Evaluation - Question 4

EVALUATION ACTIVITY 4
Who would be the audience for your media product?
 My target audience member (image right)

 
Shops: H&M, TOPMAN, Converse, Urban Outfitters

Music: Kings of Leon, Coldplay, The Kooks, Vampire Weekend, The Naked and Famous

TV: Dave, E4, MTV, BBC three,

Magazine: KERRANG!, Mojo, NME, Vice

Clothing: Trilby hat, Woven scarf with trim fringes, Skinny jeans, Loose fitting t-shirt, COnverse trainers

Tribe: Hipsters, Indie Scenesters, Ravers, Emo, Metalhead, Skaters and Scene Kids

 This short video highlights what my target audience is, as well as their interests and media consumptions: GoAnimate.com: Music by Rikstar009

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 The audience for my magazine is rather broad, giving a real sense of modern music that people will be interested in, sounds good and relates to old popular music. I went on UkTribes.com (UK Tribes was born in 2005, when Channel 4Crowd DNA (then called Ramp Industry) to run a project called TV Glue, which looked to measure how TV could remain a unifying force in the midst of media fragmentation). This site offers an extremely good understanding of modern, urban social groups, which would be perfect for identifying my target audience. I ventured into some of the Tribes' characteristics to find the ones that are most suitable for my potential readers. 

 I thought that my magazine would be relatively mainstream, as it offers a wide variety of music that lots of young adults would be interested in, so I started with the mainstream; the normal cliche. I was first intrigued by 'Ravers', as I knew that clubs are always extremely popular with teenagers and young adults, which is what my double page spread article is vastly concerned about. I thought that the definition of a 'Raver' fitted in reasonably well with my target audience allocation: 
 "These are the young people who burn the candle at both ends and for who club culture is pivotal. A once large community has dwindled (but not as much as the media believe). Now predominantly mainstream and located somewhere between trendies and townies, this tribe no longer defines itself as outsiders because of their musical tastes or addiction to clubbing. Indeed, many consider other niche youth tribes ‘a bit weird’. They like better-known clubs such as Fabric (London), Club So (Liverpool), Mission (Leeds), Pacha, big clubbing events such as Gatecrasher and other mainstream music festivals like Wireless and the V festival. Clubbers, it could be said, are suburban good time boys and girls."

'Casuals' seemed to fit my target audience quite well, seeing as they're not really bothered by much and go with the flow, which epitomises their mainstream taste in music and fashion, which meant that they would most likely be interested in my magazine. "Casuals are a re-emerging sub Tribe within the 16-24 demographic. Inheritors of lad mag culture - boozy, smartly dressed, football-mad, and largely mainstream in terms of music and TV taste - Casuals are a tight bunch and tend to start young and stick to the lifestyle in later years – hitting the pub with their best mates to talk about sport, sex and twaddle."

I skipped the 'Urban' section as I knew that my magazine didn't really represent the essence of their tribes that form their life, such as the fact that they are influenced massively by what music they listen to, and I didn't want my magazine to convince anyone of their own opinion and for them to lead their life by the music I told them to listen to. 

 I liked the alternative section the most as I thought that was what my magazine mainly predominated in, providing my target audience with alternative music such as alternative rock, rock pop and indie rock. 

 Although I wasn't particularly keen on their ideals and what they represented, I thought that the 'Emo' social tribe fitted quite well with my target audience, seeing as their media consumption is mainly taken up by magazines and music. Their main taste in music is emotional, which defines them as a tribe, including bands such as 'My Chemical Romance' and 'Panic at the Disco', bands which I knew my magazine would be perfect to present in articles and front covers. "The last couple of years have seen this group go from marginal to proto-mainstream – they have, at the very least, gained much wider cultural currency. Bands like Fall Out Boy and My Chemical Romance have also provided a chart presence and publications like the NME have given emo music a massive boost."

 Again, I found the tribe 'Scene Kids' rather distasteful as I just disregarded them as attention seeking teenagers who try very extremely to stand out from the crowd, however I was surprised and pleased with their actual definition, as I thought that they would be really interested in my magazine, as it presented a different sort of life style as well as 'cool' alternative music that would be very popular in their social group. I thought that they might buy my product simply because it was so different from other magazines and had a genre of its own "Scene Kids are a recent arrival from the States that found their feet in the north of England and are gradually moving south. They are basically a cooler, slightly more accessible and better-dressed version of Emo – though strangely some think there’s a bit of Chav to them; probably because they’re more feisty than Emos. Musically, Scene Kids love a mix of electronics and hardcore punk guitars, with top bands being Late of the Pier, Gallows and Bring Me The Horizon (though lesser known local bands also get a lot of support)"

" Skaters are one of the few UK tribes to be defined by something other than music – and as all music becomes increasingly mainstream, this may provide inspiration for other tribes." Although Uk Tribes claimed that Skaters aren't generally interested in music as much as other tribes I thought that they would be interested in my magazine as it does not just throw music in their faces, forcing them to conform to that particular genre or artist. Perhaps not as intrigued by my magazines as other tribes, I still felt that they might buy my magazine as it presented them with a different approach to magazines and fitted in quite well with their tastes and opinions, as well as their approach to music.

 The Uk Tribe that I thought was really easy to approach as my target audience was the 'Metalheads': "The Metalheads tribe generally sees more people coming and going than other tribes – appeal wanes for many quite quickly. Metalheads feel no need to justify themselves to others, and are generally a friendly badge-wearing bunch but they do have a tendency to hate Chavs and Townies, as well as generally frowning upon the musical tastes of the Emos and Indie Scenesters.". They fitted into my target audience purely because of their music taste, Rock and Heavy Metal, which is what a lot of my magazine is about, although I thought that they be put off by the Alternative Rock side of my magazine as they tend to despise any other take on old-fashioned Rock and a mainstream side of Rock.

 I was most interested in the Leading Edge section, as my magazine's double page spread was mainly focused on developing new ideas that could appeal to most Tribe sections in society. This is connected with my featured artist, 'Kudos', who is an aspirer creating brilliant new music in conjunction with modern, popular forms and styles, which is what largely defines the Leading Edge as a Tribe section.

 'Hipsters' are what my target audience is most likely to be made up of, "Hipsters are Britain’s trendiest tribe and are largely male (though female hipsters certainly exist). They have a deep need to be ahead of the game and consider themselves trendsetters rather than followers. Hipsters are enthusiastic about the new and adventurous in their choices". Similar to 'Kudos', many hipsters will think like him in the way of creating new trends and other such factors which define the Uk Youth Market today. UkTribes.com also claimed that Hipsters are not interested in anything mainstream, moving on from a particular brand or other such influencing social inducing factor that they have been individualists in if it becomes common and popular, and I would imagine 
that my magazine wouldn't become extremely popular like other magazines such as 'Q' and 'Mojo' as it doesn't include or represent music that will heavily influence a particular social cliche, such as the Urban section.