Responses to questions in focus group
My focus group was a group of 4 girls and boys aged 16-17. I have picked this age range as my focus group because this is the main audience age I will be trying to target with the magazine I am creating.
How often do you buy music magazines and why?
person 1: not very often, probably about once or twice a year, just because I find that a whole magazine just on music can get boring, I'm more interested in magazines with a larger variation of topics.
person 2: once a week, I buy one magazine which I have been reading for years, I haven't bought many others as nothing seems new or different enough to get my attention.
person 3: never, if I am to read anything about music it's only on social media.
person 4: maybe once a month, I just find they're too overpriced for things I can find out for free online.
2. Are you more likely to read a music magazine online?
person 1: yes completely, then I can just look at the few topics that interest me for free.
person 2: no, I enjoy having the physical copy and looking through the photos, it's something I've always done.
person 3: yes, although I wouldn't be that likely to search that up either.
person 4: yes, I do this myself, its free and easier access.
3. What features do you want to see in a music magazine?
person 1: artists talking more about fashion, trips to places and more personal interviews
person 2: news on new artists, tours and singles, specific to the genre of the magazine
person 3: short and snappy articles, maybe about new artists as well.
person 4: probably mostly stories on new singles that relate to the magazines genre and maybe a few interviews with well known artists.
4. What music magazines do you already view?
person 1: sometimes billboard, it has a bigger range of topics.
person 2: Kerang!
person 3: not really any, just music artists posts on social media.
person 4: NME or indie, but I usually view these online.
5. What genre do you like?
person 1: pop mainly or indie
person 2: rock and pop punk
person 3: mainly pop or R&B
person 4: definitely indie by far
Overall, I have gathered that this age range aren't very big buyers of music magazines, this makes me feel that in my design I should really try to appeal to young people whilst including a new idea that might spark there interest. These young people also seem like they aren't too keen on spending lots of money on magazines as they would rather look for free, this indicates to me that the magazine should be kept towards lower price bounds. This age range also seem mostly keen on artist interviews and promotions of new singles, this more common result has impacted me to include this in my design. And lastly, this focus group has made me mainly consider pop or indie magazines, for my design, which appear to be the most common genre and the same result of this is also shown through my survey.
