Hook, line & sinker: What keeps us reading a magazine?
When reading through a magazine, it’s easy to forget just how much time and effort goes into making each and every page. The magazine has to be able to not just draw the readers in, but leave them gripped, wanting more upon reading through each page. In order to achieve this, the designer, sub and editor will work in unison to create what they believe to be a masterpiece, which will not just get people reading, but also keep them hooked.
I’ll begin by looking at a feature article from FourFourTwo, a monthly football magazine which prides itself on being the highest selling monthly football magazine in Britain. The magazine itself fights off competition from the likes of Match of the Day, Shoot and WorldSoccer by constantly improving the content within.
The Haymarket published magazine has recently celebrated its 200th edition, with the latest Audit Bureau of Circulation (ABC) figures showing a strong second half of 2011 for the mag to celebrate this monumental achievement. With sales up 19.9% period-on-period, and the European Championships kicking off in just a few months, it looks set to be another strong year for FourFourTwo.
The feature I’m going to focus on appears in the magazines December 2011 issue, entitled “Why Spain will do a Scotland” (Talbot, 2011, pp.74-79) referring to the demise of the Spanish La Liga which is shaping up to reflect the Scottish Premier League. The feature is six pages long, though one of these pages is taken up by an advertisement.
FourFourTwo focuses on combining both design and journalism; this is reflected in every feature throughout the 136 pages of the magazine, not only are the features wonderful to read, but the design is also first class. It is also very clear to see that much time and effort has gone into this particular piece, with it being one of the main selling points of this edition – This can be seen on the front cover where the magazine often heavily advertises features in order to sell.
The first double-page spread (DPS) – which contains a picture Lionel Messi stretching across both pages holding onto a goal net – includes the title of the feature, as well as a sub-title and standfirst. Combined, we get an insight into what exactly this feature is going to be about, setting the tone right from the start. Also on this initial DPS we have three texts boxes which take us straight into the story regarding the Spanish La Liga - The main focus of this particular feature. One thing that strikes me when looking at the right hand side of these pages is the gap left between the first and second text boxes, which is something FourFourTwo often chose to do, usually to leave room for a caption (as seen on the following pages). Although when a caption is not needed, as in this instance, it can make the page look a little unbalanced, but of course they must also be consistent, taking the house style into consideration.
Interestingly, the sub-title asks a serious of rhetorical questions, “The best league in the world? Or a dull two-horse race hurtling towards oblivion?” Again, this is something not only apparent in this particular magazine, but also in many other publications, usually to set up the article to answer these initial questions. It works as a hook to get the readers interested, they now want to discover the answers, and the only way they are going to do that is by reading through the article.
The third page of the feature article – which stands alone with the page opposite containing a full page advert - emphasises just how much variation each page can have. The bottom third is taken up by a question, “European Super League – Will it happen?” This is a question which is touched on in the main body of the text, but by including this additional piece at the bottom of the page, it helps to educate the readers a little more on the topic, also serving to break up what is a long article, allowing for elaboration.
Another method used by FourFourTwo to break up long bits of text and keep the reader interested, is the inclusion of crossheads, which can be seen for the first time on this third page, continuing throughout with lines such as “Atletico and Valencia have sold themselves.” By using these quotes, it not only breaks the text up, but it also helps with structuring the article. As well as this, the quotes - which use an ‘FS ME’ font, standing out against the white background making it easy on the eye - can often be the first thing readers look at, if this quote is striking, it may be enough to entice them into reading.
This works in the same way as a pull quote, which again is something that readers will often be drawn to when glancing through an article. This is what draws them in, and therefore the quote must be special. In this instance, one of the two pull quotes used is “This league is prostituted, rubbish – the biggest pile of crap in Europe”, a quote which certainly made me want to read the article just to see in which context this had been said, and by whom.
Of course, whenever pictures appear, a caption must also be included to tell us about what we can see. Captions anchor the pictures to the text, typically written in the present tense, but not merely used to describe the picture. It does however help to elaborate on what we can see, such as “Ronaldo celebrates finishing 15th in the table.” Like pictures and pull quotes, captions can often be the first thing that readers will look at, therefore many magazines, such as FourFourTwo, will often ask a question within captions “Does Cesc fear the La Liga reaper?” This is another technique used to grip readers, making them want to read on to find out more.
The final two pages of this feature contains a bar running along the bottom which includes a range of statistics regarding La Liga. Statistics often stay in the readers minds, so by including these, they will remember the feature even when they’ve moved onto the next item. By looking at the eye-catching stats at the bottom of this page, it can draw readers in, encouraging them to read the article or even help to hold their interest after already reading through a few pages of the feature.
