular subject within the target audience and if they see something that gives the impression that they could learn how to lose weight then they will most likely be interested. The banner also indicates which page the viewer can go to so they can find out more. The fact that the viewer can eliminate a few seconds by knowing which page to turn to will help in attracting them to purchase the product. This is because they will be tempted to read the article more if they are told where to find it and if it is an interesting article then they will probably want to buy this issue or subscribe.

One of the codes and conventions used in this issue is the colours. The main colour that is taken from this cover is pink which is a stereotypical feminine colour. This is a good way of getting the target audience's attention. If the target audience are looking for a magazine that covers the topics that this one does then they can immediately tell that this magazine will suit them. The magazine covers stereotypical girly things and so if they boldly advertise a stereotypical girly colour than the audience will be able to tell what is in the magazine without actually reading it.


Audience Feedback

Magazine producers use audience feedback to improve their product. There are multiple different methods to collect audience feedback. One form is a focus group. A focus group is where a group of people gather together to discuss their thoughts on a product before it is released. In this case the product would be the magazine. This is an effective method to use before the initial release of a magazine. This is because you can get a variety of people’s thoughts on the content and find out if they would want to continue reading each issue. The use of putting all the people in a group is effective because they can openly give their opinions to each other and discuss in detail why they liked what they liked or didn’t like. The producer would be a part of the focus group and would note down all the feedback given. As this is done before the product is released, the producer could then make changes to the magazine or make the decision whether they even want to release the magazine at all.

Trialling and testing can also be done by producers to gain feedback. Trialling and testing is as simple as it sounds. The producer will basically release the magazine to a selected group or area to see how successful it is. They will be monitoring it over a short time period which is the trial period. They will be monitoring it to see how well it sells and maybe get some opinions on the way. If the magazine didn't sell many at all then it may be worth changing the magazine or stopping the production. The choice can all depend on how much money went in to making the magazine. If there is no profit being made during the trial period then the magazine is an unsuccessful one. 

Reviews and complaints are some of the more common ways that producers get feedback. A review is an easy way to get feedback because it can be done in many forms: online, on paper and in person. Some producers might add a small review sheet at the end of a magazine that people can send off however the more common method for reviews is online on their website. Viewers can easily visit the website if there is something they feel they should share to everyone. This is also how most viewers will complain. Complaints can have a negative effect on the magazine as it can put other people off purchasing it however it is still an effective way of getting feedback. Complaints blatantly point out the bad things in your magazine which makes it easy for a producer to get rid of the things people don't like in the magazine. If the complaints are taken on board straight away then there should be more of a positive effect in the end to overcome the negativity caused by the original complaint. 

Working to a brief

Structure of a brief
There are multiple different structures to a brief that make them vary from one another. One of the structures is contractual. A contractual brief is a legal brief. This means that all the guidelines given in the brief must be followed by law. The client will write up this brief and make the employee sign it which then means they have to legally create what the employer has asked for. This is an effective structure of a brief as you will definitely get something out of it. The employee must give you what you want otherwise you can fine them. The employee also has some benefits as the client must give to the employee what they have stated they would, for example a designated time frame, otherwise the employee can sue the client. 

Another structure of brief is a negotiated brief. In a negotiated brief, the employee will try and work with the client to alter the brief. This may be because the employee feels the brief could be improved or would like to add something to it. Whilst the brief is negotiated, the guidelines generally stay the same. It is often just the actual task that is negotiated.

Formal and informal are other structures of briefs. A formal brief is a more professional brief. This is usually a document which clearly outlines the guidelines of the task making it easy for the employee to figure out what they have to do. Formal briefs are usually given to companies that are doing business with the client. An informal brief has less effort put in to it. A lot of the time this won't even be a document and can instead just be spoken instructions. An informal document will often be used for individuals. By using an informal brief there is a more personal connection between client and employee and can be good for keeping a healthy relationship and keep pressure off the employee however this can lead to a final result that is not a professional standard.

