Target Market Survey Results
Objective of Survey In order to get an idea about what age target market I need to focus on for my magazine publication, I created a survey using ‘surveymonkey.com’, which I posted to the general public through the use of social media websites such as Facebook, Twitter and Tumblr. I devised a questionnaire consisting of 10 questions based on people’s use of the internet, mobile phone services and magazine purchases. This will help me to get overall summary of how people use media and technology in relation to physical publications and hard copies. The questions will be able give me a clear idea of what sort age group will be suited for my magazine, and which way is more suitable to produce it, either by hard copy or online where you can download it as an ‘app’ for either mobile phones, laptops, iPads, tablets etc. On some of the questions, I have asked for further explanation which will give me more of an insight into the mind of those of have answered the questions. It will also give me a more in depth review of personal opinions related to the subject. After gathering the results I will analyse the answers and draw up graphs and pie charts to get a full view of the survey answers.
SURVEY RESULTS
1. What is Your Age? 4%
2% 2%
18-‐24 25-‐34
18%
35-‐44 74%
45-‐54 55-‐64
The results show the majority of those who answered the question were aged between 18-24. 37 people out of 50 answered with this age, showing that my target market will be of a younger age.
• 65-‐74 • 75+ • • • •
37 people = 18-24 9 people = 25-34 1 person = 45-54 1 person 55-64 0 people 65-74 0 people 75+
2. What is Your Gender?
22% male
78% female
As predicted, the dominating gender of my questionnaire was female, with a total of 39 women. The majority of magazines on the market today are aimed at women, particularly fashion, interior and hobby magazines. My publication, will most likely have a wide female market, however, I would like my target market to be aimed at both a male and female audience.
3. How Often Do You Use the Internet per Day? 4% 12% 16% 28% 40%
Less Than 1 2 people hour 1-‐2hrs
8 people
3-‐5hrs
20 people
5-‐7hrs
14 people
7+hrs
6 people
Results show that the majority of the participants spend 3-5hrs on the internet daily. This is a significant amount of time using online services, showing that producing a magazine online could be beneficial.
4. How Often Do You Use Your Mobile Phone Internet Services?
8%
14% 32%
32%
All The Time Regularly
16 people
SomeBmes
7 people
Rarely
4 people
Never
7 people
16 people
5. How Often Do You Download Mobile Phone Apps? All The Time
0 People
Regularly
4 people
SomeBmes
20 people
Rarely
17 people
Never
9 people
The results show that people either ‘someBmes’ or rarely download mobile apps. This is quite disappoinBng from my point of view. If I was to make my publicaBon into an online magazine, these results show that the majority people wouldn’t download something like this. However, this quesBon wasn’t specific to magazine downloads, and with the quesBon being answered by only 50 people. If I was to have more people answer the quesBon which is more specific, I may get different results.
6. How Often Do You Buy Magazines? 4.3% 25.5%
19.1%
12.8%
38.3%
Weekly
2 people
Fortnightly
6 people
Monthly
18 people
Bianually
9 people
Never
12 people
Other Responses: “Randomly” “Occasionally” “Rarely” “I have subscriptions” “Every couple of months”
7. Do You Ever Use ‘Magazine Websites’?
Yes
24 people
No
26 people
This results is almost split down the middle. However, it is quite interesting to see that magazine readers also go on to use the magazine website, showing that advertising of that particular company can work. It also shows that if people are willing to use websites, they may be take part in downloading an app for a magazine also.
8. If So, Which Ones Do You Use?
Vogue.com ELLE.com Look.co.uk Cosmopolitan.co.uk Harpersbazaard.co.uk Glamour.com
Other Responses: NewsWeek Spector Motocross Grazia More!
