Evaluation Question 3

How effective is the combination of your product and ancillary texts?

The main purpose of a music video, magazine advert and digi-pak is to advertise both the artist and the song(s).  They need to be appealing and eye catching so that the audience both stops and looks at the magazine or digi-pak which may result in them purchasing the CD or to spend time watching the music video. A music video helps the audience to remember the song, to invoke a reaction or emotion and to help sell that particular song. The music video also provides entertainment and can show the artists other talents at the same time. For example with Michael Jackson’s ‘Thriller’ music video he included a well choreographed dance routine. A music video may also appeal to some people that aren’t to keen on the song but enjoy watching the video so they will purchase it for this reason. A music video helps give the intended audience a better understanding of the storyline and includes visuals which may make the plot of the song more interesting. A music video also helps the artist or band stay in the public eye for a while after the song has been released. This will benefit the record company and the artist as this will keep an income coming in. A magazine advert is important as it attracts the reader’s attention. Having an advert in a magazine can also appeal to a bigger audience and a variety of people. Even though the advert will probably be placed in a magazine that has a similar genre some audiences who may not usually like that certain artist or type of music may be influenced to give it a try. A magazine advert needs to be bold, eye catching yet simple as most people just flick past adverts so it needs to be something special to make the reader stop and take notice of it. Below is a video I found using the internet about music magazine adverts.

How to Promote Your Music in Magazines —powered by eHow.com

A digi-pak consists of an album cover, a back cover and inserts. A digi-pak is a way of getting a message across from the artist or band to their fans and the people that are purchasing their album. It is a direct link and an opportunity for the artist to thank their close friends, family and fans. Most albums include a thank you list that the artist composes themselves. Many fans appreciate this personal touch as they have spent the money in getting the album. Without the audience the artists wouldn’t exist. Many artists include the lyrics to the tracks in this booklet type combination as well. This gives the listeners an opportunity to learn the songs quicker. The album cover needs to stand out as it will be placed with many other albums in a music shop. There shouldn’t be too much going on but should be kept simple and creative. The back cover normally has the track list and how long each track lasts. I believe that the combination of my music video and ancillary tasks is extremely effective. For my magazine advert I used an image from the music video itself. Straight away the audience will be able to recognise the image if they have seen the music video. I wanted the image to be one which would be familiar as they would associate the image with my music video and the actual song. I used this same image on the front cover of my digi-pak. The image was of the teenage couple in my video holding hands but facing away. I used this image because I wanted the couple to look like any other in love teenage couple, however because you can’t see their faces it creates mystery and we as the audience are not a hundred percent sure about what is really going on in the relationship and we can’t see the problems as we can’t see their facial expressions. I think my production and ancillary tasks tie in nicely with each other and create a lasting impression on the audience.