Report for Streetstyle section of 69 degrees Magazine (November 2010)
- Perceptions of the streetstyle feature within 18-35 year olds
After looking at the magazine as a whole and the feature, I put forward the feature to people within the age bracket to get their opinions. The overall perception was very positive, with the questions and layout being the best elements of the page. One stated that they thought the feature ‘fit the target audience perfectly’, while others liked the use of colour, and the link between Halloween and the theme.
- Critique of the current feature
At first look of the page, the thing that stands out almost immediately is the use of colour. This grabs the reader’s attention instantly. The page is simple, in terms of the colours used and the type of text. The font used for the title ‘Streetstyle’ is in keeping with the urban edge of the page. The question and answer section under each picture is a nice inclusion, and gives some background to the people being photographed. The way they are photographed is also good. Some sections like these in other magazines can look too staged, but that doesn’t feel that’s the case in 69 degrees. However, there are some parts of the page which could be changed. The colour on the page is too garish, although this could be down to the magazine running with the Halloween theme. The font used for the majority of the text is plain, and, with the title being quite urbanised, it would be interesting the body text to be in a similar font or something like a handwriting scrawl. The way the photographs are laid out is quite rigid, so moving the images around would give the page a better flow. Spreading the feature out over a double spread would also mean the photos could be made bigger, and as there is a lot of information for the single page, this would also allow for more questions to be put underneath. The feature itself would be better placed further in the magazine.
- Suggested creative layouts and strategy for taking the feature forward
Overall, the page is very good. However, one of the first things that I would do to improve the look of the feature would be to spread it over two pages. A double page spread gives you the opportunity to photograph and talk to more people as well as making the page flow better. Liking simple magazine layouts, I’d keep the feature in black and white, using colour sparingly, such as in the title, which is perfect for the feature. The photographs and style are good. As a suggested layout for a future issue, the photographs could be done in the style of Polaroid’s and spread over two pages. The title would be bigger and in the top left hand corner of the first page, with the introduction text underneath this. Some more background information on the people being photographed, such as age, location, and how they’d describe their style in three words. Getting other peoples opinions on how they are dressed and if one of the outfits is made up of purely vintage attire, a rundown of where to get the clothes on the high street could also be included.
- Online 69-degrees.co.uk and Facebook/Twitter
The 69 degrees website has all the information that you need. The style is very modern, and the link headings such as ‘style’ and ‘swag’ suit the target audience. I think the page is slightly crowded, with the Twitter feed and adverts. The links to digital magazine could be made smaller and be included on the headings bar. The Twitter page could be improved by using the current magazine front cover or the title as the background. The Biograpghy gives the follower good information about the magazine and the link to the website encourages the reader to get involved. The colour scheme of the Twitter page would look better based on the colours on the front colour of that issue, seeing as the icon is the magazine. The Facebook page is brilliant, and enables friends to look at behind the scenes photos, and have discussions on the latest issue and topics.
