What have you learned

from your audience

feedback?

By Joe Stevens

Introduction

Receiving audience feedback for both my music video and print

productions has helped me identify strengths and weaknesses of each,

which I have been able to fix, therefore improving my media texts. The

use of social networking sites such as Facebook has really helped to

establish weaknesses in my media texts, by allowing me to post them for

quick and easy feedback. Along with this, sites such as Survey Monkey,

have also helped, as respondents are anonymous, therefore reducing

any bias or feelings of guilt. This answer will be split into sections,

focused on both my music video and print productions, by use of social

networking feedback and surveys.

My Target Audience

The target audience for my band The Colours, is 16 – 18

year old white females mainly British and possibly

homosexual males of the same age. The genre of

Alternative-Pop and Dance is a hybrid, but Pop is very much

the main genre in the single „Tonight I Let You Go‟.

My target audience may also enjoy music from pop artists

such as The Wanted, or alternative rock band Coldplay.

Music Video: Questionnaire / Facebook

To receive feedback from my audience, I had to create a questionnaire

to be filled in. Respondents watched the music video then filled in the

questionnaire. The questions ranged from whether the music

successfully reflected the genre, to the strongest and weakest features

of the music video. I decided to give the questionnaire to two males and

two female aged 16 to 18. This allowed me to gain feedback from my

target audience (16 to 18 year old females/homosexual males), whilst

also finding a balance between males and females, to show the

difference later on in my evaluation.

I will be discussing each question and analysing the difference between

male and female responses, as well as any answers that may have

recurred.

Question 1) Does the video successfully reflect the genre of music?

Respondents had to rate the success to which my music video reflected the genre of my

band The Colours, pop.

Genre

1

2

3

4

5

Out of the 4 respondents one rated the music videos success

as 3, two rated it as 4 and one rated it as 3 and a half.

This shows that respondents were relatively satisfied with how

the music video reflected the pop genre, with an average of a

3.65 rating overall. Responses have taught me that my music

video isn‟t strongly related to the pop genre and could have

been improved, possibly my using more conventions of pop

music such as a dance routine or shots of performances,

featured in music videos such as Foster the People‟s –

Houdini.

Male respondents rated the music videos success in reflecting

the pop genre, an average of 4, compared to female

respondents who rated it 3.75 on average. This clearly shows

that males were able to identify the genre more effectively than

females, which could be a result of the performer being male,

allowing male respondents to relate to his situation more easily

than females.Foster the People - Houdini

Question 2) Does the video successfully promote the artist / band?

The reason for a music video is to promote not only the track but also the artist /

band. It is important that my music video promotes the band, because that is it‟s main

function, alongside my print productions.

Promotion

1

2

3

4

5

As shown on the graph, all respondents rated the

music video 4, in terms of successfully promoting the

artist / band.

From these ratings, I have learnt that my music video

successfully promotes the artist / band. This may be

due to the focus on the artist, in which I used a

combination of close ups and the majority of the

shots include the main character. On the other hand,

this could also be because the music video works

well with the music, linking lyrics with visuals, which

corresponds to Andrew Goodwin‟s Theory of music

videos, point two „There is a relationship between

lyrics and visuals‟. For example I used a mid angle

lyric card shot during my music video, which is in

sync with the track.

Question 3) How do you rate the overall effectiveness of the music video?

In order for the music video to promote the band (The Colours), the music video had

to be effective to increase interest from the audience.

The graph to the left shows that the most common

rating was 3, although one respondent rated the

music videos effectiveness 4 and another 3 and a

half. The responses from males and females don‟t

particular differ, with females rating the music videos

effectiveness on average 3.25, compared to males

rating it 3.5.

Effectiveness

1

2

3

4

5

From this question, I have learnt that my music video could have been more effective. This

could be achieved by increasing the tempo of the edit, or perhaps using more interesting and

innovative shots throughout the video.

Now that I have analysed this question, it probably would have been better to add a comment

section, so that respondents could clearly outline why the music video wasn‟t so effective, this

would allow me to get rich in depth data, as to the specific weaknesses.

Question 4) How do you rate the tempo of the music video?

Music videos within the pop genre, are often fast paced, with quick cuts. For

example, in Katy Perry‟s Last Friday Night, the opening has very fast cuts between

shots in the bedroom (link below).The average rating received for question 4, is 3.125.

Males on average rated the tempo as 3, where as

females rated an average of 3.25. Again like

question 3, the difference between males and female

is limited.

