So Who Are Our Target Audience?

Establishing a clear idea of a target audience is essential to our production, so that we can intertwine the codes and conventions to match the genre of music we're using - folk/indie.


The questionnaire which we produced earlier in the project illustrated that the folk/indie genre is popular amongst the respondents of the questionnaire, which indicates that there is no problem with using the band Belingo. Therefore, the fundamental characteristic of our target audience is that they are fans of folk/indie music. However, there are other aspects of the audience that we need to consider, to ensure that the production of the video and the ancillary tasks appeals to them:


Age:

As with many other genres, there is no specific age groups that the indie/folk genres appeal to. The often romantic lyrics capture the attention of the youth, who find themselves experimenting with romance for the first time, and feel they can relate to the songs of the genres. 'This Modern Love' by Bloc Party is a typical song found in the genres (this falls more into the Indie genre, as opposed to Folk) *

Clothing:


I have produced a separate post on this feature of the target audience, as I feel there is sufficient information to do so, and it is a significant part of the aesthetics of the project. Saying this, fans of the genre tend to shop in chains such as, Topshop/Topman, H&M, New Look and Zara (http://www.slideshare.net/CraigyV/target-audience-indiefolk). Consequently, it's important that the actors in the video, and any figures on the magazine advertisement and CD cover wear clothing that would be likely to appear in these stores.


Gender:


Neither gender particularly dominates this genre. While there are several more male-dominated bands on the folk/indie scene, for instance, Mumford & Sons, Phoenix, The Kooks, etc, there are also females prevalent within the genre; notably Ellie Goulding, who supported phenomenon John Mayer in May 2010, performed at Glastonbury, and is currently embarking on her own tour, attracting sell-out crowds (http://www.virtualfestivals.com/). Therefore, as long as we follow the clothing preferences and other interests of the genre, appealing to a specific gender is not that important.

Belingo: The Band We Intend on Using

As I mentioned in the very first post of this blog, the other two members of my group are in a band together called Belingo. Therefore, using this band in our A2 production makes sense, as we can produce a music video to accompany one of their songs without any issues regarding licensing, etc., and the music will be original, thus complying with the brief we have been given. The band comprises of three other members, and though they've informally said previously that they are happy to feature in our music video, we are now nearing the time where we must start planning out a shooting schedule and such, and then eventually filming, so, I have emailed George seeking confirmation that they are willing to do so. The following is what he has replied:

So, as things stand, everything is going to plan and the rest of the band seem willing to feature in the video, should we decide upon using them all in an acting role.

Questionnaire Result Graphs

Now that we have received a considerable number of responses from our questionnaire, we have collected sufficient data to create graphs which will allow us to analyse our findings, and give us an indication as to what direction our production will take. This post provides the graphs for the questions for which it was viable to create a graph, which coincides with analysis for each, and for the questions where a graph was not the most feasible option, there is a description of the results followed by analysis. The results are as follows:



As is evident by the graph, the majority of the participants of our questionnaire are in the age bracket of 16-19 years. Due to the influence on the production that the questionnaire will have, we will consider the views of 16-19 year olds as the most significant. After some secondary research on this subject, I have discovered that 12-19 year olds spend the most on music per annum, with an average of £37.55 (source: theregister.co.uk), which implies that the video will be viewed by them perhaps more than any other age group, and these are likely to form a large proportion of our demographic.

The vast majority of the participants of our questionnaire were male. This indicates that some of the results could be biased towards males, though there were a few female responses, which should provide some balance to the results.

None of the participants of the questionnaire spend nothing on music. Conversely, almost half spend over £41 a year on music. This is likely to be induced by the music videos they see, so it is of utmost importance that our video is of good quality, so that hypothetically, if we were to sell the product we would provide ourselves with a better chance of receiving more revenue.

Although over a quarter of the responses displayed that people do not have a preference as to whether a song has a music video supplementing it or not, over half believe it should. Therefore, to appeal to those who do prefer music to come with a video, we will ensure that it is of the best quality we can possibly produce so that if we were to try and sell it, people would be more inclined to buy it.

With exactly the same proportions as the previous question in terms of the 'yes' responses, and the 'no preference' responses, it would indicate that the people that prefer the song to come equipped with a video also feel more involved in the music when there is a video, though this is not necessarily the case. Nevertheless, as more than 50% of the participants responded stating that they feel more involved in the music if there is a video supporting it, making a video will be of great benefit to us because it will lead to some people feeling more involved in the music, and consequently, feeling the need to buy it.

Although not all people feel that the music is more accessible when it is provided with a video [see question 4], every respondent claimed that they watched music videos at least once a week. This undoubtedly proves the importance of music videos, and suggests that we cannot take this component of the project lightly, as it is one of the vital elements.

84% of the participants of the questionnaire watch music videos either via the internet or on TV. Due to insufficient funds, the internet would be the more viable option if we were to distribute the video. Therefore, we should consider websites such as Myspace and Youtube, two websites which have played leading contributing roles in establishing a number of artists. Notably, Lily Allen captured the attention of record label Regal Recordings after she acquired thousands of fans on Myspace, and was the fifth most popular artist on Myspace at the end of 2008 (source: The Guardian). Therefore, Myspace would be an important website to consider if we happened to upload our music video to a website.

