Ancillary Task: Digipak Magazine Advertisement Research

The second ancillary product that I need to produce is a magazine advert for the previously created digipak. To ensure that my advert is as realistic and suitable as possible, I must first research into the area and analyse some existing prints that are available to the public.

 











My first chosen advert is 'Ellie Goulding' with her album 'Lights' - this can be seen to the left. The whole advert seems to incorporate much the same elements that can be distinguished in the album front cover itself, displayed above; there is not much variation at all apart from a few set features to be discussed later. This allows for a successful cross media marketing style where the album can be displayed in shops and the similar in appearance advert placed in selected magazines to be viewed by the target market and therefore creating a link or identity for all her work. This appears to be a vital convention that I need to incorporate into my own production too.

The image is a close up of the artist's face in which a glittery effect outline has been applied, making her appear particularly mystical and almost untouchable to everyday people. This may reflect on her music itself in that it has a magical feel about it. In terms of placement and sizing, it alone takes up half of the A4 sheet as the main focus at the top of the page and as an audience reads left to right, up and down, the natural instinct is to be drawn to this first.
The colours throughout the piece are mainly gold and black. Gold is a sign of royalty and expense whilst black maintains a mysterious appeal. The typography is that of a unique font with the 'E' and 'G' in her name curved to allow for a more natural and flowing feel.

The smaller text is devoted to promoting the album in a different manner. For instance, ratings have been included from respected newspapers and magazines such as 'The Independent' and 'Q Magazine' of 4 and 5 stars which offers a credibility to the work and may encourage audiences to purchase the album. 

Additionally, a quote is seen from a music based magazine stating that the album is, 'A staggering achievement,' with a 4 star rating. Once again, this builds on the idea of making the work more appealing to an audience and may convince someone unsure if they would like to purchase the album that it is worth the money, especially as the magazine that gave it this review is credible for its work with the music industry.

Alongside this, the website of the artist herself is placed below these reviews for the public who may want more information on the professional, as well as offering the idea of cross media marketing. Having the promotion online in addition to in print manipulates all the mediums that young people in particular would converge with on a regular basis, advertising in the right places and therefore resulting in the possibility for more revenue for the record company and artist in question - the main purpose for advertising in general.
Finally, the record company symbol is then shown at the very bottom of the advertisement, quite small in its display due to the fact that this is not necessarily information that the audience would need to know and does not add anything to the advert in question, unless the independence is shown that may appeal to a particular sector of society who wish to rebel against the big music corporations. In this advert however, this is not the case so the logo acts as a formality in that linkages from the artist to her record contract need to be shown for legislation purposes.

The second print advertisement I am going to look at is slightly different in its style. Shown to the right, the first noticeable distinction is the fact it does not take up the whole page. This may be due to the fact that the artist is not as mainstream as the previous artist so promotion is not as great. 

The colouring is also made black and white meaning that the advert appears slightly bland with a more simple style adapted. The artist himself does not appear as an image and this could be because of the target audience not being particularly interested in the imagery of him, but with more of a music focus. This is in stark comparison to the first analysis where the picture of the artist took up most of the A4 advertisement.

The alien characters are very quirky and different, setting the singer apart from the norm as they may represent his own persona and character. These images can then reflect on his own music in that it has a very unique feel to it, maybe slightly futuristic with the alien theme established. The only other image that appears on the advert is the digipak he is promoting alongside the single. This is a clever convention as the audience know exactly what to look for if browsing in a shop and creates a connection between album and advert. This is also the only part that is seen in colour, making its emphasis much greater and more powerful.

In terms of the content, text is very basic in a block font that catches the eye with additional information included to the first discussed advert. Single details are shown as well as the album that it comes from, advertising both at the same time for a clever promotional idea. Artist name, single and album name are all seen - similar to Ellie Goulding - yet there is also a date of release, details of DJs and producers included and a price. This additional information may be relevant for the target audience who might recognise names and buy it for this specialist reason with the date creating suspense and build up before release. With no reviews, this gives an indication that the artist does not care about opinions of reviewers and sticks to a simplistic attitude and appeal.

Again, a website can be seen, with this artist also embracing new media technologies and reaching a wider audience in doing so. There is inclusion of the logo for his record company too which is a theme within both advertisements.

In conclusion, from analysing the two magazine advertisements, I have established a real sense of how they can work and differ in terms of the techniques on display, chosen content and placement of certain pieces of information. This will allow me to experiment myself and create a set message that I want to transmit from what I like about each advertisement and artist identity. Set conventions however are important for me to manipulate upon in my own print advert if I wish to convey the air of realism.

Also, from my first textual analysis, I have been able to see how a digipak or album can be highlighted on the advertisement itself, with connections being made such as the general style (in this example, the whole image) to make sure that the advert successfully works and interlinks with the products it is looking to sell as the underlying main purpose.