These results clearly show that the tempo of my

music video is very much the weakest point, with an

average score of 3.125. Tempo is something that

could severely affect the overall effectiveness of the

music video, which may have reduced the ratings for

question 3. To fix this, the majority of the shots

should have been quicker. For example, some of my

shots in my music video lasted more than 10

seconds. If I was to speed these shots up, or cut

them, the tempo would have been a lot

quicker, which in turn may have effected the overall

effectiveness of my music video.

Last Friday Night Link

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KlyXNRrsk4A

Tempo

1

2

3

4

5

Question 5) How successful is the „Britishness‟ of this music video?

My band The Colours are British, therefore the music video needed to convey a sense

of „Britishness‟, which reinforces a British image, as it‟s a big part of the bands

identity.The average score of all respondents

comes to 4.25, with males rating

„Britishness‟ at 4 and females at 4.5 on

average. No respondent has rated the

„Britishness‟ of my music video below

4, with the highest rating being 5, from a

female.

These results have shown me that I

successfully conveyed „Britishness‟

within my music video. This could be a

combination of the use of a post box in

my lyric card shot, as well as using the

generic costume conventions, such as a

suit jacket and tight chinos, similar to

the costume of British boy band One

Direction.

‘Britishness’

1

2

3

4

5

Question 6) Would you buy the music, because of it‟s video?

As said before, the music video is vital in promoting the band and track. Therefore if the

music video is interesting, then it could potentially be a reason to buy the music.

Out of the four respondents, two would buy the music

because of its video, one wouldn‟t and another was

undecided.

Although there is not a significant difference between

answers, I‟ve learnt that if I were to improve the tempo of the

music video, then answers may have been more significant,

compare to the results I gathered.

Video

Yes

No

Undecided

Question 7) Where there any aspects that you find offensive?

If a music video was to cause offence to the audience, it‟s

effectiveness would be seriously reduced, which in turn would demote

the band / artist. For example, No Doubt‟s music video „Looking Hot‟

sparked controversy, as it was seen as offensive to native Americans.

The video shows Gwen Stefani, riding a horse and singing in a

Tipee, which was seen as offensive. Because of this, No

Doubt, apologised for the offense and pulled down the music video.

Fortunately I managed to find the Spanish version of the music video

(left)

Fortunately all respondents found no aspects offensive, in terms of

representations of ethnicity, gender, age or culture.

The Gaze Theory – Question 7

The Gaze Theory proposed by Jacques Lacan, suggests that Gaze (a

psychoanalytical term) is described as ‘the anxious state that comes with

the awareness that one can be viewed’, this can be heavily linked to

voyeuristic imagery within media texts. In terms of music videos, The Gaze

Theory would suggest that objectification would be an unjust

representation of gender (mainly females). Objectification of

females, features in pop music videos such as Lady Gaga‟s „Bad

Romance‟ and Justin Timberlake‟s „Cry a River‟. Some people viewing

these music videos may be offended by this imagery. My music video does

not attempt objectify women, like the music videos below, therefore those

watching may not find it offensive in any manner.

My Music Video

Question 8) What is the strongest feature of the music video?

By adding this question, I was able to identify the best part of my music video, for easy analysis and evaluation.

Two respondents claimed that the narrative structure was the strongest feature, which was a focus point during my music video, as I wasn‟t planning on adding any performance or dance routines, which feature often in pop music videos.

This has showed me that my narrative structure was successful and respondents were able to identify the narrative. This could have been strengthened by again, adding another comment box, so that respondents could summarise what they thought the narrative revolved around.

Question 8) What is the weakest feature of the music video?

This question is more important than question 8, as it identifies weaknesses, which can be changed in the future, thus improving my music video.

Responses were based around effectiveness, in terms of location and longevity of shots.

As said in question 4, it is clear that the tempo of my music video wasn‟t up to standard. This means that when creating similar texts, I can take this into account, to improve my production

Question 10) Rate the music video overall (1= low 5= High)

Once respondents had answered each question they were asked to rate the music video

overall, from a low score to a high score. On average respondents rated my music video

3.625, with females scoring it on average, 3.75 and males rating it 3.5

This shows that although there isn‟t a significant difference between male and female

responses, females tended to enjoy the music video more than males. The music video

therefore successfully appeals to the target audience – females aged 16 – 18 – with a few

points to be improved such as the music videos tempo and effectiveness.

I also posted my music video on the social networking site

Facebook, despite limited results, those who responded were

predominately males aged 17 to 18.