A commission brief is different to other types of briefs. A commission brief is where a media company that is given a brief from a client will then hire a smaller media company or an individual to complete the brief for them.The bigger company are just passing on the brief. This can be useful for a big media company as they don't have to focus on the hard work that comes with the brief. There is a risk for them because they are trusting the smaller company to create something good enough for there client. The bigger company would still get the blame if the client wasn't satisfied. The independent company can make a lot of money from a commission brief as they can possibly get money every time the larger company uses or sells the product.

One more structure of a brief is a tender brief. A tender brief is when the client publishes their brief to the public. Production companies or individuals will then either create the product from the brief or pitch an idea to the client of what they want to create, depending on the clients needs. This can be good for the client as they can have plenty of product options to choose from and they can pick the one best suited to their brief. It is not as beneficial for the employee as they might spend a lot of time and possibly money creating their production for it not to be picked by the client. It can be a risk for an employee to take a tender brief.

Reading a brief
Briefs must be read thoroughly. It is important that a brief is fully understood otherwise you are likely to miss some important information that is vital to creating your product. On many briefs there are the same features. Every brief should give you the task at hand and will often have a time frame in which it should be done. This is one feature of a brief that is important to take note of. If you are not aware of how long you have to complete the task then you might miss your deadline. If the brief is contractual then you can get in to legal trouble for not handing in the work when it is needed.

A brief I have previously been given was titled 'Me, Myself and I'. This brief asked me to create a short film about myself. I had to read this brief thoroughly to understand what was asked of me. One of the statements given was 'Celebrate you'. After reading over all of the statements including this one, I realised that I could create a short film on something that represents me rather than a film documenting me. This meant I was able to create a much more effective and interesting film.

Negotiating the brief 
On many occasions, the employee will want to negotiate the brief with the client. There are many reasons why someone might want to do this. The employee may want more control over the product. Often the client will tell the employee exactly what they want in the brief and give the employee little opportunity to be creative with it. An employee might want to negotiate with the client so they can change the brief slightly and do more what they feel will create a more effective outcome.

There are legal and ethical constraints that must be considered before accepting a brief. If the employee feels that the brief is breaching some laws then it should be discussed with the client. If the employee took on and completed the brief then they could face legal action. An example is if the brief required you to steal someone else's footage then you would more than likely be sued by the original owner. Ethical constraints are different to legal as you cannot have legal action taken against you for bad ethics. If the brief stated that you couldn't use women in your final piece then you could go along with it without worrying about being fined however you are likely to upset a lot of women who would find it sexist. It is up to the employee to negotiate with the client about changing this or risk going along with it.

The employee or client may want to negotiate about amendments that can be made to the product. The employee might show the end product to the client and if there is still time then the client might want the employee to tweak the product. This can happen if the client is unhappy with it or feels there is something that wasn't as they expected. The employee could also negotiate about making amendments to the final product if they have strictly followed the brief and feel they could change the idea slightly. An employee might often request to amend the budget also. This is often the case if they feel the client has not offered them enough to make the product from. It is important to take in to consideration everything that has to be paid for to make this product at work out an average cost. Asking for more money is not the easiest thing to persuade the client to do so there has to be a reasonable explanation behind it with evidence. You need to be able to show the actual cost and compare it with the original budget. On the topic of money, a fee can be negotiated with the client. An employee might choose to negotiate their final payment if they feel it is insufficient. Based on the time frame and size of the task could all effect how much money you should get paid. If the brief states that you have a year to create an excellent product then you will want quite a lot of money as you need to put a lot of money in to creating the product and also you will have to turn down other work in the time that you are creating this product so you don't want to be losing out on money.

Opportunities
Working to a brief can give the employee a lot of new skills. It enhances their time management skills. After completing brief work you can find how long it takes to manage each section of production and you can apply your management technique to future work. You also gain experience by working with a client. You can develop skills by negotiating with your client and learning how to deal with different personalities in different areas of media. With this skill you can have more successful client meetings in other projects as you know how to handle different situations with different people.

Completing someone else's brief is a good opportunity to develop your work experience. Someone else's project looks good on a show reel or CV of some sort. This is because it shows that you can successfully complete tasks given to you. It also shows that you can move out of your comfort zone and create work that isn't yours but someone else's. This shows that you can complete almost any task given to you which is appealing for someone looking for someone else to take on their brief.