Why is it Important to know about audiences when creating a
music video?
Before creating a music video, it’s important to know about
audiences as it gives us an insight into their interests and expectations. It
is also important to find out about who your target audience is and what they
like. If we are familiar with this then we will be able to make the music video
relatable to the audience, and create it according to the audience’s
expectations. An audience is extremely important as they are the consumers who
can make our music video successful, as their viewings will determine how
popular a music video is. If we make the music video according to the audiences
needs and expectations, it is more likely that a mass audience will watch the
video whereas, if we create a music video in relation to our own interests
without taking the audience into consideration, there is a bigger chance that
the product will lead to the audience not taking any notice in the video and
possible money loss. In order to find out about your audience, it is suitable
to collect primary and secondary data, such as various internet research and
questionnaires. These methods will allow us to find out about the audience in a
more personal way and understand what kind of conventions they would expect to
see in a music video.
Age, Gender and Ethnicity:
After looking at our questionnaire and analyzing our results
we have come to the conclusion that our product will aim to attract people of
mixed gender and ethnicity, and generally anyone above the age of 15. This is a
large target audience however it is evident that the indie genre will only
appeal to certain tastes and selective people. Most indie tracks are aimed for
anyone yet only some will truly enjoy it and appreciate it due to its
unconventionality and originality. The themes of morality, youth, happiness and
love, which we plan to use in our music video, are also quite universal which
could help to attract wider audiences as anyone will be able to identify with
these ideas. On the other hand, we plan to challenge the common ideas of
happiness and morality through our narrative and main artist which can be
considered niche and attract certain people rather than masses. Despite the
main character being white we reckon that ethnic audiences will still be
attracted to our product because we are not promoting any ethnicity but trying
to convey a different issue/message which all races will be able to identify
with. Overall our music video will be aimed at a mass audience but only the
active viewers will be able to either reject it or actively consume it.
Income Bracket/Status:
These are the common categories the audience can be placed
into, depending on their income and occupation.
Category
Who Are They?
A
Top Management, Bankers, Lawyers, Doctors and Other Professionals
B
Middle Management, Teacher, Many ‘Creatives’ e.g.: Graphic Designers etc.
C1
Office Supervisors, Junior Managers, Nurses, Specialist Clerical Staff
C2
Skilled Workers, Tradespersons (White Collar)
D
Semi-Skilled and Unskilled Manual Workers (Blue Collar)
E Unemployed,
Students, Casual Workers and Pensioners
We will be targeting audiences from working unemployed/ working
class individuals who are in the E/D category to people with skilled manual
work who are in C2/C1 category. This is because the narrative we have chosen is
aimed at this audience which will include a main artist who will have working
class values and who will behave in a working class manner, through their
persona, behaviour and values such as drinking problems which are
conventionally associated with lower classes. An unemployed/ working class
audience will be able to relate to the themes that are evident within the
narrative as they are likely to experience this due to their age and working
background. The audience is likely to be young students and part time
individuals who will be attracted to the music video as a result of the
narrative and themes involved. It is unlikely that full time workers will be
able to relate to the plot, as this audience is likely to be more mature and
stereotypically less likely to have self-disruptive tendencies and addictions.
After choosing the status of our target audience we are more confident that we
will meet the audience expectations through our music video as we are aware of
audience expectations and common conventions.
Interests and Hobbies:
The target audience of our products are likely to have quite
niche hobbies and interest due to the niche genre of our campaign. Many indie
listeners belong to subcultures which help them to carry out an original
lifestyle and have contrasting interests if compare to the masses. Therefore,
their hobbies may include going out on marches or protests, which are common
amongst minorities. In addition, they will likely to be hanging out in their
own crowd who share their interests in indie ideas etc. people who listen to
indie often hang out in quieter places and may enjoy reading or recreational
sport. They are often creative so my target audience could enjoy art galleries,
photography or theatre.
Audience Reaction
- Identification: As stated by Richard Dyer, to an extent, the star has to be ordinary in order to allow the audience to identify with them. Identification can be an important part of media consumption because it can help the viewer to feel similar to the star and possibly create a relationship with them, which can help their album sell. Our artist will be ordinary which will be shown through her struggles with alcohol addiction which is something many people can identify with or relate to. In addition, her overall look will be very casual to fit the genre and show the viewer that she is just like them.
- Expectations: When waiting for a product the audience are likely to hold their own expectations of the media. They will want to have their ideas fulfilled in order to feel satisfied with the product and consume it. Goodwin stated that artist use genre characteristic and common conventions to target appropriate audience and meet audience expectations. Therefore, in my product I will use appropriate conventions to attract the right audience. For example, the star will be wearing casual clothing which won’t glamourize the artist which is conventional of indie performers.
- Engagement: Engagement is linked to Hebdige theory. He stated that different people can react in different ways to the same stimuli, or a media product in this particular case. This can be linked to his subculture theory and how different groups of people react similarly within their group but differently to other groups, if exposed to the same media text. Subcultures actively reject media texts and chose which ones they want to engage with. They also react in an individual way. Our video can be read in different ways depending on peoples own past experiences and memories. This will allow them to attach to the character or actively reject them.
Why we have identified this group as our target audience?
We have identified this group as our target audience because
our song choice reflects these viewers through the narrative content, themes
and the character we have chosen. This has made the video suitable for 15+
year-old audiences allowing them to relate to the music video. The narrative we
have chosen is specifically for this group as it involves our main character struggling
with addiction after a tough moment in her life, which I believe will attract
anyone as everyone struggles at some point in their life. Other groups such as
the younger audience wouldn't be able to relate to the music video due to the
narrative and themes that are explored in the music video. They are more likely
to be interested in Hip Hop music video which most of the time talk about money
and living a wealthy lifestyle which they aspire to have. Therefore, the age
group we have chosen is more suitable. By aiming the music video at both
genders and any ethnicity its more practical as it allows the music video to
gain more viewings.
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