Images related to genre/mood board

Along with images related to this genre (guitars, records etc.), i have included images of existing publications that will be influential to my own magazine design. I have also included images of the types of artists i wish to create. I used the word CLIQUE as a potential magazine masthead in order to come up with different font ideas for my end masthead. 

Background of Indie-Rock music genre

Indie-rock originated in the UK and US in the 1980’s; the genre in fact is a sub-genre of alternative rock. The term ‘Indie’ is used by musicians, fans and commentators to describe any rock music produced by an artist of an independent record label. Others see indie rock as the distinct genre of rock music; both meanings are embraces and intertwined.

Indie-rock artists are well known for keeping control of their music and careers, relying on touring, word-of-mouth, and the internet for promotion. However many acts with an indie musical style signed to major record labels in the 2000’s and began promoting themselves through more traditional media outlets.

Also in the 2000’s, with the changing music industry and increased use of the internet as a promotional tool, there was opportunity for indie rock bands to achieve mainstream commercial success.  The decline in record sales and increased media exposure of these artists due to internet marketing meant that many popular indie acts achieved success, jumping on to a major record labels.

The Arctic Monkeys: A popular English indie rock band formed in 2002, releasing five studio albums since 2006. Their debut album became the fastest-selling debut album in British music history, also the band have won seven Brit Awards. It is suggested that the ‘Arctic Monkeys’ also jumped on the internet bandwagon as they reached vast public attention via the internet on fan-based sites. Some said the band represented the possibility of a change in the way new bands are promoted and marketed.

In the 1990’s major changes were made to the alternative rock scene. Grunge bands such as Alice in Chains and Pearl Jam broke into the mainstream, achieving commercial chart success and exposure. Punk revival bands such as Green Day and the Offspring also gained popularity and were classed as alternative. Alternative rock lost its original meaning and became a new form of music that was achieving mainstream success; ‘indie-rock’ was associated then with the bands and genres that remained underground.

Defining movements within indie rock emerged in the 1990’s; the lo-fi movement lead by bands associated with Elephant 6 Recording Company and others, this resulted in a disinterest in ‘selling-out’ to the mainstream alternative rock scene.

References:

http://www.freerocker.com/whats-indie

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arctic_Monkeys

Circulation

This information is a form of secondary research but simply for knowledge of different magazine circulation figures and how they come about achieving this:

The magazines of leading supermarkets have made great success in sales in 2012. All three supermarkets, Tesco, Asda and Morrisons are circulating at a higher rate than all other paid magazines. The fact that the supermarket magazines are actually free for their customers is a unique selling point as people always look for a freebee or a bargain. Also because there are thousands of people using the supermarkets daily, there is an ideal opportunity to put a magazine on show. The placing of the product is clearly been done effectively to generate sales and consumer interest. Although Tesco has in fact in the lead with average sales, Morrisons has made a vast improvement from the year, the percentage being higher Tesco’s. It could be suggested that overall Morrisons has altered their marketing methods and have attracted more consumers, however Tesco has clearly maintained a better income previously which is why the improvement isn’t as big. Asda has managed to generate a lot of sales however they have decreased from the last year. This could be because of many reasons and this clearly highlights Asda’s potential to generate massive sales.

Name of mag	% paid for	avg sale	change y/y
Tesco Magazine	0%	1945015	0.7%
Asda Magazine	0%	1944393	-1.0%
Morrisons Magazine	0%	1293617	10.3%

Because the supermarkets have such a wide target market they all have appealed to mostly families, focusing on their lifestyle. This strategy has proven to be effective due to the great success. The vivid colours catch the eye and the relevance to the consumers is a good selling point. The context of the magazine often relates to supermarket products which often reveal value for money and help boost sales, it would be smart to include certain products in the issue that are not selling so well to attract consumers to purchase them. This is a very effective way of promoting the supermarket and their products.