Oh Comely Empire Stylist Norwegian Sites Wallpaper
SFX TotalFilm
9. Do You Think Apps Designed For Magazines are a Good Idea, or Do You Prefer a Physical Copy?
40% 60%
I Think Apps Are a Good Idea I Prefer a Physical Copy
It is clear to see that readers prefer a physical copy of a magazine or publication. The next page shows an further explanation as to why people have chosen this answer. There is a clear pattern from these results that I may need to make my magazine into a physical hard copy.
9. Do You Think Apps Designed For Magazines are a Good Idea, or Do You Prefer a Physical Copy?
Following on from this ques2on, par2cipants were asked to explain their answer as to whether they think apps are a good idea or if a physical magazine copy is preferred. These are the answers given: “I hate reading off screens”
“I think apps are a good idea, especially for those on the go/commuters. Technology today is becoming more and more advanced and the quality of magazines produced for ipads/tablets are very high. It's also more cost effective and space saving.”
“Cup of tea and a physical magazine is an event! App is just a time-filler.” “Not as good quality as a physical copy” “Having a magazine is a treat to snuggle on the sofa with and indulge -‐ not the same on a phone!” “Hard to read on a phone. Easier to read. Its not a mag if its on your phone or internet”
“Simple. I’m not going to shell out for content and writers I can get for free online. Also-‐ why the ridiculously limited selecAon of magazines to choose from? Talk about making ridiculous assumpAons about women. U gh. Hair clothes , gossip and handbags are not the bee all and end all.” “If done well *but physical is better as allows you to share/read with friends” “You can find the informaBon/stories t hat you find interesBng more quickly and easily” “I like to be able to hold it and keep it for a while.” “Love sifng with a magazine in m y hands, whilst drinking tea or something. Like to collect magazines and be able to look at them whenever I want.” “I like to have something to hold and read as I can't read very well on screen. I always print out text to read it.”
“There’s something nice about having a physical copy with you, you feel more obliged to read it more than once and share it with lots of people.” “More so for things such as the Kindle, iPad, Tablets, etc, rather than standard smart phones.”
“A physical copy is easier to flick through if searching for a particular item. Plus its nicer to have a paper copy in your hands.”
“A physical copy is better as you flick through it and can read it in the bath or by the pool.” “Like the feeling of real paper in my hands”
“Although I love a physical copy, I also think that having apps are a very good idea as they would enable you to carry around countless publications without being ridiculously heavy, and would also allow quick and easy referencing of particular features etc if some sort of organisational system or search function was included in the app”
“I prefer to be able to look through the pages of a physical copy”
“I much prefer looking at things on my phone or electronic device than a hard copy”
“Due to spending so long looking at a screen at work, when I read outside work it is nice to have something written on paper (much less stress on eyes). Additionally often read magazines on public transport.”
“more relaxing to read a hard copy than an electronic one. plus you can smell it.”
10. If Given the Option, Would You Rather Pay a Smaller Price for a Digital Download Rather Than a Higher Price for a Physical Copy?
Yes 50%
50% No I was expecting to see a clear divide for this question, however I have been given a result that is completely split down the middle at 50/50. It would have been useful to see a different results favouring one side, as this would give me a more specific idea as to whether I need to design a physical or digital copy for my magazine project.
10. If Given the OpBon, Would You Rather Pay a Smaller Price for a Digital Download Rather Than a Higher Price for a Physical Copy? Par2cipants were asked to further explain their reason for their given answer for this ques2on. Shown below are some of the explana2ons given: “I would be willing to pay a smaller price for a digital download because I believe that online magazines are the future. It is significantly more 'green', and with the use of tablets becoming more popular, it will be beneficial. It will also enable people from different countries download the app”
“Reading a physical copy is an event!”
“Not paying for content I can get elsewhere for free/ more cheaply.”
I wouldn't pay for either though... I only look at the free articles on magazine websites.
“Would have to be much cheaper as there are plenty of free gossip/fashion/beauty websites available already”
“I prefer a hard copy.” “Its more easily portable and smaller to carry a phone/ ipod etc than an A5 book of paper.”
“Love having it in paper form more than reading it on the web.” Prefer to read things physically! Also like to own something physical for my money!
