4. Audience Feedback

Here is my final post, the completion of my A2 Media Coursework. And I will finish with a bit of Audience Feedback. In it I have interviewed some of my peers asking what they thought was successful, and what they thought should be improved. A range of different opinions were uncovered. As well as this I have done a class poll, coming up with these points.
Positive: +
The editing was to the beat.
The genre of the video is in keeping with that of the song.
It was creative.
The location was good, as it was not shot in school, which can be tempting.
Negative: -
The lip syncs are out of time.

My video has been posted on Youtube since the 12 of January 2012, and currently I have had 681 views.
From the statistics provided by Youtube, I am able to see that my video is most popular in these countries. the darker the green, the more popular it is. Therefore I can tell it is most popular in America, Canada and the UK.



It also states that:
Audiences

This video is most popular with:

Gender	Age
Female	18-24
Female	13-17
	35-44 Female. This shows that the research for my target audience was very successful and accurate. Total views: 681 Ratings: 4 Comments: 0 Favourites: 3 Likes: 4 Dislikes: 0

Significant discovery events, this is intersting as it corresponds to my media exam research, postmodernism.

Date	Event	Views
A	22/02/2012	First referral from YouTube – mh_lolz	5
B	22/02/2012	First referral from YouTube search – cocorosie lemonade	2
C	18/02/2012	First referral from YouTube search – lemonade cocorosie	7
D	20/01/2012	First referral from – twitter.com	3
E	19/01/2012	First referral from YouTube search – cocorosie 2012	3
F	18/01/2012	First referral from YouTube search – cocorosie	2
G	14/01/2012	First view from a mobile device	563
H	14/01/2012	First embedded on – alevelbrownpaper.blogspot.com	40
I	14/01/2012	First embedded on – facebook.com	14
J	14/01/2012	First referral from – facebook.com	13

From my audience feedback I have been able to make significant changes to my video, taking on both the positive and negative feedback, it is also interesting to see exactly where my video has been popular, which gender and on which devices it has been viewed. I can take this on board now and use the information to make my future videos more successful.

3. Wix- Technologies

http://www.wix.com/stam4119/evaluation#!contact

Please click on the link above to be taken to my wix evaluation website. I created this website in order to explain the different media technologies that I used in the planning, making and evaluation process of my film.

2. Evaluation

1.How effective is the combination of my main product and ancillary texts?

I have recorded a director's commentary with the appropriate clips and stills in order to show the links between my products. The vlog describes things such as the fonts and images I chose in the making of the ancillary task, and how they fit with the original video.

1. Evaluation

   In what ways does my media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?

I have looked at this question and answered it using an art of the title style nine shot grid, on a prezi in order to annotate each screen shot with a detailed analysis. I have incorporated real music videos in order to illustrate my points.

Art of the Title on Prezi

Creating my Poster

First Design

Second Design

What I originally thought was going to be a simple process, laying out the poster has proved to be more difficult. The simplest things have to be taken into account, colour, font, layout must be carefully picked in order make the most eye catching and appealing poster possible. This was my original idea, however it looks ultimately too scattered and amateur. My next design is more effective as the album cover is placed large on the poster, this will help potential customers to recognise the album on the shelves.


However it was still not quite right, so I have changed the blue colour to a grey, that has been used also in the album cover. This helps to draw all aspects of the poster together and helps to draw out features in the image and also in the detail writing below. I have written the 'COCOROSIE' in the same font as used on the image, with a highlight to make it stand out. The other font is the same as I used on the back of the album, for synergy.

Chosen Design

Template of poster

Here is a simple mock up of my design, not using same fonts.

I have been inspired by 'MGMT's' poster, 'Oracular Spectacular' to create my own. I loved its elegant simplicity, featuring only the most important desired information, the release date, name of album and one featured popular song. I will also include when it is available to download.

I will use fonts that I have already used on my digipak, in order to create synergy in all Cocorosie products. Also I will be using the same image I used on the front of my digipak as the main image on my poster, in order for people to easily recognise it in the shops.

It is also a very bright colour, which is a bonus as it will attract attention, and stand out against  other posters.

How important is the album release date poster?

Answer: Very!

Please watch my animoto, which tells you why the initial album release poster is so important!

