Proposal

I am aiming my magazine at college students, aged between 16 and 19, as this is the average age of students at college. They will be both males and females.
        My magazine will be about college life, everything they need to know about classes, revision, places to go out, and tips about getting a job/going to university. This will include advice and guidance pages, questions and answers, quizzes, articles about certain things/places, vouchers and free gifts to help them get through college.
       Some ideas for cover lines are as follows: - 'A-Z of Revision, everything you need to know about revising,' (a list of tips and facts about revision that could come in handy to the students). 'WIN a trip to Paris,' (something to take their mind of lessons, and give them a chance to enter. 'University Encyclopedia' (pages about different universities that they can collect from each copy of the magazine.) 'College was the best time of my life,' (real life story from someone who went to college that the students can relate to and take advice from.
       I had a few ideas for magazine titles. For example, I contemplated using 'Student Life,' as this clearly states what the magazine will be about, the target audience is clear, as it's aimed at students, and clear and to the point. However, I then questioned that as it is too obvious, students will be put off buying it as it sounds too formal. I aslo considered just calling it 'Student' as again it clearly states the target audience, and the kind of thing you can find in the magazine. However, I thought it that because it sounds educational and college related, students will be put off buying it, as it doesn't sound fun or interesting. Therefore, I've decided to call my magazine 'Young,' because it suggests that it's aimed at younger people, and therefore doesn't suggest it's just going to be about college. It also suggests that the magazine is going to be quite 'young' and fun, therefore making the target audience buy it.
       I am unsure as whether to use san serif or serif. San serif will appeal to the target audience as I think this will make the magazine look less serious, and more fun, rather than educational and formal. It will also appeal to the 'young' audience more, as it will be block and eyecatching. However, some serif fonts are more eyecatching, and look more appealing, while also adding a sense of formality to the magazine. As it is partially an educational magazine, having a fun yet formal cover titlemay work best, as this relates to both aspects. Examples of the font I may use are Segoe Script as a Serif font, as in capitals it is clear yet still fun, and in lower case it looks sophisticated and fun. I could also use Haettenschweiler as a Sans Serif font, as it is clear and bold, yet still elegant and fun. I have included examples of these fonts at the bottom of my proposal.
       I have considered using a tagline, as I think this is something that the target audience will remember about the magazine if it's catchy and memorable. However this isn't something I'm going to definitely use. An example of a tagline I have come up with are 'make the most of it.' This would be a good tagline as it links in with the title of being young, and making the most of being young, but also links to the fact it's a college magazine, and is suggesting that they should make the most of their time at collge. Also, it suggests that they should make the most of this magazine, which will persuade them to buy it as it initiates that there will be things worth making the most of (such as tips, offers, vouchers etc). Another tagline I have come up with is 'Live, Laugh, Learn.' These are three elements the target audience should be while they are 'young.' It also relates to the kind of thing that are going to be inside the magazine. Features the will tell them how to live their lives to the full, and advice about what to do with their lives, features that will make them laugh, and features that will teach them things, and help them get the most out of their education.
       The magazine would be published each half term, as I feel this way the student could buy the magazine and it would be equipped with guidance, information and tips that will help them through each half term. For example, an issue would come out in September, giving advice to new students about how to settle into college, use time wisely, let them know about student discount etc, whereas the issue that came out in May would be to do with exams and revision and how to get through the next term of exams.
       I expect to put a midshot of a girl on the front of my magazine, as I think a girl on the cover will appeal to both girls and boys. Also, by having a midshot, it doesn't seem like a glamour magazine, with a headshot, but there is enough space for a bit of background to be shown. To get this image, I will go around college, finding suitable looking girls, or using my friends, and getting them to stand in a particular position with a particular background.
       My magazine would be published every half term, so every 6-7 weeks. Maybe during the break before they go back to college in order for the students to purchase the magazine and equip themselves with tips and advice for the coming weeks. Also this isn't too often for the same things to be repeated in the magazine, but instead will be a good investment for the student, and give enough time for more information and research to be gathered to put in the magazine.
      The dimensions of the cover of my magazine will be 16.4 x 13.2 x 2.2 cm, as this is the size of Glamour Magazine, a compact magazine that can easily fit into bags. This way, students can carry it round with them easily, making it easier to refer. It can then be thicker and not be as heavy as a larger magazine would be.
      On the contents page, I would use the same colours as on the cover of my magazine, although I would also use black, to make sure that the font was easy to read, and that they could defintely understand what was inside the magazine. I am considering using purple and blue as my colour theme, as they are generic colours, with the purple appealing to girls and blue appealing to boys, but as the colours are similar, they'll work together well. Then the black will be bold, so I could use this for the parts of the contents I feel are most interesting, or that are also included on the cover page.