“Digital technology is more popular and common. Thus, the smaller price and with what could be an easier option to download a digital copy seems good with busy lifestyles.”
“I find magazines are less logical in digital form. You know you have read everything if you have a paper copy. It is very easy to miss articles on a digital edition due to how they are laid out.” “I would rather have a physical copy, I prefer picking up a magazine and reading rather than having to zoom in on my phone etc and also I find them useful if I need to rip a page out”
“I would pay for the cheaper opBon”
As I have said, I do love having real material things, however, seeing as I don't like to cut up magazines, I tend to spend ages trying to photograph pages of interest - if the magazine was digital, I would be able to just copy the image over, making it not only an easier process, but a better quality outcome as well. Also, as I have said above, being able to store infinite publications on just a hard-drive would be so much more efficient. Also, if it's cheaper and has the same content, then why not :)
“I Prefer hard copy magazines” “I prefer a digital copy”
“Will only pay for an actual copy”
“A magazine is not just about reading and acknowledging the content, it's the experience of reading a magazine that is of more importance. siMng down with a cup of coffee, flicking through, doing the crossword on the back page, etc.”
“I prefer physical copy” Maybe, depending on the difference of price. “I prefer the hard copy although they take up more space.”
“student answer, but whatever the cheapest opBon is I would go for that”
“If the digital download was on my laptop and not my phone then yes. Otherwise I'd pay the higher price for a hard copy.”
“Print media needs to survive.” “I love saving money!”
I like to own a hard copy for reference in the future however I would be interested in a digital download as well if there was a difference in content.
“It would save me going outside and gefng the magazine from a shop.”
“I like to have it in my hand and fold the pages.”
Conclusion of Results After closely analysing the survey results, I have come to conclusion that I will need to make my magazine into a physical copy. The majority of the results show that people prefer to have a hard copy form of publication, as it seen more of a luxury, especially after using computers and other technology often during the day. People see reading magazines and books more enjoyable, mainly due to the fact that they can sit back and relax, instead of having to look at a screen which can often be of poor quality. Many people expressed that they like to keep hold of magazine copies for future reference, especially if they want to read back or use something for research. It also keeps hold of the tradition of reading hard copies, especially in today’s society where technology and social media is becoming increasingly popular, and taking over almost every aspect of living. One of the question shows that most people buy magazines weekly and most often, monthly. Most well known magazines are released monthly, so this is something that I need to take into consideration when it comes to looking at the long run of producing my magazine, and how often I would need to release new copies. I was interested to discover that almost half of the participants said that they used online websites that belonged to magazine companies, eg, vogue.com, glamour.co.uk etc. This goes to show that people are willing to use the internet to extend their research, which also links to consumerism as it is advertising trends and products. I devised some of the survey questions to influence people to add further comments, this enabled me to engage more with the participants and to get more of a detailed view of those who took part, and what their true opinions are. This was really interesting because people really started to get into the survey, and would often vent their opinions, and sometimes people would argue their points very effectively. Most people argued that they would much prefer a hard copy. Some explained this was due to the fact that they spend a lot of time during the day looking at a screen, and would much rather prefer to sit and read a book/magazine as it is more of a luxury. On the other hand, the other argument was that apps for magazines are a good idea, as it is more cost effective, green and space saving. Overall, this survey has been really interesting and has helped me to get a good idea as to what target market I will be aiming at my magazine, and in which form I will need to deliver it in. The results have shown that I will need to produce a physical copy and that it will be aimed at a younger target market. However, this conclusion is based only on the answers of 50 people, and was only posted on social media sites to complete. Next time, I will need to take into consideration that not everyone uses the internet, and sometimes you can get more of a universal result by asking people physically, and away from the internet. I will also be able to get more results by asking more people. However, at this stage of my research for my project, it is important to carry out this survey at the beginning in order to gather results for a target audience and publication type, which allow me to carry on with producing my magazine.