As I have chosen to work in the style of an already popular Artist, my target audience will be the same as the band's already. This, to me, appears to be a fairly broad range of audiences, ranging from Indie through the Alternative scene to the Popular music category. In order for me to get a public view and opinion on what the Target Audience for this band entails, I have devised a Questionnaire for friends, family and fellow students to fill out, allowing me to gather a vast group of opinions in which to work from and target successfully.
Here is my questionnaire I have devised to cover what I think are the vital elements within the music industry. I included questions relating to music purchasing, promotional videos, genres, and personal preferences to get a good insight into the field I am working within. Giving these questions to the public will allow me to gain a vast range of opinion and fact about how this modern age treats technology within a musical sense, for example, are more people illegally downloading material free from the internet rather than purchasing it in shops?
I distributed my questionnaire to 20 people with a range of age to try and get the most versatile and broad range of answers I could. Here are the results for the questions asked:
I distributed my questionnaire to 20 people with a range of age to try and get the most versatile and broad range of answers I could. Here are the results for the questions asked:
Age: under 16 (3) 16 to 22 (11) 22 to 35 (4) over 35 (2)
How often do you listen to music? everyday (19) every other day (1) rarely (0) never (0)
In what form do you purchase music? CD (5) iTunes (13) vinyl (0) I don’t (Limewire etc.) (17)
How often do you buy Cd’s? every week (0) every other week (1) every month (4) I don’t (15)
How much music do you download from the Internet? All of it (16) half of it (2) some of it (1) none (1)
What are your favourite genres of music? RnB (7) hip-hop (3) acoustic (3) dance (1) pop (6) indie (6) rock (3) metal (2) poppunk (2) other (1) (classical)
How do you listen to music? CD player (6) PC/laptop (17) Mp3 player (16) radio (12) other (0)
What is your preferred radio station? Viking.fm (4) Galaxy (11) Radio 1 (4) other (1) (radio 2)
How often do you attend live gigs? every week (1) every other week (4) every month (8) every few months (6) never (1)
If so, what types of artists do you watch the most? Just local bands (2) friends bands (3) signed artists (14)
How often do you attend music festivals? 3-5 times a year (3) 2-3 times a year (2) every year (7) every other year (6) never (2)
Which festivals do you/would attend given the chance? Leeds fest (13) Glastonbury (9) Reading (7) Creamfields (5) Party in the Park (6) V festival (7) T4 on the beach (8)
Do you watch music channels? Often (5) sometimes (6) rarely (8) never (1)
If so, what is your preferred channel? MTV (2) VH1 (0) Chart show (0) Kerrang (3) Scuzz (0) NME (1) I don’t have a favourite (14) other (0)
Do you think that music videos persuade you to buy the music? Yes definitely (8) sometimes perhaps (12) never (1)
I then created a few charts to get a good look at how the answers rounded up in a more visual source.
Results clearly show that the main source of gaining music is through file sharing through the internet. It's interesting how the age bracket that selected this option where the younger generation ( 16-22 ) as they are probably less aware at the fact that file sharing, without a licensing fee, is illegal. Therefore the older generation are less likely to take the risk of being potentially prosecuted for it. Vinyls have clearly become a rare purchase and are only open to an audience who are interesting in collecting, such as the male who selected this option, who collected Beatles merchandise through his interest in vintage. iTunes is still a popular choice probably due to the simpleness of purchasing its products. Instead of a journey having to be made to buy a CD, buyers can sit in the comfort of their own home, use a quick search engine on the application and purchase a track with a click. Songs are usually cheaper too as packaging doesn't have to be included in the price, just the mp3.
As you can see on this pie chart the range of genres that are favoured through this particular generation are RnB, Hip-Hop and Pop music. Perhaps this is due to the amount of commercial coverage these genres supply, or simply because this is the favourite music of this day and age. The age group which favoured RnB the most were the 16-22s with the older generations 22+showing a more varied choice including rock and acoustic. My one 67 year old participant chose the 'other' option, in the form of classical music, a stereotypical musical interest for that particular age. Due to the use of multiple choice however, it's clear that teenagers are not just listening to one particular type of music, they tend to listen to anything which they become accustomed to. With the internet and applications such as iTunes allowing all genres to be accessed and sampled whenever we wish, people are maintaining a wider range of interest through music.
As you can see on this pie chart the range of genres that are favoured through this particular generation are RnB, Hip-Hop and Pop music. Perhaps this is due to the amount of commercial coverage these genres supply, or simply because this is the favourite music of this day and age. The age group which favoured RnB the most were the 16-22s with the older generations 22+showing a more varied choice including rock and acoustic. My one 67 year old participant chose the 'other' option, in the form of classical music, a stereotypical musical interest for that particular age. Due to the use of multiple choice however, it's clear that teenagers are not just listening to one particular type of music, they tend to listen to anything which they become accustomed to. With the internet and applications such as iTunes allowing all genres to be accessed and sampled whenever we wish, people are maintaining a wider range of interest through music.
Just at first glance of this donut chart it's really visible that the majority of my participants don't purchase CD's and only about 5 in 20, about 1/4 of people buy their music in CD format. I didn't particularly find these results a shock as I myself don't buy CD's anymore. Although I like to own CD's and have the packaging and disk to show for my purchase, I find it much easier to either buy off iTunes or download through file sharing, and I think this is how everyone else within my age range feels too. With applications within the internet increasing in technology they are also increasing in popularity. The most worrying aspect is that sources such as limewire and Utorrent which allow users to potentially steal music from other peoples computers, means that artists are not seeing any money from people buying music, as no one is actually purchasing it. This results in bands not making any money and progressing, and therefore having to end their career.
