Front Cover Analysis- Q

Title:

This title is very powerful, as it is a single letter, with no implications of what it stands for, this makes it very unusual, also as Q is such an unusual letter, and not commonly used, it stands out from other magazines.

The use of the 'puff'' that states it is 'The World's Greatest Magazine', draws the reader in, although they know it probably isn't true that it isnt the number one magazine in the world, it makes you think that they must be good.

Finally, the title is slightly obscured, however the magazine name is still obvious to the reader. As the letter Q is white, it is bright and obvious, making it still easy to see. Because the title is only slightly obscured, it shows that the magazine feel that they still have to make the name obvious so that the reader will still buy it, and yet they are covering it up to show that they feel secure and that the brand alone will draw in the reader's attention.


Readership:

 This shows that the readership is targeting an older audience, as it is mainly advertising comeback stories. This shows that the stories are about things that their target audiemce will remember from when they were younger, and allow them to feel young again, and as though the magazine is something they will enjoy.

They also use words that imply the target audience is for people more interested in rock music, for example the 'From Rock Star to Murderer' article draws in this type of person, as they want to keep up to date on things they like. Aslo, the use of the words 'music's most dangerous man', makes it more exciting, and makes the reader feel more interested, and want to find out who they are talking about, due to it being so dramatic.
The target audience could be both men and women, as it is so neatly laid out, and uses feminine colours such as red, it makes it appealing to women, however the use of the male band, the slanted words, and some gender neautral colours like yellow, makes it appeal more to men.

Dominant Image:

The shot framing of the band shows them all equal distance away from the camera, none infront of others or particularly standing out from the other members, so it suggests that they are all equal. as well as this they have there arms around eachother, and are laughing and smiling, which shows that they get on, and have a good relationship. Their eyeline is all fairly similar, the picture shows one or two members of the band looking at tthe camera and interacting with the reader, and making a connection, however not all of them, this tells the reader that the band are relatable, yet they don't feel as though they need to make too much effort to make a connection with them, perhaps making them seem even more normal, along with their laid-back body language, it makes the reader feel as though they are just like them. From the image, you can also see that it would appeal to the sllightly older generation, because of the slioghtly old fashioned hair and clothes they are wearing, yet they are not so old fashioned that they don't fit in with the rest of the magazine.



Straplines:

Here, the strapline 'World Exclusive' makes the reader feel as though they are getting something no-one else is. This makes the reader more likely to buy the magazine because they don't want to miss out on the oppurtunity to read something that is 'world exclusive' and that no other magazines anywhere have published.
Similar to this, they used 'plus!' above an adverstisement for one of their articles, in order to make the reader feel as though this is an extra from what they would normally get, and as though they are getting more value for their money.





Freebies, Competitions, and Giveaways:


The freebie in this magazine is a mini magazine that comes with Q, about an old English rock band. The fact that it says 'collector's special', suggests that the readers of the magazine are committed to music, and are 'collectors' of memorabilia and of things to do with music. This says a lot about Q's readership, they are aiming it at people committed to music, and at people who are perhaps older, and would remember this band. they make it more dramatic to entice people, by saying things like 'survivor's stories'. And they also say 'Rare photos' to make the readers think they are getting something that no-one else is.

Mode of Address:
The front cover of the magazine is formal but friendly. The picture of the band smiling and laughing gives it a very friendly look, and makes it look laid back. However at the same time it looks formal, and no humour is particularly used. The grammar and language is very good, making it more sophisticated, and the colours and general layout of the front cover is very neat and consistent, with a clear house style of mainly black and white with a hint of colour, therefore making it appear formal. It does not directly address the reader through the use of words, but through the people in the picture looking the readers in the eye, making them feel connected.

Front Cover Analysis - Mojo

The title is placed at the top of the page, in the centre, which is quite a dominant position to be in, however, as it is being obstructed, and only showing small parts of the word for the reader to see, it tells you that they are deliberately making it less obvious, and making the picture the main focus of the cover. The fact that it is being obstructed shows you that it is a well-established brand, and that people know what it is simply by seeing snippets of it’s name. There is no ‘Puff’ or strapline being used, this shows even further how they don’t need this kind of thing to entice their readers, and that the name alone will do this for them.