Those who gave feedback, said that the narrative was “a bit

weird” but they liked it, one respondent said it “put across the

right message of regret and sadness”, similar to the remorse of

the protagonist which I tried to convey in music video, by using

flashbacks. One individual said that he liked “the Bob Dylan

references” but he ”would've used a tripod though for many of

the walking shots” which is definitely something to work on.

Overall, responses have been quite positive for my music

video. The results show that I was successful in conveying the

Britishness of the band, but it lacked effectiveness, tempo and

some of the shots were too long.

Print Productions: Questionnaire

Similar to my music video feedback, I got people to fill in a

questionnaire, answering questions such as „Does the package

successfully reflect the genre of music?‟ and „Would the covers

encourage you to go to an event by this artist?‟. Each questionnaire was

given to four respondents (two males, two females), who filled it in

truthfully.

Like my music video feedback analysis, I will be analysing each question

separately, determining the difference between male and female

responses, as well as calculating averages for ratings.

Question 1) Does the package successfully reflect the genre of music?

It is important that the print productions convey the genre of music, because it has to

cohere to the music video. It would be pointless conveying pop through a music video, by

using performance shots, then conveying conventions of the hip hop genre in your print

productions by using shots of males in hoodies with „bling‟ around their neck.

Genre

1

2

3

4

5

All respondents both male and female rated the success of

the package in terms of promoting the pop genre, as 4.

This clearly shows me that my print productions convey the

pop genre. This may be because most of my panels were

focused on the main character, which is often the case for

pop genre digipak‟s. For example, in Michael Jackson‟s

album „Dangerous‟, two panels are focus on him, and on

The Jackson 5‟s album „The Motown Years‟.

Question 2) Does the package successfully promote the band / artist?

Like the music video, both the digipak and magazine advert are methods of promoting

the band / artist and their music. If the digipak and magazine advert are not promoting

the band / artist then they may not be successful.

There were a few mixed results, with one individual rating

my print productions 3, another 5 and two more 4. On

average females rated my print productions 4, whilst males

rated it 4 also.

On average, there isn‟t any difference between male and

female responses, but one female rated the print

productions 3, another 5, showing a clear difference

between opinions.

Promotion

1

2

3

4

5

This has showed me that although the majority of the panels contain the main character, it

doesn‟t necessarily mean that its promoting the artist. This may be because of a lack of identity

or relationship between the character and audience. Those who filled in the questionnaire did not

view the music, therefore they may not have been able to develop the relationship with the main

character.

Question 3) How do you rate the standard of graphics, text and finish of the digipak?

The overall graphics, text and finish to my panels is very important, as it helps the

digipak to stand out from the rest. This question gives the audience the chance to

assess whether the digipak looks pleasant, which allows the audience to give a

judgment as to the graphics work, as most people determine thoughts on face value.

DigiPak

1

2

3

4

5

Three of the respondents circled the rating of 4, and one

rated it 3. Females on average rated it 3.5, compared to

males who rated it 4 on average. The average of ratings is

3.75.

These results show me that the graphics, text and finish of

my digipak is relatively professional and one of my

strongest points in print productions, with an average rating

of 3.75.

If I would have added a response section, respondents would have been able to identify the

strengths and weakness of the digipak, which determined their rating. Those who rated the

digipak graphics 4, may have been impressed by the digipak‟s contrast between the text and

the image, but may have identified that the some panels weren‟t as effective as the others.

Thus reducing their rating to 4 instead of 5.

Question 4) How do you rate the standard of graphics, text and finish of the magazine

advert?

The same applies to the magazine advert as the digipak, it allows the audience to

assess the magazine advert on face value.

Magazine

1

2

3

4

5

Three participants rated the

standard of graphics, text and

finish of the magazine advert

4, whereas one participant

rated it 5. The average rating

of respondents was 4.25.

Females rated the finish of the

digipak at 4, compared to

males who rated it at 4.5.

These results tell me that the overall look of my magazine advert

is slightly better than the digipak‟s overall look. This could be

because of the range of colours from the red of the postbox to

the green of the lyric card.

Furthermore, the digipak could be seen as bland, compared to

the magazine advert, maybe lacking vibrant colours, such as red

and green.

Question 5) How successfully is the „Britishness‟ of the package established?

Similar to question 5 on my music video questionnaire, „Britishness‟ is part of the bands

identity, helping them to establish a fan base, within their home country.

Sales

1

2

3

4

5

Two participants rated the „Britishness‟ of the print

productions as 4, one other as 3 and another as 5.

