Prelim Evaluation

What went well 

I thought my front cover went really well as I had used bright colours to help draw attention to the magazine, large text and particular fonts to make it clear to the audience, and used pictures related to the magazines topic. The contents also had pictures and objects around the actual text that were related which meant the readers would know what sort of things would be covered in the magazine, just by looking at the pictures. Plus as it was a school magazine, I thought I should include school related objects.

What I should improve on

I think to improve the front cover I would get more of my own images and make the relate to school in a different way rather than just people at school. The contents could of maybe been a bit more formal in how the pages and page numbers were put on the page, but not too formal that it doesn't suit the school look.

What I have learnt

I have learnt that having the right images for your front cover is important as they need to really relate to the magazines main topics, where as mine were just people around school. On the other hand, having the people around school makes the school look more welcoming. I also feel that too much pictures can make the contents or a page look cramped and so I would try not to include as many on a page unless I had too and put the best images in, perhaps slightly bigger as well.

Contents

front cover

Draft Design 2

I draft designed my magazine cover like this because i thought it would be attractive to the eye as well, and would catch the eye with all the lures and images. Both designs aren't dramatically different as i didn't really want to change much and i feel i would like to use bits from both designs. This design doesn't have the image central and could make the images, and lures clearer to the readers instead of having everything piled on top of each other. The title is in the same place as that is the most appropriate position for it as like said before, it would need to be clear when stacked in shops. 

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Draft design 1

I chose to design my layout like this as it quite a usual and effective design that i see in a lot of magazines. I've included 4 images, one being the main image and there will also be around 4 - 5 Lures. I think having a few but not too many images will help grab the audience into reading on. Having the lures next to them will be making them want to know more information. The title will be large and at the top so it's clear and obvious what the magazine is, especially when stacked in shops.

Questionnaire analysis

I surveyed 10 14-16 year olds to find out what they wanted from a magazine. As my magazine is aimed at both males and females, I asked 5 girls and 5 boys. In order to get a non biased result, I asked completely random people.  The answers they gave me will be analysed below and taken into consideration to help me make my choices.

This analysis tells me that most people would buy a magazine that had a valued price between £1 and £2 and that no one would buy one more that £3 out of the 10 people I surveyed. As a result, I will aim to price my magazine between £1 and £2. 

This chart tells me that the majority of the 10 people only sometimes take an interest in school handouts. This may suggest that people may only sometimes take an interest in my magazine. As a result, I would have to determine what school handouts are interesting and what their topics are, so I can think about what topics to cover in my magazine.

include a good variety of images. I will also only include a freebie every now and then as it wasn’t a popular choice in the survey.

I found that the colour, images and the topics are what gives off the ‘for boys’ or ‘for girls’ information. As my magazine is gonna be aimed at both male and female, I am going to make sure that I use appropriate colours throughout the magazine, especially on the front cover.

I also found that most girls would like topics to do with fashion and beauty tips included in the magazine, and boys would want there to be freebies or things to do with video games and amusements. This will help me with the extra bits to include within the magazine other than the stuff about school and topics they could eventually get bored with. Having the freebies or topics they are interested in will help lure them into reading on.

Questionnaire

1. How old and what year are you in?

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2. How much would you pay for a magazine?

50p - £1    £1.50 - £2    £2.50 - £3    More

3. Do you take an interest in school handouts? (e.g. newsletters) 

Yes, all the time    Sometimes    No, never

4. What usually makes you want to buy a magazine?

Images    Gossip    Title/Headlines    Freebies

5. What mostly makes you suggest a particular magazine is aimed at boys or girls?

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6. What would you prefer to have included with in the magazine?

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