Feedback from focus groups –

I did a focus group with four other people and we discussed the music industry, music magazines and more specifically the ‘Hip-Hop’ genre, in much detail. I asked several questions and I will now present the feedback I received to the questions I asked –

The first question I asked was; What is it you like about the ‘Hip-Hop’ genre?

The people that I randomly chose to participate in my focus group all turned about to be fans of the genre although some more than others. One person in my focus group Michael who was a big fan of the genre said; “It sounds good, it’s well known worldwide.” This point was then driven home by Salah who said; “The artists don’t just come from one place like the states, they come from all over the world.” He also went onto say he enjoyed the rap side too, whilst Zeph found himself looking deeper, into the meaning of the lyrics; “There some real storylines behind the music about their lives and past.”

After that I asked; On a music magazine do you prefer to see a ‘chaotic’ magazine cover with lots of copy, cover lines and colour or a much plainer front page with a consistent colour scheme, a few cover lines and one clear image? Why?

It wasn’t an undisputed decision against the ‘chaotic’ style with Michael being in favour of it; “I like to see lots of colour and cover lines, he went on to say he liked to see the text standing out against the background with contrasting colours.” However, that is where the support for the ‘chaotic’ style ended. The other three participants of my focus group agreed consistency and subtly were the best way forward. Zeph expressed his view first; “Its simple, when it’s clogged up with to much text it just looks messy, it needs to be neat and ordered so you can pick out relevant details.” Salah joined in, expressing a similar opinion to Zeph; “I prefer it to be subtle, clear and easy to read that way it’s easy to find what you’re looking for. Really it just gives the whole magazine a more relaxing tone; you feel like its speaking to you not trying to tell you multiple things at once.” Finally Borna spoke up with little else to add after what Salah had just said; “I agree, consistent colours are important, with only a little amount of cover lines and text needed.” With that it was clear, my participants had come to a decision, a plainer and more subtle magazine cover is best.

I then went onto ask my focus group; For the main image of a music magazine what do you like to see, a series of small images, one large image of one artist, or do you prefer to see several band members on a cover?

The feedback was conclusive, all four agreed it should be one large image rather than a series of smaller ones, Zeph expanded on the reasoning behind his choice; “I like to see one large image, but a close up that way you feel more connected with the artist.” Although they did not all agree on whether the large image should feature on one artist or be a master shot with several band members in it; Michael, Salah and Zeph all agreed it should be just one artist whilst Borna felt it should feature a band if possible with as many as five or six people in the shot, he went on to explain; “I prefer the master shots because it looks more impressive like the magazine has really made an effort to get a great band to pose for their front cover.”

Question three asked; If you were to pick from the following names for a music magazine which would it be and why?

The choices were; ‘Sound’, ‘Lyrics’, ‘Base’ or ‘Noise’ and it resulted in a tied verdict with Borna and Zeph making the case for ‘Base’; “It sounds memorable, and appealing…”, “Out of the four I would think that is the one that relates to ‘Hip-Hop the most.” Whilst Michael and Salah allied themselves together in favour of ‘Noise’, Michael said of ‘Noise’; “It’s very relative to the music.” Whilst Salah found that the word represented the genre of music the magazine would centre on quite well.

I continued quizzing my focus group; When you read a double page spread do you prefer it focuses on one artist or band or a series of different stories?

Once again the result was a split decision, with two apiece, Michael kicked off the discussion; “I prefer to see lots of different smaller stories so it doesn’t become repetitive.” Salah supported him on this one; “It’s more interesting to learn about lots of different artists rather than just one.” But Zeph disagreed; “You get much more information from one article rather than going off in several different directions.” Borna said much the same how if he was interested in a particular artist and they were featured on a double page spread he would be disappointed if the information about them was only minimal as he would want to learn as much as he could about them.