Font Examples: -
Segoe Script:

Hattenschweiler:

Flatplan

Initial Ideas

Task 5: Skills Audit

The following are the things I was unsure how to do in the skills audit. I researched on the internet, and found out how to do them. Here I have given a brief commentary on what I found out.

Cut & Paste text on a Mac
Open the words or images and highlight. Press the command key (propeller shaped key, located beneath the 'x') followed by 'c'. To paste, press the command key followed with 'v'.
Alternatively, right click the mouse simultaneously with the control key. A drop down list should appear, select copy. To paste, do the same, but click paste.

Scan Images into a Mac
Once plugging in the scanner to the Mac, scan the image, using the scan button on the scanner. The Mac should automatically recognise the scanner and show the image.

Upload Photos to a Mac
Insert the device or memory stick with the photos on. An icon for the device should appear in the top right corner. Open the device and find your files. Drag and drop into a folder on your Mac.

How to use InDesign 
Choose new from the File Menu, then Document. Choose your document settings, page size etc. and click OK. Choose the Type Tool (T) from the toolbar, and click the page to create a text box. Add text, and then attributes such as font, size and colour can be altered after. Insert a picture by clicking the Rectangle Tool (M). To add the picture select the rectangle and click File then Place before browsing for your picture. Preview your document by pressing (W). Save the file by navigating to File and Save.
The following website contains all the information I used to find out how to use InDesign.
http://www.ehow.com/how_5065632_use-indesign.html

Task 4: IPC Case Study

Task 4: Magazine Research

In 2008, 1.103 billion magazines were circulated. There are 6 kinds of magazine: -

• Consumer - magazines found in newsagents.
• B2B - magazines related to work and businesses.
• Customer - used for marketing, usually sent through the post.
• Part Works - forms an encyclopedia, which you collect over a period of time.
• Newspaper Supplements - comes free with newspapers.
• Academic journals - published university work and discussions.

The UK boasts around 2,409 consumer magazines, and the combined consumers spend around £1.6 billion a year on the magazines, resulting in the total circulation for consumer magazines in the UK to be 46 million. In the first six months of 2010, 69 new magazines were launched.

            TV Choice is the most popular UK magazine, with a circulation of over 1 million. This is for many reasons, one being the low cost, as the magazine retails for just 45p. Glamour is the most popular women's magazine, with around 489,461 copies sold. It's popular due to it's cheap price  - around £2, and it's small size. However, the circulation figures for NME are dropping, down 14.3% last year to just 29 thousand. 

           Nearly nine out of ten UK adults read consumer magazines, with each consumer reading for an average of 50 minutes. The average UK adult buys 22 magazines a year. However, 18-24 year olds are the most influential on magazines. Around £1.6 billion is spent on advertising in consumer magazines every year. 