The second feature I am going to look at has been taken from the latest edition of OK! magazine, which has seen a large circulation dip over the second half of 2011, the latest ABC figures reveal. In fact, the magazine which prides itself on being the “First for celebrity news”, has seen a decline in sales of 17.9%, this means a year-on-year decline of 13.9%, only beaten by Gardener’s World for having the largest percentage drop. This is down to a number of factors such as job cuts in the industry, a decline in advertising and the increase of the internet.
With it being a consumer magazine, the Northern and Shell publication relies on advertising throughout, as well as the cover price to bring in funds. Although in 2009, in an attempt to bring in additional revenue, the magazine launched its own TV show. The Recommended Retail Price (RRP) of £1.99 is, in comparison to other weekly celebrity magazines, slightly above the aerage asking price. This could be down to the fact that over the 19 years since it was launched, it has built up a firm frequency of readers, matching interest in order to build up a community, meaning committed readers will continue to pay the asking price.
The feature I am focusing on, entitled “Starting a new royal family” (Moody, 2012, pp. 13-23) appears towards the front of the 130 page magazine, with it taking up six pages, though two of these contain full page advertisements. Unlike FourFour Two (FFT), OK! has moved away from being a monthly publication and is now published weekly, leading to big differences in compiling the flatplan, with the front of the magazine tending to be news heavy. This particular feature, which is about Prince William and Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, is found after the initial news section. This is down to the fact that this is not just the cover story, but the start of what is a special issue looking at the royal couple.
The first striking similarity with the FFT feature is the use of a full size picture on the left-hand-side of the first DPS. Pictures are one of the key elements of any magazine, Frost (2003 p.115) states, “It’s pictures that draw readers into a page and help guide him or her through the page and the material on it. This means that considerable care must be taken in the choice of pictures and how they are used.” This is especially true of celebrity/ fashion based magazines, where due to the competition, the public will often glance through the magazine quickly before making a decision on which they would like to purchase. The thirteen eye-catching pictures included in this feature range from modern day photographs of William and Catherine, right through to photographs of the Queen taken in 1948. In my opinion, unlike the photographs included in FourFourTwo, which in a way helped to structure the article, the range of pictures in OK! actually helps to link the text, moving the feature from the present day, through to the past, also helping with visualisation.
The captions included in this feature are also used in a different way to FFT in a sense that we have one caption per page which helps the reader make sense of the pictures included. The first caption we come across on the left-hand-side of the first DPS reads: “William and Catherine (facing page centre) married last April (facing page top). However, it’s thought the pair (above, facing page far right) have been too busy with royal engagements to start a family.” This caption is very interesting; in a way it sums up the feature for us in just a sentence, perfect for those glancing through the magazine wanting to know what the feature is about. The disadvantage of congesting all the captions into one long sentence is that it can get a bit confusing for the reader, especially when there are five pictures to elaborate on.
The use of an exclamation mark in the feature title, “Starting a new royal family!” adds real emphasis – It is a technique used throughout the feature, such as in the opening paragraph and also in the standfirst, which sets up the article “William and Catherine have a bit of catching up to do!” By over using exclamation marks, the tone of the piece can become rather exclamatory. This aside, the standfirst for me doesn’t really tell us much about what we can expect to read, though the opening paragraphs do rectify this.
The designer would have worked closely with both the sub and the editor on evidence of what I have seen, especially due to the fact that this is the cover story of this particular issue. As a team they would make sure there is a strict colour scheme which runs throughout – In this case it is violet and black, the colours often used in this magazine for features, much like with the colours black and red in FFT. It is this house style that can help with the frequency, building up those who are committed to buying and giving them a sense of familiarity.
Following on from this point, visual aspects of any magazine are very important, with decisions required throughout. This is something that Morrish (2003 p.146) states in his book, saying, “Magazine design requires the intelligent use of photographs, illustrations and colour” and that “sometimes there is a clash of cultures between journalists and magazine staff with design background”, this just emphasising the importance of working as a team to compile a magazine. This particular feature article contains many different aspects and each facet would have been closely worked on as a team, with the end product being a combination of words and visuals to produce an article that grips the reader and encourages them to read on.
The one major difference on a textual level regards discourse, or more specifically, the way in which OK! talks directly to their readers with words such as “we” and “us”. As previously mentioned, FFT ask questions within the feature to engage the readers, but unlike OK! they don’t actually talk directly to the audience in the feature where as OK! use lines such as “And, while they haven’t yet revealed the baby news we’re all desperate for...” The use of the word “we’re” again links into the family feel the magazine is attempting to build up, this is one big community.
From looking at these two contrasting magazines which, understandably, provided me with examples of two completely different features, it is clear to see that there are many differences and similarities between the two. The structure is largely different in both, with fonts, title styles, pictures and caption placements all varying greatly. On a textual level, the phonology and semantics used are largely the same, with both expecting the readers to have a basic understanding of what they are reading.