The next question I went onto ask was; When you read a music magazine do you prefer it focuses on just music or do you like a product that deals with a range of issues like news and interviews that may not always discuss music related topics? This time there was a victory for producing a product that deals with lots of issues, Borna said; “It gives the magazine variety” Zeph expanded; “A variety of content is best – it makes it so there’s lots of little things to learn about rather than just concentrating on one thing” Salah agreed with Borna and Zeph saying he felt variation was important and that he didn’t like just learning about one thing. Although Michael disagreed; “I want it to just be about the music, I buy it specifically for the music and that only.”

After that question I continued; Do you like music magazines that allow you to express your view via a write in section were your opinions will be published in subsequent issues or do you prefer if it’s all professionally written?

Michael started; “I would like to right my own opinion, it’s your view and your personality, but if others write in you’ll get a great selection of diverse opinions.” Soon Borna, Zeph and Salah all agreed, this is clearly one element that should be included in future music magazines judging by how popular it was with my focus group. All four found sharing perspectives, personal views and expressing yourself were all very important, they also went onto say peoples different opinions and criticisms can give the publishers areas to work whilst gaining several opinions at once rather than just having the article writers opinion, in addition to that they also felt it was important that you are able to express yourself to others reads and they can do the same with you, therefore finding out what you have in common with other reads.

After it became apparent how important self-expression was I followed with the question; What type of language do you expect in a music magazine, formal or informal, direct or indirect?

Unlike the previous question this divided the focus group, with each of them taking a difference stance and approach to answering this question, much of what they have said is similar but there is minor differences each time, for example Michael didn’t opt either way he said he felt it depended on the target audience and age range, but when I asked what he preferred and found more satisfying he came off the fence and decided a magazine should be informal so in his words; “It approaches you in a friendly manor, that’s pleasant and makes you want to read on.” But he also went onto say a magazine should be direct, so it singles you out as an individual and appears as if it’s talking to you directly. Rhetorical questions could be used to achieve this, speaking to the reader directly without requiring an answer. Salah agreed with Michael; “I think it should be informal but also direct, because it’s got to seem friendly and down to earth but it’s also got to catch your eye with snappy cover lines that are directed at you” Borna on the other hand differed from the pair, he felt a music magazine should be both informal and indirect, his reasoning behind this was the fact he felt it should cross across in a casual manor not a threatening manner were it may be singling out you making you feel self-conscious thus not wanting to read on and Zeph however differed again he felt it should be both formal and informal, direct and indirect; it should offer both in his opinion, making you feel both comforted and happy when reading but at other points it should be direct offering you straightforward facts and figures.

The question I followed with was another that was bound to cause a divide, What artists would you like to see appear on the front of a music magazine and why?

Zeph opened up the discussion; “I would like to see well known male ‘Hip-Hop’ artists who are respected and inspirations to many.” He went onto list a few names like Dr. Dre, “They should have had a big impact on the genre and be very successful.” Salah had much the same view “I would personally like to see artists like 50-Cent, because people look up to him, he’s got lots of fans and almost everybody would be sure who he is.” Michael followed suit with Zeph and Salah agreeing the main artist who he would like to see appear in his opinion should be male, he suggested; “Kanye West, because he’s a role model to everyday people.” Despite differing opinions on specifically which artist should be on the front cover, however all of them had managed to come to an agreement as they all favoured the solo artist rather than a group, expect for Borna that is, he said he’d like to see a well-known band like D-12 because in his words; “It makes the magazine look very successful, like they’ve got the money to get the biggest artists. It looks very impressive.”

Conclusion –Overall the questions I have asked have presented some conclusive results whilst others are very much inconclusive and those respective decisions would have to be left up to my personal preference, in conclusion I feel the use of the focus group has been very useful and has benefitted my future product no end with some of the excellent thoughts and opinions I have been provided with. I will try and take

into account as many of the views as I can when it comes to creating my product thus in theory it will result in a well-rounded music magazine which will be suitable for a mass market.

By George Parkin.