AUDIENCE RESEARCH

Basheba Baptiste.Candidate Number: 7031

INTRODUCTION

• I have begun to research different types of audience’s. In this presentation I will specify who the audiences are and what they stereotypically find interesting.

YOUNG AND RUBICAM

• Psychographic scale – According to theorists ‘Young and Rubicam’ audiences are specified by their different characteristics. Compared to demographic profiling this means that rather than being categorised by their status and money, they are instead categorised by who they are on a stereotypical scale.

• They are split into these subgroups:

DEMOGRAPHIC PROFILING

• According to theorists Young and Rubicam, audiences are split into six subgroups. These subgroups are a general stereotype of how audiences act towards different types of media.

• Using this theory I have managed to stereotype different audiences in my other research, and will use it when researching what type of audience will fit in with my magazine.

• These are the subgroups:

Mosaic UK Brochures

• When researching audiences I came across an online PDF brochure from Mosaic UK. This gave a deeper specification of the ‘General Registrar Scale.’ This is better than the ‘General Registrar Scale’ because its more detailed and can break down the subgroups so that it is easier to file people into these groups.

• For example there are additional groups, groups ‘F-J’ these groups add more job descriptions but link in also with ‘Young and Rubicams’ psychographic profiling. An example of this more detailed specification is ‘Group A’ the Higher Managerial, Administrative and Professional group is broken down into four different subheadings including ‘AO1 – World class health, AO2 – uptown elite etc…’

• This will help me to define exactly what type of people will be interested in my magazine.

• These are the findings taken from that brochure:

Further Research

• Audiences are classified by their Age, Gender, Ethnicity, Sexual Orientation, Occupation, Education, Geo-Demographic (A stereotype dependent on where you live,) Demographic/Socio-Economic Profiling (Based on jobs money and class,) and Psychographic Profiling (who you are.)

• These things will play a major role in specifying how a type of media will be decided. Using a questionnaire I plan on focusing on Age, Gender, Occupation, Education, Geo-demographic and Psychographic Profiling in order to narrow down how to create my magazine.

Further Research

• Uses and Gratification research has led me to understand that audiences understand certain types of media dependent four major points, these points define why audiences may be interested with certain types of media . These are the four points:

• Surveillance and Information: Helping audiences to get knowledge about the world and how it works. ( Documentary's/Newscasts)

• Personal Identity: Audiences compare themselves to characters or actors within the media. (Soaps/Reality TV/Magazines)

• Integration and Social Interaction: Audiences who want to be involved with characters as if they are real, or wanting to know what happens within their lives. (Reality TV/Talk Shows/Magazine Interviews)

• Entertainment and Diversion: Taking audiences away from their own issues and life; aka Escapism. (Fiction Books/ Comedy’s/ TV Drama’s)

• These four points are what make an audience interested with media texts, I will use this information within my research and when creating my magazine so that I can figure out what information to put within my magazine.

STUART HALL – AUDIENCE RECEPTION THEORY.

• According to theorist Stuart Hall audiences consume the media products in different ways. These products are based on how the viewer wants the to consume the information they are given.

• Preferred Reading: The main view given and what the creator wants you to see.

• Oppositional Reading: The audiences see’s the information oppositely to how the creator wants you to see it.

• Negotiated Reading: An optimistic perspective, the audience understands the main view that is given but can also see it from other perspectives.

• This theory is a basis on which people may view the content given, I will take into account these views when creating my magazine. The last part of the theory not given by Stuart Hall is:

• Aberrant Reading: A pessimistic perspective, the audience rejects the product entirely and may have no view on it what so ever.

IEN ANG – DOMINANT IDEOLOGY OF MASS CULTURE AND SOCIAL DEBATE.

• Ien Ang believed that although audiences may find a show ‘trivial,’ they could create a cultural discussion based around the idea. (This information is based mainly on findings in Dallas.) She encouraged readers to become ‘negotiated readers.’

• Using this information I can create a focus group for research, choosing a ‘trivial’ agenda I would take different types of people from different socio-economic backgrounds and test this theory to see how it might relate to my product.

CONCLUSION

• Audiences have been classified within these margins as a way for theorists and producers to analyse and stereotype them. This is a way for them to understand the masses and create media based on what the masses would enjoy, but also so that they can appeal to different types of people that don’t fit within the typical group they aim to please.

• It is important for producers to understand these audiences so that they may be able to pick out what characteristics they should or should not put within their product. Defining their audiences based on these stereotypes makes it easier for them to do so.

• From the information I have gathered, I will be able to file down my research and decide what type of audience I am aiming to appeal to.