Previous magazine research into how magazines use front covers and contents pages to attract readers

I am going to find out how magazines use front covers and contents pages to attract readers. The magazine I will be looking at is ‘Classic Rock’. Classic Rock is a magazine devoted to the biggest rock bands, current music issues and gig listings. This particular copy of Classic Rock focuses on the worst band break ups and the split of Velvet Revolver, it also documents on the different viewpoints of the members from Velvet Revolver. The front cover depicts the lead guitarist and bassist from the band Velvet Revolver. The two members are very large on the page taking up a lot of the page and they are even blocking out most of the title as well, showing attitude and power. At the bottom is the singer from Velvet Revolver in a small box, this shows the singer as a very small minded and petty person and the distance between the two images represents the two different viewpoints in the Velvet Revolver split. People will be interested in the break up of an iconic band and using the images in this way is sure to attract the attention of the reader. The background of the front cover is black; this could connote danger and darkness and has a strong link to the type of music within the magazine.
At the top of the page there is the heading ‘Classic Rock’. This magazine heading is in a fixed location on the page, it is also large to attract the reader and furthermore the title is white on a black background, this is a technique of using a high contrast between the page and an object and the device is used successfully here in standing out to potential buyers. A free C.D. is also given away with the copy and it’s advertised in clear colourful and vibrant colours as to jump out at anyone browsing through magazines and it works, and once it has caught the attention of the consumer they are bound to buy it because of the amazing offer. Down the side of the page there are numerous bands listed to show who features in the magazine, this is key in any magazine as there needs to be some variation within the issue. The prices of magazines are essential to sales; this particular magazine is extremely dear at an extravagant price of £4.98, but the editors have resized the pricing so it’s very difficult to see, this means the price won’t put the buyer off from purchasing it.

When opening the contents page the reader’s attention is automatically drawn to the energetic colours and the large image. On the contents page colour and images are used to create meaning, there is an image of a roman man with a red cloak, helmet and spear, the red cloak and soldier connote aggression and violence and it relates very much to the style of music that is within the magazine as the music is heavy and violent itself this will appeal to the target audience. Furthermore the contents page uses the same devices as the cover; there is high contrast between the writing and background making it clear for the reader to see the writing. The use of images is also very similar, as they have positioned the different people from Velvet Revolver in separate parts of the page, again to show how there is tension between the two and using the distance on the page helps represent the distance of the people in real life. Finally allowing the reader to find out about other smaller articles and parts is useful because when opening to the contents page the reader may not want to read about the main issues and may want to cut straight to the other bits so to aid the reader there are many sub articles listed, for example ‘The Dirt’ and ‘Buyers Guide’, which show clearly what the magazine contains. The consumer can then make a snap decision and purchase the magazine based on the contents, that’s why the contents are so important in attracting the reader.