TASK 6: Yr 12- Target Audience Research for my product

Target Audience Research for my product

Follow the guidance very carefully

• Step 1- Making Predictions
• Step 2- Target Audience Research
• Step 3- Analysing your findings

Success criteria for this task:

• References to theorists in media who have examined target audiences and the importance of the audience's response. 
• Consider: Albert Bandura's thoughts on media effects; Stuart Hall's reception theory; George Gerber's cultivation theory, Jordan Cruikshank's uses and gratification theory and more.
• You must mention theorists to show a full understanding of audiences decoding of messages and how it may impact a film's reception and also how audience target research is crucial to the success of a media product.

STEP 1- MAKING PREDICTIONS ABOUT YOUR AUDIENCE

This stage of the research is all about making predictions about your audience BEFORE you carry out any actual research. You should use your findings from your research into real media texts to help you answer these questions.

1. Which of the four quadrant(s) would your film appeal to?

Audience research companies' main method for breaking down audiences is as follows:

• Older males (>25) 
• Older females (>25) 
• Younger males (<25) 
• Younger females (<25)

Some products (James Bond, Harry Potter, some Pixar films) attempt to be 4 quadrant products- products that appeal to all 4 of these different groups. Most other products will attempt to specifically target 1 or 2 of these quadrants.

• Your starting point should be to identify which of the quadrants your product would appeal to and why, exploring things such as your genre and theme.

• Other things you may wish to consider is whether your product would appeal to a large, mainstream audience or more of a specialised, niche audience.

• While the four-quadrants are a good reference point, to gain full marks you should explore areas beyond these as they are not completely comprehensive enough to assess if your audience will engage with your media product.

2. Are there any other audience groups that your film may appeal to?

While it is good to identify your main target audience in terms of age and gender, your film may also have a more specific appeal. For example, Tyler Perry's Madea film franchise is not particularly well known here, but in America the films make tens of millions of dollars, drawing out a huge crowd of African-American audience members but very few white Americans. You could research similar products within your genre and you could also consider foreign language products within your genre.

3. What other 'niche' factors could be considered about how you might appeal to an audience?

Consider factors such as location, content, models/actors, narrative, style etc.

4. What different 'tribes' of youth and psychographic profile may be especially interested in your product?

The website uktribes.com provides a fantastic service in exploring the different types of youth audiences. This can especially useful in terms of judging the kind of 'attitude' that your audience may have.

5. Would your product be limited to a UK audience or might it have a global appeal?

Even though it was Oscar nominated and starred Brad Pitt, 'Moneyball' was only released in select cinemas in the UK. The reason was fairly simple: it revolved around baseball.

The reverse is also true: while having some success in the UK, Anuvahood went straight to DVD in America. It was felt that an urban story quite specific to the UK that parodied other British 'urban themed' dramas that were released straight to DVD in America was never going to have a big appeal.

You need to think about your own production and realistically assess whether the content would be 'universal' or something specific to British audiences?

6. What limitations are there on your production?

It would be interesting to consider aspects like the fact that your product is British, that your product will have no stars and to explore how these kinds of factors are going to effect the difficulties in getting people to see it and how you are looking to 'combat' against this.

7. How will your product elicit an audience response?

To make your product effective, you must make your audience have a reaction or response to it. Within your own chosen genre, consider the conventions associated with it and also examine how these conventions may have been challenged but focus on the audience's perspective. 

STEP 2- CARRYING OUT YOUR TARGET AUDIENCE RESEARCH

You know what your chosen form and genre is, you know how real media texts target and engage audience, and you have some idea of who your target audience may be. You now need to carry out your own target audience research.

You should create a range of questions to ask potential target audiences. These questions should be focused on your chosen genre and brief to gauge accurately who your target audience will be. Consider aspects that are specific to your chosen brief (e.g. types of films/music etc).

You must collect data from a wide range of people (more than 20) to ensure your data is accurate.

You could do this via:

• https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk

• Video interviews

• Social Media polls.

• Focus Groups

STEP 3- ANALYSING YOUR FINDINGS

Once you have collected your Target Audience responses you can analyse the data you have collected and begin making conclusions about your potential audience and HOW you will attract them.

You should relate your findings back to the questions you initially answered in STEP 1 and consider whether your initial predictions were correct.

Use you knowledge of how similar real media products targeted and engaged their audiences and how you might emulate this.

You should present your findings in graphs.