Evaluation - Institutions

Every magazine has a publisher. Whether it be privately owned, or a worldwide institutions such as Bauer. Often, the institutions who choose to publish the magazine need to fully understand the magazines intentions, its market research and of course it’s target audience. Magazines such as Kerrang! And NME are owned by large institutions like IPC-Media (now named Time Inc.) and Bauer Media Group. With these institutions, the magazines they publish all have different genre’s, style and interest group with specific target audience tailored to each magazine. There is also private publishing in where there company only publishes that magazine as part of the magazine brand name, such as Clash magazine. These can be more successful than magazines owned by large institutions as they have a certain niche audience and essentially, the magazine is made for “them”, not for the general public.
As a result, my magazine or media product, Blue Ark, would be privately published. The audience is already vast regarding rock music magazines, with NME, Q, Mojo, Kerrang! And Classic Rock all meeting the criteria of specific rock audiences and sub-cultures. My magazine, appreciates the music, rock as a whole genre, welcoming all sub-genres and branches off the rock empire. As my target audience is for all age groups and rock fans, the idea of being privately owned adds more of a community and sense of unison between the audience/reader and the magazine.
In terms of how the product is going to be presented in the media and how it’s going to be marketed, it will potentially have online capabilities such as digital and tablet versions. Despite the music often being “classic”, it’s an all-purpose rock magazine. Also, it is set at an all-range audience, therefore identifying a possibility for a younger branch of the audience, the tablet version appeals to the younger age range, whereas the print version (hard copy) would appeal to a more older and traditional range. The publishers not only have an impact of marketing and sales, however where you sell it and promote the product can affect its popularity and appeal to the audience.
Shops such as HMV (His Masters Voice) and generic music shops would be appropriate to sell the hard-copy of the magazine. This selling links to the fundamental roots of music, and that this magazine is aimed at an audience who deeply loves rock music, not ones that follow cultural trends and aspired celebrity status of mainstream music magazines. This magazine is for the music itself, the sound, not the fame.
Honestly, it’s hard to pinpoint whether this media product would be a success. With technology ever evolving into bigger and better things, the awe and appeal of print media may significantly decline. Creating online digital versions and social media pages may be a temporary fix to the issue. Nowadays, it is difficult to get hype over a magazine. Institutions and publishers often decline great music ideas and what’s not to say this one may do to. Personally, I believe it’s a great idea, broadcasting the rock community a magazine for everyone. However, whether it would be successful is a different story. NME and Kerrang! Are magazines so well established in the music world that it’s extremely difficult to make space for a ‘new’ magazine. The community has become accustomed to these two giants of the magazine world. Private publishing can create a niche audience, away from the public eye. I believe the ideas and messages this product conveys is worthy of being incredibly successful, however with a large market for multiple music magazines, especially the rock genre with NME and Kerrang, it would be very difficult, to say the least, to become a successful media product.