Planning my music magazine

My magazine will be aimed at both males and females. This is because, music is something that is preferred by both sexes. This will also, help increase the target market therefore, more copies of the magazine are likely to be sold. My magazine will not promote a particular genre because the more varied it is, the larger the target market, therefore it is likely that the copies being sold will also be higher.
Most of my respondents were above 16 so my magazine will be aimed at 16+ target market. This is a suitable age because, 16 year olds are young adults that are able to make their own decisions and will be more likely to purchase a magazine as they are independent enough. Furthermore, people above 16 will also be able to do this due to the same reason unlike under 16s, who are financially dependent on their parents, therefore less likely to purchase magazines in comparison to the 16+ target market. Most of my respondents were above 16 therefore; my magazine will be aimed at 16+ target market consisting of both males and females.
Although my magazine has no particular genre, to keep the target market bigger, it will have a rock style lay out to it as most of my respondents preferred that genre. Because the majority prefer rock music, my magazine will have an indie look to it to grab the attention of the majority. I have chosen the sub-genre indie within rock as it isn’t as narrow as subgenres such as heavy metal or alternative rock. Indie style is subtle and therefore the magazine will not look like it is specifically a rock magazine. So, it will invite a larger target market. The genre ‘Indie’ is an abbreviation for the word independent. This style would be suitable for my target market as the 16+ target market are generally independent. Indie is also a popular genre in the UK as it initially originated in Britain.
My magazine is a British magazine, and I have also chosen an Indie look to give it a British feel.
My questionnaire results also tell me that most of my respondents purchase magazines and pay from £1.50-£2.50 for their magazine. Therefore, I have decided to keep the cost of my magazine to £2.50 as it is in between £1.50 and £3.50. So, it will be affordable for my target audience as it isn’t too expensive so 16+ teenagers will be able to purchase this. However it isn’t too cheap as, the 21+ adult target market will be able to purchase this as they are more independent and likely to earn their own money.
The magazine issues will be released monthly, as most of my respondents preferred this. If the magazine is released weekly it would mean that it would be harder to entertain the regular readers of the magazine and keep different interesting articles each time without, running out of issues to write about. The same issue would lie with having it released every two weeks. However, if the magazine is released monthly, it will be more likely that the readers will purchase it as they will wait a month before reading new interesting articles. Therefore the will expect good articles and would purchase the magazine. Also, it is easier to release the magazine monthly as it gives you time to collect interesting information to reveal every month so the magazine contents do not get boring, predictable and repeated.
Most of my respondents prefer a mixture of bands and solo artists on the magazine. So, I will use both bands and solo artists on the magazine as it will invite people that prefer bands and individual musicians. Also, if I use both it is more likely that my magazine will remain interesting and grab the reader’s attention because the bigger the variety of musicians used the higher the variety of audiences interested in the magazine because of them. Also, my respondents preferred both new artists and established ones on the magazine. This is beneficial because, they are more likely to remain interested if the magazine is promoting new musicians. As well as this, they will be able to get information on established musicians also.
I will be calling my magazine ‘Ooh La!’. This is because most of my respondents preferred this. Unlike other names suggested on my questionnaire, this name does not specify what genre the magazine is. The name sounds as if someone is singing and the exclamation mark adds volume and excitement to the name. It is also a famous song by The Kooks, a British Indie band. So, my target market is more likely to pick up the magazine for either one, or both of these reasons. The name doesn’t specifically attract target audiences that prefer one genre to another, but simply adds to the Indie style of the magazine.
50 percent of my respondents are content with keeping promotions and competitions in the magazine however 50 percent are not. However, I have decided to keep some promotions and competitions within the magazine so, readers may pick up the magazine purely to enter competitions. Furthermore, most of my respondents have preferred freebies in the form of posters and CD’s. Therefore, I will be using either a poster or CD freebie in my magazine depending on the issue.
My magazine will be mainstream like Q, Mojo or Rolling stone magazine as the genre used within the magazine varies depending on the issue inviting a greater number of people to purchase the magazine. My magazine will consist of many images aswell as textual articles because it is British magazine. Britain is multicultural and music is a universal thing. So, although some readers may be foreign and unable to read the magazine because they cannot read English well, they will also be able to recognise what's going on in the magazine via images used. Also, it will consist of articles and images and will be ergonomically well designed so it easy to carry and hold as well as concise when it comes to reading the magazine.