The use of dates here in ‘Nirvana 1991’, suggests that they are deliberately aiming at an older audience, people who can remember back to that time, and therefore be interested in the music from that era. Also, by using a picture that looks old-fashioned, and faded suggests it has been around for a long time, further implying that they are aiming at an older audience. The use of the word ‘Nirvana’, makes the reader think of it’s connotations, they associate it with relaxing, no suffering, and generally being very calm. This suggests that they are aiming more at the ‘hippie’ music root, which is also associated with being very calm and with no suffering or desire. This magazine could be aimed at both males and females, the colours, mainly yellow and grey, are very gender neutral. Although the band on the front is male, suggesting it would be aimed more towards males, as females generally purchase magazines more often than males, the ratio of males to females would be close to 50:50.

Dominant image:

The dominant image of the magazine is pictured above. Of the three men  on the front, the middle one is wearing sunglasses, blocking his eyes from the reader, this is suggesting that he is somehow being deliberately separated from the other two bad members. The other two are looking you in the eye, making a connection with the reader, as though they are relating to their fans, and being involved. Their body language is generally very casual, showing that they almost ‘don’t care’, which is currently believed to be cool. As they are wearing casual normal clothes, it makes them relatable to the reader. The picture doesn’t look posed, so it makes them seem even more natural and similar to the person reading the magazine. From the image, you would think that the magazine is aimed at the younger generation, perhaps mid-teens, due to the pose and the styles they are wearing, e.g. the backwards hat. This image appeals to the target audience because of the old fashioned look it has to it, as well as how relatable they are to the reader. 

This strapline is promoting an article inside the magazine by using a quote. As it sounds so dramatic, the readers instantly feel emotionally invested in it, and feel as though they need to read more. They may also find that by making it so dramatic, it interests people, and makes them want to read more information about it, discover what it is all about, and entice them to buy it.

The ‘freebie’ here entices the reader even more so to buy the magazine, thinking they are getting value for their money. It tells you that they are genuinely interested in music, and perhaps even music artists themselves. As many people may even buy this magazine solely for the ‘freebie’, it suggests that they collect this kind of thing, and maybe even the genre of music specific to the magazine. 

The layout of the front cover is fairly conventional. It isn’t all straight lines, and it doesn’t all fit perfectly together, for example some of the text is at an angle, and even the picture in the top corner is at an angle. However this suggests that it isn’t perfect or trying to be too impressive, and so it makes people more likely to buy it, believing that they aren’t trying to set any standards at who their readers are. The magazine doesn’t directly address the reader, and the use of the words ‘The Unseen Archive’ show that the tone of it is fairly formal. 

Analysis of final problem page

1. The banner at the top of the page adds really well to the overall design, it makes it not look too professional whilst still in keeping with the rest of the article.

2. It contains pinks and blues to appeal to both males and to females.

3. 'Ask Victoria' is written in a font that looks very professional, it is the title of the article so therefore needs to stand out, it stands out because of it's size, colour, and it's font.

4. There is a picture of the agony aunt in the top right to show the readers who is answering their questions, she is smiling and looking friendly in order to show that she is trustworthy.

5. There is a second picture in the bottom left of the page of a student looking stressed. Second pictures are a common convention on problem pages, the student looks stressed in the picture in order to relate to the article to the right of it.

6. The 'Get in Touch' box at the bottom of the page is also a common convention, it is dark pick to be different from the title and the banner and stand out. This allows the readers to clearly see how they can get in touch with 'Ask Victoria'.

7. Large drop cap Q and A's standing for Question and Answer fit in well with the rest of the colour scheme of the page. They are in two different colours to differentiate between the agony aunt and the people writing in.

8. The borders around each of the questions makes it look professional, however by having them dashed rather that a solid line keeps it fairly casual, as well as making it more visually appealing.

I feel that my finished page is very successful, it looks professional but still looks slightly casual. I do think that I could improve, by making it look slightly more finished, with small design details, and things to generally add to the appearance, as it is currently slightly plain. For my main portfolio I will need to work on noticing where to put small details, perhaps add more photos, in order to make it look true to a page from a magazine.