Females on average rated the „Britishness‟ of the print

productions as 4, compared to males of 4.5.

These results suggest that opinions are divided as to

the „Britishness‟ of the print productions, with two

females divided in opinion.

Despite the use of the post-box in print productions, participants may not

have identified other British references such as the typical English estate-

like locations. On the other hand, participants may have thought that there

weren‟t enough British references, in the print productions.

Furthermore, participants may have thought that there weren‟t enough

references. For example, for panel 2, I could have used one of the tracking

walking shots to show the estate streets, which may have strengthened the

ratings of this question.

Question 6) Would the covers encourage you to buy the digipak?

If the covers would encourage consumers to buy the digipak, then the reason for the

digipak (to promote the band) would have been fulfilled.

Encourage

Yes

No

Undecided

Two of the respondents said that the covers

would encourage them to buy the digipak. One

said the covers wouldn‟t and another was

undecided. The females responded saying „No‟

and „Undecided‟, whereas both males said yes.

This shows me that males would be encouraged to buy the

digipak more than females. Unfortunately, my target audience

for media texts, is females aged 16 – 18. These results have

taught be that my digipak may not target the audience I have

identified. This could be because I have not used bright

enough colour in my panels, or because the panels may not

represent my genre particularly well.

Question 7) Would the advert encourage you to go to an event by this artist?

The magazine advert is a vital part of the promotion of the band and album. If the advert

encouraged the consumer to go to an event by the artist, then the fan base could

potentially increase.

Sales

Yes

No

Undecided

All respondents stated

that they would go to an

event held by the artist

based on the magazine

advert. Nobody said

no, nor were undecided.

These results have taught me that my magazine advert is effective

in promoting the band, by tempting the participants to go to an

event hosted by the band. This may be because, the magazine

advert tells a lot about the band, corresponding with the music

video. For example, the use of colours conveys the pop genre

well, also information such as the date of the album and websites it

features on, which could all strengthen it‟s effect on the viewer.

Question 8) Were there any aspects that you found offensive? i.e. representation of

ethnicity, gender, age, British culture.

It is important that the print productions do not offend anyone watching, as it‟s

effectiveness would significantly reduce.

None of the respondents found the print productions offensive.

Question 9) What are the 3 strongest features of the ancillary texts?

It‟s important to highlight the strongest features of the print productions, because it

allows the creator to identify aspects which have appealed to the target audience. For

example, pop genre digipak‟s often focus on the artist / band, like Justin Timberlake‟s

The 20/20 Experience‟, „Justified‟ and The Wanted‟s „All Time Low‟.

Question 9) Continued…

I managed to get a wide variety of strongest features ranging from “good focus on artist”

to “corresponds with music video”. In order to analyse these responses accurately, I

decided to create a graph to show each response and how frequent it appeared.

Strongest Features

Links to Music Video

Graphical Finish

Portrays Genre

Interesting Shots

Focus on Artist

As the results show there is a range of

responses. Both the „graphical finish‟ and

„link to music video‟ were the most frequent

responses. Males were particularly

impressed by the digipak and magazine

adverts link to the music video, whereas

females tended to focus on the consistency

of the appearance of the artist, throughout

the print productions.

These results show that the link to the

music video and the focus on the artist, play

a key role in promoting the band and

reaching the desired audience. These

results may not be generalisable to a wider

audience, due to a small sample size, but

they act as a clear outline as to the

strongest features on my print productions.

Question 10) Rate the package overall (1= low 5= High)

It is important that the print productions receives a similar rating to the music video, as it

shows a clear link between the two and gives a sense of consistency. Although

participants filled in the questionnaire anonymously, bias could be a problem as the

majority of them were classmates or school friends.

Sales

1

1.5

2

2.5

3

3.5

4

4.5

5

The average rating given by participants was

3.625, with two respondents rating the print

productions 4, one rating it 3.5 and another

rating it 3. Males on average rated the print

productions 4, compared to females who rated

it 3.25.

These results show that despite the focus on

the artist my target audience (16 – 18 year old

females), they rated my print productions the

lowest. This could be because of other factors

such as the graphical finish – which was most

popular with males – or its ability to convey the

genre correctly.

Print Productions: Survey MonkeyI decided to post a status on Facebook asking for volunteers to fill in a

survey, which I created on the website SurveyMonkey.com.

Respondents answer the questions completely anonymously, reducing

any bias that may be skewing the results.

The survey was filled out by 5 people. Comment boxes were optional, to

try not to force respondents into a answer.