With a wide range of responses on the topic of genre, it is difficult to guage a general opinion. However, there were more people who prefer indie and rock music compared with any of the other genres. As we are all fans of indie, rock and folk music, we are happy to create a music video for a song in one of these genres, especially as the results reflect on the specified genres favourably.

A large percentage of the participants did not mind either way whether the video has a more direct involvement with the band (for instance, playing a key acting role in the video). However, 43% of the participants do prefer it when the band does have a direct involvement in the video. Therefore, we will strongly consider giving the band key roles in the music video, following a popular response from the respondents in favour of this.

Animation is a feature of music videos which really appeals to music fans, according to the results of our questionnaire. As a group, animation is an idea which we are quite keen on, and as the target audience also appears to enjoy it too, it is a feature which could play a leading role in our music video. Realism also seems to be popular, and this could be something which we try to implement along with animation.

A significant number of people do prefer the music video to have a story line according to the results. Several successful music videos do have a story line so it is something that we should consider. However, in spite of this, 42% of people either do not have a preference, or prefer it when the video does not have a story line, so it is not necessarily essential that we include one. An example of a music video that has been successful despite not possessing a story line is 'Here It Goes Again' by OK Go. It's a creative video which shows the bands dancing on treadmills, and it achieved 50 millions videos on Youtube in 2006 (Source: nationalpost), further emphasising the positive effect Youtube can provide for musicians.

For the remaining questions, graphs were not suitable given the wide range of responses. However, here is analysis of them:

What is your favourite music video, and which feature(s) of it most appeals to you?

Despite there naturally being a number of different responses to this question, there were still two videos that people nominated as their favourite video. One of the videos was the aforementioned video by OK Go ('Here It Goes Again'), and the primary reason that the participants chose this video was due to the creativity and initiative that the band illustrated. Therefore, creativity and something original is something which we will look to explore as a group when we begin to produce our video. The other video which people enjoyed more than others is Gorillaz' 'Feel Good Inc', and the reason they provided was the quality of the animation. Consequently, using the popularity of this video and question 10 - that demonstarted animation as a popular feature - as evidence, animation is a popular feature amogst our demographic and one which we will put much consideration into.

For the concluding questions of the questionnaire (regarding representation of both males and females), the overwhelming response was 'no preference'. Therefore, in this area of the production we have a bit more freedom as to how we choose to represent the two genders in our video. This said, we will still need to consider the typical conventions of the genre which our music video will be, and how males and females are generally represented in the genre.

Product Research: Forms and Conventions - Progression of Videos

My group and I have done further research into the main product. We have been exploring the forms and conventions of music videos in terms of their progression from video to video as they become more popular and successful. We noticed that generally, artists make significant appearances in their early releases allowing their targeted audience to familiarise themselves with the bands. As they become more successful and firmly establish an audience, they no longer play a leading role in their videos, and perhaps opt for actors, or maybe computer generated images. The following are a couple of examples which take this stance:

BLOC PARTY  

Silent Alarm: (this was their first album)

So Here We Are – Several close-up shots of the band members, allows viewer to familiarise themselves with a new band.

Pioneers – Still features members of the band, but in animated form, which takes a similar stance to the music videos by Gorillaz, with Bloc Party perhaps attempting to emulate the success of Gorillaz’ videos; they’ve won 11 major awards since they were established in 1998, and been nominated for a further 24.

A Weekend in the City: (second album)

The Prayer – The first song released from their second album, features several other actors in the music video, though still revolving around the band members.

Hunting For Witches – Features solely live shots of the band in an empty, dark room.

Intimacy: (latest album)

Flux – One of the bonus tracks on the album. This video does not feature the band, and instead, displays robots causing chaos in cities. With the band fully established at this point, having been nominated for several awards, and winning the PLUG Indie Rock Album of the Year in 2006, they no longer need to play a role in the video as their fan base has been established, and are aware of who the members are.

THE TEMPER TRAP

Conditions:

Sweet Disposition (sorry, no embedded video for this one, as it has been disabled by the author) – video featuring computer generated special effects, and also all of the band members at various stages of the production. Being their first single, their potential fans may not be familiar with the bands’ faces at this stage of their career, so they’ve ensured here that they cannot be avoided.

Fader – features the band playing in a dark setting with bars of lights surrounding them. As it is only their second single, fans are still familiarising themselves with each of the band members’ appearance and characteristics, and this video reinstates each of their profiles to really ensure that it remains clear in the audience’s minds.

Love Lost – there is no appearance by the band in this video. Following the success of their first two singles (Sweet Disposition won Drum Media Writers’ Poll’s ‘Single of the Year’, as well as Time Off Writers’ Poll’s ‘Single of the Year’, and also APRA Music Awards’ ‘Single of the Year’), they can now afford to explore different styles of videos, as fans are more than aware of who they are and what they look like. Instead, it features a storyline; young boys set the task of running around a rural setting in a given time span. They are lip-syncing the lyrics to the song, and run towards the camera, and the majority of the song is a series of tracking shots. This is a technique which I have noticed is a convention amongst music videos; it can be seen in Bombay Bicycle Club’s video for “Evening/Morning” and The Drums song “Let’s Go Surfing”.