Researching different genres of music magazine

1. RecentlyI visited my local newsagents to see what types of music magazine they sold, in order to
see what genre of music magazine there is a demand for, and also what there is a gap in the
market for. However,I quickly found from browsing the shelvesthat there was a significant lack
of music magazines – I could only find ‘Top of the Pops’, and so I decidedto ask the newsagent if
they stocked any magazines, to clarify why there weren’t many on the shelves.She then
proceededto tell me that they did stock a limited number of music magazines, but theyonly
order them when they are specifically requested because they just don’t sell when they have a
selection on the shelves like theydo with lifestyle and fashion magazines. Therefore,theyare
kept behind the counter for customers to come in and collect. Some of the magazines that are
ordered are: ‘The Guitarist’ and ‘Q’. She then went on to explain that ‘Topof the Pops’ is still
stocked on the shelves as there is an influx of young girls who come in to buy it, but she thinks
this is because the music magazine has a lot of traits of a gossip/lifestyle magazine as it has
articles on celebrities and quizzes.
After this discovery, I decidedto go to my local supermarket – ‘ASDA’,to see whether there was
a difference in the music magazines that they stocked, as it is a much bigger store which receives
more customers. I found that there were several music magazines stocked on the shelves at
ASDA,including ‘Kerrang’,‘The Guitairst’ and ‘Q’. These magazines were the same as the ones
that my local newsagents stocked, suggesting that these are some of the most popular music
magazines. However,they were placed on the lowest shelf,near the back where they weren’t
very noticeable, connoting that those who would buy these magazines seek them out, rather
than buying them on impulse. Other magazines such as gaming magazines and lifestyle
magazines took the more prominent spaces on the shelf, suggesting that theyare more popular.
I decided to look more closely at these magazines to see if there was anything specific that
appeared to make them more popular, and I found that most of them had a free CD included
with them to encourage people to buy the music magazine. ‘The Guitarist’ didn’t have a free CD,
but this is because it is the type of magazine which will have a niche but loyal audience who
won’t needto be enticed by a free CD.The CD that the other magazines offered was in keeping
with the genre of the music magazine because those interested in the CD are more likely to be
interested in music journalism of the same genre.

2. I will definitely take this idea into consideration whencreating my music magazine as it appears
to be a good way of attracting customers to buy music magazines, but I will consider ways in
which I can make this idea more modern, as I don’t know many people who still listen to CDs.
Most people now listen to music electronically, either over the Internet or by downloading music
onto their smart devices.