Lesson Objective At the end of this lesson we will have analysed how adverts in a specific magazines provide clues about the target audience of the magazine.

Why do magazines Need adverts?

Why do adverts Need magazines?

Advertising in Magazines Magazines allow for more complex layouts than newspapers and other more basic print alternatives. They provide companies with the ability to showcase their product in a full-colour, glossy format. They provide a more polished look/feel and boost the company's credibility in the eyes of consumers.

Magazines make it easy for companies to target specific market demographics. Most magazines have a very specific readership based on factors such as interests, age, and gender. By leveraging readership demographics, you can instantly ensure that your message is being seen by the right people - the ones most likely to buy your product.

For example… Imagine this advert appeared in a music magazine. What does the advert tell us about the intended audience of the magazine?

Magazine ads are significantly more expensive than print ads in newspapers. However, smaller businesses can control costs by specifying the size of the ad. Most magazines offer space ranging from a full-page ad down to a quarter-page ad or smaller. But even so, costs will be higher, primarily because it is more expensive to print in a full-colour, glossy format.

Overt and Covert Advertising Overt – From the French word meaning open. Advertising whose techniques are obvious. For example: A full page advert for a car. Covert – From the French word meaning covered. Advertising whose techniques are hidden For example: A competition where you may win a car, or a problem page style advert. Another type of covert advertising are those which have ‘Advertisement Promotion’ in small letters.

Advertising pages Task: In groups, look at the magazine provided to you. Count the number of advertising pages. Write down the total. Compare this to the number of pages in the magazine, and come up with a percentage (remember, adverts don’t always have page numbers, so keep this in mind) Consider how many adverts were either (a) two pages, (b) one page or (c) smaller adverts put together with other small adverts. What kind of adverts were bigger? Smaller? What does this tell us about the target audience? Record what is being sold in each advert. Put each advert into a genre (i.e. Alcohol, cars, beauty, albums, gigs, clothing, etc) Which type of adverts featured the most? What does this tell you about the target audience?

Who is the target audience for your magazine? Using what you know about target audiences, write a response to the following question: Who is the target audience for your magazine? How do you know this? Be specific, refer to both articles and adverts.