Problem page- Final version

Below is the final copy of my problem page 'Ask Victoria'

Magazine Planning

Design Features...

Planning my magazine:

Name- Unsigned

Slogan- Bringing you new music


Design Features:

Colour Scheme- My magazine will be aimed at both genders, therefore I the colours will be gender neutral colours e.g. reds and blues. The colours will be bold and bright, however slightly faded in order to give an authentic, vintage-type look. As vintage is currently very popular among the younger audience, this would appeal to them very well. Problem pages are generally very popular among the female audience, therefore the colours on my problems page will be more female based, with pinks and pastel blues. The blues are there to make it slightly more appealing to the male audience, however with them being pastel-light colours they also appeal to females.

Font- There are several fonts I plan on using, however the dominant font, in which most of the magazine will be written in, is called 'Calibri (Body)'. Below are some other fonts that I plan on using, on the front cover and throughout the magazine...

Photos- All photos I use on the front cover will have a fairly plain background to keep it from looking too busy. I will use photos in the articles in order to break up the text and make it visually appealing. The photos will follow the colour scheme, looking vintage, and fitting well with the rest of the magazine. The photos will be what draw people in and will therefore need to be creative.

Readership Profile- 'Ask Victoria'

Target Audience...

Who is my page aimed at?

Gender- The gender that 'Ask Victoria' will mainly be aimed at is female. You can see this
from the colour scheme, pinks and pastel blues, which are known to be very feminine colours. You can also see this from the fonts, for example, the font that 'Ask Victoria' is written in. As well as the fact that the agony aunt is a female, therefore meaning that other females would be more comfortable confiding in her, and males would feel less comfortable doing so.

Age range- The age range of the target audience for this is fairly broad. Varying from ages as young as 14, to around 40 years old. This is because the problem page can address problems that any females go thorough, therefore it would benefit most ages. It will target problems from anything like school issues, to relationships and insecurities.

Agony Aunt Page - Mock Up

Here is a rough version of my problem page, the name will be changed in the final version from 'Ask Charlotte' to 'Ask Victoria'.

Problem Page Reviews

Conventions and Style Features...

The three problem pages I am reviewing are; 'Astro Agony', a problem page that solves problems based around star signs, it 'provides celestial and practical solutions to your relationship worries'; 'Family Dilemmas', which is centered around problems with your 'nearest and dearest', i.e. your family; and finally 'Ask Dr Christian', which answers any health questions and worries that people writing in may have.

What do they have in common?

Layout- All three of these pages involve a 'Question and Answer' theme, in which two or three questions are answered on each page, however how they are laid out is slightly different. both 'Astro Agony' and 'Family Dilemmas' have the picture of the agony aunt in the top corner, and the question neatly laid out around them, giving it a more formal look. However on the 'Ask Dr Christian' page, Dr Christian is centered, with the text working around him, suggesting that he is the main focus of the page. 

Photography- All pages have very posed photos, however they also look very comforting to the reader or to the person writing a problem. The three agony aunts are all posing in a very professional looking photo in which they are smiling, and look relaxed. Dr Christian of 'Ask Dr Christian' is standing up, hands in his pockets, looking very laid back, in both other magazines the agony aunts are both leaning on something, smiling, and all of them generally look very trustworthy.

Formality-between the three articles, the formality and tone of the articles does vary, however they are all fairly serious. However all talking about sensitive issues, they all have to be serious to a certain degree. within all of the articles, the formality varies depending on the topics they are discussing. For example, 'Astro Agony' varies from, 'scorpios love     with passionate fierceness', to ' a bit of a slog right now'. 'Ask Dr Christian', talks about issues such as cancer, which is very sensitive, but then also about hings such as passing wind, which is fairly obvious when they use titles such as 'I'm So Embarrassed'. 

Colour Scheme- The colour scheme across the three articles is a big indicator that they are greatly aimed at females. Using pastel colours and lots of pinks, making it less appealing to the male audience, hence why many more females write in than males. As you can see in the picture on the right from 'Astro Agony' the colour scheme is generally very light, girly colours.