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.