Magazine Publishers

1) Bauer Consumer Magazine - Kerrang, Closer, GQ, Closer (most popular)

2) BBC Worldwide - BBC Top Gear Magazine, Top of the Pops, Teletubbies, Radio Times (most popular)

3) Conde Nast - Vanity Fair, GQ, Glamour (most popular)

4) Dennis Publishing - The Week, Custom PC,  Men's Fitness (most popular)

5) Future Publishing - Photo Plus, PC Answers, PC Format

6) H Bauer - Bella, Take A Crossword, Take A Break (most popular)

7) Hearst Magazines UK - Inside Soap, Good Housekeeping, Real People, Reveal (most popular)

8) Haymarket Consumer Media - What Car?, Classic FM Magazine, Autocar (most popular)

9) IPC Media - Soaplife, NME, Woman and Home, Loaded, What's on TV (most popular)

Task 3: Essay About the Ideologies of Teenage Girl's Magazines

To What Extent Should Magazines Be Held Responsible For Social Ramifications Of The Representations They Offer?

In this essay I am going to discuss whether magazines should be held responsible for the social ramifications of the representations they offer or not. I will explore the dominance of some of the ideologies included on magazine covers, and to what extent they are affecting teenage girls.

            One of the main features of any teenage girl’s magazine is the main image of a well known celebrity. They are often of a similar age, or are involved in something the target audience are likely to be interested in, for example films, music, television programmes etc. The celebrities on these covers are always featured looking beautiful and made over. The ramifications of these images are that they suggest to the target audience that if they don’t always look beautiful and made over, then they have no chance of being a celebrity, or that they need to change.  

            On each of the five magazine covers I studied, all of them had cover lines based on 'fashion.' This is a dominant ideology, and suggests that the 'stereotypical' teen girl is going to be very interested in the clothes she wears. However, they mediate this so the girls feel pressured into wearing the clothes advertised, as it is only this way that they will look 'hot,' 'be a style sensation.' Although it is normal for teenage girls to take an interest in fashion, surely pressuring them to dress and look a certain way isn't? Teenage girl’s magazines have a big influence on the way they dress, when surely they should be still be being creative and getting their own inspiration for their styles.

            There were also cover lines on all 5 of the magazines about 'beauty' and their appearance. For example, 'how to get perfect skin,' 'sexy hair.' Firstly, why should young teenagers be concerned about their hair and skin? Also, the word 'perfect' suggests that if they don't have hair or skin like shown in the magazine, then they need to change it. Most of the images in a magazine are airbrushed anyway, so surely no one actually has perfect skin? Similarly, the word 'sexy' connotes all the wrong ideas to a teenage girl. Young girls shouldn't be making themselves look 'sexy,' as this is an adult term, referring to sex; something the target audience shouldn’t be think about. Therefore, it could be argued that these magazines have something to do with the increasing number of teenage pregnancies and under age sex, as some of the features in these magazines tell young girls a bit too much information.

            Each of the magazines advertised 'real life stories,' about other girls of similar ages. This could be a good thing, as they are getting to hear about other people the same age as them. However, all these stories involved some horrific story. For example 'I was almost killed on the way home from school.' These stories can educate teen girls, making them aware that they have to be careful and know how to react in certain situations. However, to have every magazine including some these stories, surely they are frightening and shocking teen girls to a certain extent.

            Boys are also a main feature on teenage girls magazine covers. Whether it’s topless celebrities, or quizzes or specials about finding or keeping the ‘right boy,’ there is plenty about the male species. Teenagers are young adults, and even though love and relationships are going to become a main part of their lives, should girls of about 13 really be worrying about finding the ‘right boy?’ Also ‘4 Steps to Summer Lovin’’ was a cover line on one of the magazines. Surely this is insinuating the wrong thing to teenage girls. The magazines treat boys as an accessory, or a ‘must have,’ telling the girls that have boyfriends, how to keep hold of them, and the girls that don’t, how to get one. However, the magazines also mediate boys in the wrong way too. For example there was a cover line saying ‘crazy ex-boyfriends.’ This implies that some boys are ‘crazy’ once you’ve split up, again either frightening girls, or making them laugh at boys.

            Overall, although teenage magazines work well at appealing to the target audience, when you look closely, they actually are full of unhealthy and unrealistic portrayals of life and relationships. The ramifications for each magazine are all similar, revolving around boys, fashion, looking ‘perfect’ and real life stories.

Task 3: Brief Magazine Descriptions