There is of course no right or wrong way to set out a feature, especially when they vary so greatly. What is clear however, is that by using a range of techniques to not only draw in readers but leave wanting more, both these magazines have managed to build up a strong readership over the years which they can be proud of.
I’ll begin by looking at a feature article from FourFourTwo, a monthly football magazine which prides itself on being the highest selling monthly football magazine in Britain. The magazine itself fights off competition from the likes of Match of the Day, Shoot and WorldSoccer by constantly improving the content within.
The Haymarket published magazine has recently celebrated its 200th edition, with the latest Audit Bureau of Circulation (ABC) figures showing a strong second half of 2011 for the mag to celebrate this monumental achievement. With sales up 19.9% period-on-period, and the European Championships kicking off in just a few months, it looks set to be another strong year for FourFourTwo.
The feature I’m going to focus on appears in the magazines December 2011 issue, entitled “Why Spain will do a Scotland” (Talbot, 2011, pp.74-79) referring to the demise of the Spanish La Liga which is shaping up to reflect the Scottish Premier League. The feature is six pages long, though one of these pages is taken up by an advertisement.
FourFourTwo focuses on combining both design and journalism; this is reflected in every feature throughout the 136 pages of the magazine, not only are the features wonderful to read, but the design is also first class. It is also very clear to see that much time and effort has gone into this particular piece, with it being one of the main selling points of this edition – This can be seen on the front cover where the magazine often heavily advertises features in order to sell.
The first double-page spread (DPS) – which contains a picture Lionel Messi stretching across both pages holding onto a goal net – includes the title of the feature, as well as a sub-title and standfirst. Combined, we get an insight into what exactly this feature is going to be about, setting the tone right from the start. Also on this initial DPS we have three texts boxes which take us straight into the story regarding the Spanish La Liga - The main focus of this particular feature. One thing that strikes me when looking at the right hand side of these pages is the gap left between the first and second text boxes, which is something FourFourTwo often chose to do, usually to leave room for a caption (as seen on the following pages). Although when a caption is not needed, as in this instance, it can make the page look a little unbalanced, but of course they must also be consistent, taking the house style into consideration.
Interestingly, the sub-title asks a serious of rhetorical questions, “The best league in the world? Or a dull two-horse race hurtling towards oblivion?” Again, this is something not only apparent in this particular magazine, but also in many other publications, usually to set up the article to answer these initial questions. It works as a hook to get the readers interested, they now want to discover the answers, and the only way they are going to do that is by reading through the article.
The third page of the feature article – which stands alone with the page opposite containing a full page advert - emphasises just how much variation each page can have. The bottom third is taken up by a question, “European Super League – Will it happen?” This is a question which is touched on in the main body of the text, but by including this additional piece at the bottom of the page, it helps to educate the readers a little more on the topic, also serving to break up what is a long article, allowing for elaboration.
Another method used by FourFourTwo to break up long bits of text and keep the reader interested, is the inclusion of crossheads, which can be seen for the first time on this third page, continuing throughout with lines such as “Atletico and Valencia have sold themselves.” By using these quotes, it not only breaks the text up, but it also helps with structuring the article. As well as this, the quotes - which use an ‘FS ME’ font, standing out against the white background making it easy on the eye - can often be the first thing readers look at, if this quote is striking, it may be enough to entice them into reading.
This works in the same way as a pull quote, which again is something that readers will often be drawn to when glancing through an article. This is what draws them in, and therefore the quote must be special. In this instance, one of the two pull quotes used is “This league is prostituted, rubbish – the biggest pile of crap in Europe”, a quote which certainly made me want to read the article just to see in which context this had been said, and by whom.
Of course, whenever pictures appear, a caption must also be included to tell us about what we can see. Captions anchor the pictures to the text, typically written in the present tense, but not merely used to describe the picture. It does however help to elaborate on what we can see, such as “Ronaldo celebrates finishing 15th in the table.” Like pictures and pull quotes, captions can often be the first thing that readers will look at, therefore many magazines, such as FourFourTwo, will often ask a question within captions “Does Cesc fear the La Liga reaper?” This is another technique used to grip readers, making them want to read on to find out more.
The final two pages of this feature contains a bar running along the bottom which includes a range of statistics regarding La Liga. Statistics often stay in the readers minds, so by including these, they will remember the feature even when they’ve moved onto the next item. By looking at the eye-catching stats at the bottom of this page, it can draw readers in, encouraging them to read the article or even help to hold their interest after already reading through a few pages of the feature.
The second feature I am going to look at has been taken from the latest edition of OK! magazine, which has seen a large circulation dip over the second half of 2011, the latest ABC figures reveal. In fact, the magazine which prides itself on being the “First for celebrity news”, has seen a decline in sales of 17.9%, this means a year-on-year decline of 13.9%, only beaten by Gardener’s World for having the largest percentage drop. This is down to a number of factors such as job cuts in the industry, a decline in advertising and the increase of the internet.