Instead of analysing each question I will summarise responses based on

gender and age.

Upon receiving feedback via survey

monkey, I also received additional

feedback, from family and friends. The

feedback I received from Facebook could be

seen as biased, because family and friends

may not want to offend the person

posting, thus skewing results.

Unfortunately feedback from the comment

section focussed more on the music video

rather than the print productions, therefore

is not relevant in this section.

It was important that gathered the age and gender of respondents, as my band The

Colours appeal to a specific age bracket (16 – 18 years old). As shown below, the

majority of the respondents were under the age of 18, fitting to my target audience. The

same goes for gender. My target audience‟s gender is predominately females and

possibly homosexual males.

Out of 5 respondents 4 were male and 1 was female. Because my target audience is

predominately females, this survey may be lacking generalisability to the female population, as

female respondents our significantly lower compared to male respondents.

Summary of SurveyIn terms of question 1, participants responded positively, saying that

the digipak was “instantly recognizable” and that the digipak “suits the

music video well. This may be due to the use of shots within my music

video, which were used for my digipak. For example, for panel 1 of my

digipak (below), I used a still from my music video (also below). This

allowed me to directly link the digipak with the music video to increase

the digipak‟s effectiveness. These responses show that I was successful

in improving effectiveness.

Summary of Survey

All participants agreed that the digipak corresponded with music video.

This is because I used the stills from my music video for the panels on

my digipak.

Participants were divided in opinion as to whether they would buy the

album based on its cd case. Three participants said yes, two said they

were undecided. One individual went onto to say that he/she would have

to be “familiar with the music first”. The respondent may not have seen

the music video, or accidently scrolled past it when reading my

status, which is why he/she may not have been familiar with the track.

Summary of Survey

In order to establish what I did right and what I did wrong, in terms of my

print productions, I asked respondents to pick out strong points and weak

points of it.

In terms of the digipak‟s strong points, the majority of the respondents drew

upon the digipak‟s aesthetics. The following responses were based on the

aesthetics of my digipak:

- “looked pretty impressive”

- “well blended to match the music video”

- “the way it is edited to boost the colours and make it stand out very well”.

These results have taught that the strongest point of my digipak is the way I

have edited it, using a variation of colours and effects, to achieve an

aesthetical finish.

Summary of SurveyParticipants also drew upon weaknesses of my print productions. The

following responses focused on the shadow on the magazine advert:

- “maybe remove the shadowy head of the guy who took the picture”

- “shadow in advert looks a little unprofessional”

This point was reinforced in question 8 of the survey

where two respondents also drew upon the shadow, as

something that they would change about the magazine

advert.

The shadow is something that I was unfortunately

unable to remove, using the editing software, Adobe

Photoshop. In trying to do so, I was left with a blank

transparent area, which needed to be filled in. Filling this

area in would be incredibly hard, as the panel would

look terribly unnatural, hence why I decided to keep it. In

the future it would be best if I had gone out and taken

the shot again, to remove this issue.

Respondents were able to identify the genre well, with four identifying

that the genre was pop and two stated that it had rock elements, which

comes from the hybrid genre that The Colours identify themselves

as, „Alternative-Pop and Dance‟. The majority of the respondents ticked

multiple genres, for example, one individual found elements of pop, rock

and folk (screenshot below), this may have been influenced by the track.

The rock genre is slightly conveyed by the term „Alternative-Pop‟ which

isn‟t seen as a type of recognised genre. When typing in „alternative pop‟

into Google, it recommends alternative rock as result. This may be due

to elements such as performance in music videos, which are generic

conventions of both the rock and pop genres.

Summary of Survey

Summary of Survey

In terms of style respondents rated my digipak an average of 7.8, with

the lowest rating being 7 and the highest being 9.

These results show that there is definitely a lot of weak points about my

print productions, such as the shadow on my magazine advert. If I was

to improve on these weaknesses, it would allow the digipak and

magazine advert to have more of an impact on the music

video, therefore promoting the band / artist more successfully, thus

achieving its primary focus.

Conclusion

Gaining audience feedback is the platform to improving and sustaining

effectiveness of media texts, which can help to market and promote the

band / artist it focusses on. From gaining this feedback for both my

music video and print productions, I have gained valuable knowledge as

to the strengths and weaknesses of each. This has allowed me to both

assess my media products and identify what needs changing, but it has

also allowed to improve and develop my media products throughout their

construction, thus increasing their effectiveness on promoting the band /

artist.