QUALITATIVE RESEARCH -INTERVIEWS WITH TARGET AUDIENCE Amazon Rose

I have conducted a few more detailed interviews within my target audience, taking on board the preferences and suggestions I received. I interviewed three different people to cover the different age groups from my target audience. I decided to interview three girls as from my research I discovered that females were the majority of listeners who enjoyed the music genre of my music video. I also felt that interviewing the youngest end of my target audience and the older end would create a good contrast and enable me to compare them and hopefully adjust to suit both.

I originally wanted to record these interviews in video form, however at the last minute the technology failed, or I failed the technology... However I have instead created a general sheet on which to record the answers and jot down the answers whilst I am interviewing the member of my target audience.

INTERVIEW 1

Within this interview I asked questions to my fourteen year old sister Willow Rose. She said that she ‘probably only listens to iTunes and YouTube’ as this is the only media she really has access to. As I plan to upload my music video to YouTube, it is pleasing to see that in this case the younger end of my target audience are likely to have access to it. When I asked which genre of music she thought her age group and gender proffered she said probably pop or anything on the radio. This was to be expected as the younger age groups I have found are often still deciding their preferences in music and use the radio as a way of exploring music genres and artists. Willow also recommended that a good music video should be ‘not too weird and unordinary’ and should ‘go with the song and style of music’. Her favourite music video is Mountain sound by Of Monsters and Men due to it’s ‘cute’ and ‘simple’ nature that didn’t have any fancy effects as more expensive music videos did. I researched this music video after the interview and was pleased to find that the music video was similar to what I plan for my own, including a ‘cute’ and happy sound that didn’t really follow a strong narrative but still has a strong sense of style.

INTERVIEW 2 Within this interview I asked questions to seventeen year old

Ellie Armstrong. Ellie told me that she felt her age group and gender preferred ‘indie music or maybe acoustic pop’. This is encouraging as my artist fits within this music genre. When I asked Ellie about unsigned bands she mentioned that she did actually search for unsigned music through YouTube, as it was for her the easiest way of finding them. YouTube has proved to be popular with everyone I have questioned and a very easy to access way of finding music despite the origin. Therefore I feel it is essential I upload my music video there, making it instantly available to anyone. Ellie also told me she never really watches the MTV music channels but she does actively watch ‘The X Factor’. This shows that my target audience does have an active interest in music and singing, which makes my song ideal as there is a strong focus on vocals. Ellie said she preferred music videos with a ‘strong sense of style that suits the genre’ and also a purpose or moral. I plan to have a mainly concept based music video, however some people do prefer a narrative and this could be a problem I come across.

INTERVIEW 3 Within this interview I asked questions to eighteen year old

Katie Phillips the eldest of my three interviewees. She told me that she ‘uses YouTube probably everyday’ which again supports this media outlet. She has attended the music festivals ‘Download, V festival and Sundown’. This shows that the slightly older end of the target audience would be interested into this type of media outlet and perhaps a music video with connotations of this style would suit my target audience. Katie also watches TV music talent shows such as ‘The X factor’, ‘Britain's Got Talent’ and ‘The Voice’. Again showing that she finds music is part of her active way of enjoyment and is a focus of her media intake. When I asked Katie whether she preferred performance or concept based music video she replied that she liked performance based videos, adding that they allowed the audience to connect to the characters and created a sense of familiarity that didn’t ‘weird her out’. She also, like Willow and Ellie stated that she preferred simplicity in music videos, as it gave a much more professional feel. All of this feedback was incredibly helpful and I hope to take it fully on board and work/improve from it.