Evaluation: Question 2: How did you attract/address your audience? (Contents Page)

CONTENTS PAGE



On my contents page, I used two fonts and three main colours, this continues my house style from the front cover of my magazine, attracting the audience, as it makes the page look professional and easier to read. The house style is also important when attracting my audience, because the colours and fonts used link to my target audience; for example the colours used link to young girls as pink and purple are considered 'girly colours' also the fonts are easy to read, therefore suitable for a young girls' magazine.
One way that I attracted my audience by my contents page is by making the heading of the page the biggest text on the page, and using upper case letters for the heading. I have done this to attract the audience's attention straight away and make it obvious that this is the contents page, so that the reader does not get confused, also this allows the reader to see clearly that this is the contents page, making the magazine easier to read, as the reader can find certain pages easier.

I also attracted my audience to my contents page by including the magazine's masthead. This links the pages together, as it creates a house style and also makes the font of the masthead more recognisable. The masthead is in the top corner, because it makes it easy to find, however it is not in the way of important features or images that are included on the contents page. I also included the date and issue number on the contents page which may be important to the audience as they may want to know which issue this is and when it was published.

I have included three images on the contents page to attract my audience, as the images connect to my chart based music subgenre. One of these images also links to my cover star, which attracts the audience as they will already be familiar with the cover star, and so they will feel more connected to the magazine, as they will already have an insight to the article on this artiste. The other images will also attract the audience, because they will link to the music and concerts that the audience are interested in. Each image also has the page number of that article/interview/etc. This attracts the audience, because they will find it easier to find each page, making them enjoy the product more and therefore encouraging them to buy the magazine's next issue.

I have also included a subheading on my contents page to attract the audience's attention. I have used capital letters to make the word 'Features' stand out, so that the reader can find the features straight away as this is what they will be looking for on the contents page, therefore with the letters in capitals they will see that this is important. I have also used a bright pink to make the subheading stand out against the grey background. The pink colour of the subheading also attracts the reader, because it links to the hybrid genre of the magazine - fashion, and chart based/pop music. This will therefore attract the reader, because the connotations of pink are happy and 'girly' which creates audience appeal, because my magazine is aimed at young girls who will more than likely be appealed by bright colours such as pinks and purples, and other colours associated with being 'girly'.

My contents page also attracts my audience by using banners. This highlights the category features and makes them stand out to the audience. I have used a black banner with white text to create a contrasting effect which catches the audience's eye almost immediately. This also links to my subgenre of chart based music, because it shows the audience that there is a variety of music in the magazine and it is not all based on pop music. In each section of features I have included page numbers for each one. This attracts my audience as it makes the magazine easy to read, as it makes the pages easy to find, therefore making the magazine fun and enjoyable, and making the reader more likely to buy the magazine again. Each section of features also includes a variety of features for the audience to choose from, which will appeal to the audience as they will each link to the genre of chart based music, or fashion. I have put the features in a bright purple to appeal to the reader as purple is seen to be a 'girly' colour, also because it is bright it will catch the audience's eye, and make the page look more fun and enjoyable.

Another way I have successfully attracted my audience to my magazine through my contents page is by including an editor's letter. I have also used bright colours e.g. pink, to appeal to my audience as they will see the 'girly' colours and be more likely to read it. I have also included an image of the editor to appeal to my audience, because young girls like images, as it makes the text look less, therefore makes it look more interesting to read. The editor's letter also attracts the audience, because it persuades them to buy the magazine again and creates brand loyalty.
I have also addressed my audience through my editor's letter, as I have used informal language, such as 'See you next week' and 'Hey Guys', this addresses the audience as a 'friend' to the magazine, and makes them feel more welcome and comfortable with the magazine. This will also encourage the reader to buy the magazine again, because they will feel like they 'know' the writers and therefore will feel more comfortable.

After making my contents page I decided to change the background of the page to white instead of grey to attract my audience more. The main connotations of white are purity and innocence, this will attract my audience because they will think of the magazine as pure and they are innocent young girls. The brighter background will also attract my audience because this will make the page look more fun and happy. I also think that using a white background helps to attract my audience better than the grey background, because it makes everything else on the page stand out more, because the darker, bold colours contrast to the bright background.