With it being a consumer magazine, the Northern and Shell publication relies on advertising throughout, as well as the cover price to bring in funds. Although in 2009, in an attempt to bring in additional revenue, the magazine launched its own TV show. The Recommended Retail Price (RRP) of £1.99 is, in comparison to other weekly celebrity magazines, slightly above the aerage asking price. This could be down to the fact that over the 19 years since it was launched, it has built up a firm frequency of readers, matching interest in order to build up a community, meaning committed readers will continue to pay the asking price.
The feature I am focusing on, entitled “Starting a new royal family” (Moody, 2012, pp. 13-23) appears towards the front of the 130 page magazine, with it taking up six pages, though two of these contain full page advertisements. Unlike FourFour Two (FFT), OK! has moved away from being a monthly publication and is now published weekly, leading to big differences in compiling the flatplan, with the front of the magazine tending to be news heavy. This particular feature, which is about Prince William and Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, is found after the initial news section. This is down to the fact that this is not just the cover story, but the start of what is a special issue looking at the royal couple.
The first striking similarity with the FFT feature is the use of a full size picture on the left-hand-side of the first DPS. Pictures are one of the key elements of any magazine, Frost (2003 p.115) states, “It’s pictures that draw readers into a page and help guide him or her through the page and the material on it. This means that considerable care must be taken in the choice of pictures and how they are used.” This is especially true of celebrity/ fashion based magazines, where due to the competition, the public will often glance through the magazine quickly before making a decision on which they would like to purchase. The thirteen eye-catching pictures included in this feature range from modern day photographs of William and Catherine, right through to photographs of the Queen taken in 1948. In my opinion, unlike the photographs included in FourFourTwo, which in a way helped to structure the article, the range of pictures in OK! actually helps to link the text, moving the feature from the present day, through to the past, also helping with visualisation.
The captions included in this feature are also used in a different way to FFT in a sense that we have one caption per page which helps the reader make sense of the pictures included. The first caption we come across on the left-hand-side of the first DPS reads: “William and Catherine (facing page centre) married last April (facing page top). However, it’s thought the pair (above, facing page far right) have been too busy with royal engagements to start a family.” This caption is very interesting; in a way it sums up the feature for us in just a sentence, perfect for those glancing through the magazine wanting to know what the feature is about. The disadvantage of congesting all the captions into one long sentence is that it can get a bit confusing for the reader, especially when there are five pictures to elaborate on.
The use of an exclamation mark in the feature title, “Starting a new royal family!” adds real emphasis – It is a technique used throughout the feature, such as in the opening paragraph and also in the standfirst, which sets up the article “William and Catherine have a bit of catching up to do!” By over using exclamation marks, the tone of the piece can become rather exclamatory. This aside, the standfirst for me doesn’t really tell us much about what we can expect to read, though the opening paragraphs do rectify this.
The designer would have worked closely with both the sub and the editor on evidence of what I have seen, especially due to the fact that this is the cover story of this particular issue. As a team they would make sure there is a strict colour scheme which runs throughout – In this case it is violet and black, the colours often used in this magazine for features, much like with the colours black and red in FFT. It is this house style that can help with the frequency, building up those who are committed to buying and giving them a sense of familiarity.
Following on from this point, visual aspects of any magazine are very important, with decisions required throughout. This is something that Morrish (2003 p.146) states in his book, saying, “Magazine design requires the intelligent use of photographs, illustrations and colour” and that “sometimes there is a clash of cultures between journalists and magazine staff with design background”, this just emphasising the importance of working as a team to compile a magazine. This particular feature article contains many different aspects and each facet would have been closely worked on as a team, with the end product being a combination of words and visuals to produce an article that grips the reader and encourages them to read on.
The one major difference on a textual level regards discourse, or more specifically, the way in which OK! talks directly to their readers with words such as “we” and “us”. As previously mentioned, FFT ask questions within the feature to engage the readers, but unlike OK! they don’t actually talk directly to the audience in the feature where as OK! use lines such as “And, while they haven’t yet revealed the baby news we’re all desperate for...” The use of the word “we’re” again links into the family feel the magazine is attempting to build up, this is one big community.
From looking at these two contrasting magazines which, understandably, provided me with examples of two completely different features, it is clear to see that there are many differences and similarities between the two. The structure is largely different in both, with fonts, title styles, pictures and caption placements all varying greatly. On a textual level, the phonology and semantics used are largely the same, with both expecting the readers to have a basic understanding of what they are reading.
There is of course no right or wrong way to set out a feature, especially when they vary so greatly. What is clear however, is that by using a range of techniques to not only draw in readers but leave wanting more, both these magazines have managed to build up a strong readership over the years which they can be proud of.