Advert Mock-up

My own remake of the original poster

Print screen of editing process

 Here I have attempted to recreate the poster that was used to promote MGMT's album, 'Oracular Spectacular', using photoshop. Despite there being a slight mismatch in the fonts I have chosen, as photoshop does not provide the exact font used in the original, it is quite a close match. It was a good process to have gone through as it has taught me the basic ingredients needed for a promoting poster, including the name of the album, the same picture that will be present on the album cover, in order to create synergy between all of the band's merchandise. This creates a much needed sense of familiarity, and will make the album recognizable in shops. On top of this it is vital to include the release date, and in this case, when it is available to download online. In order to provoke consumers interest, Columbia Records have said the name of a popular song that is featured on the album.

Original Poster

Conventions in CD advertising

I created this prezi in order to research the conventions of CD advertising. I have looked at music advertising from the genre my music video is, Freak Folk and created a list of conventions that I need to get it right. I have also chosen one album cover, (MGMT) and have done a detailed analysis of it. 

Conventions in CD advertising on Prezi

Final Full Layout

This is my final design for the digipak. In order to combine the two separate designs, (yellow, and the colourful glasses) I have literally combined the two designs on one of the sides, by placing the silhouette images onto a background of colourful glass. I feel this works as it welds the two looks together and marries them as one. The digipak is really very simple, rather than attracting customers with extensive writing, I have used vibrant colours to inject the ambiance of Cocorosies kooky and captivating music. The bright colours will create a familiarity for the customers, this will make the digipak stand out on the shelves so it will be easily found.

Renewed cover

In order to make the digipak more recognizable upon the shelves in the music store, I have increased the luminocity. This vibrant yellow wash increases the familiarity of the cover and also makes it stand out on the shelves.

Screen shots of digipak creation

So far, this is my primary choice for the cover of my digipak.

How have the sales of CD's changed in the last 5 years?

When the first CD was introduced the professionals predicted it to last only 20-25 years, well it is now 25 years later, and I still buy CD's, but will they survive? The last 5 years have been a difficult few years with CD sales dropping quickly and persistently due to an increase in illegal downloads. 2006-2005 saw a drop of more than 25% over 2 years, and 52% in the last 9 years. However Time magazine said not to fear, as 2011 saw a slight increase in sales, over previous years, but don't get too happy as it was only by a slight 1.33%. This slight ncrease is due to Adele's albums incredible sales.

Album Chartweek 4 / 2012 - January 28the top-selling albums according to global
sales figures and national album charts
issue date: January 19, 2012

	1 / 1week 51	Adele - 21 8 XL Recordings - 260.000 - 30 weeks at No.1
	3 / 3week 13	Coldplay - Mylo Xyloto Parlophone / Capitol - 85.000
	2 / 2week 3	Exile - Exile JapanRhythm Zone / Avex Trax Japan - 83.000
	4 / 4week 6	Amy Winehouse - Lioness: Hidden TreasuresIsland - 83.000
	5 / 6week 8	Rihanna - Talk That TalkDef Jam - 70.000
	6 / 12week 6	Black Keys - El Camino Nonesuch - 65.000
	- / -week 7	Snow Patrol - Fallen EmpiresFiction - 56.000 - Largest Sales Increase
	7 / 8week 59	Bruno Mars - Doo-Wops & Hooligans 2 Elektra / Warner Bros. - 53.000
		David Crowder Band - Give Us Rest Or: A Requiem Mass In CSix Steps Records - 52.000 - Hot Shot Debut
	15 / 14week 20	David Guetta - Nothing But The BeatEMI Music - 48.000

 So CDs are now being dwarfed by illegal monsters, how are the artists making their music? There has been an incline in festivals and concerts, also online downloading sites such as itunes.

Here is an exert from The Times Lab Blog:
The Times Labs blog takes a hard look at the data on music sales and live performances and concludes that while the labels' profits might be falling, artists are taking in more money, thanks to the booming growth of live shows. The Times says that they'd like more granular data about who's making all the money from concerts -- is there a category of act that's a real winner here? -- but the trend seems clear. The 21st century music scene is the best world ever for some musicians and music-industry businesses, and the worst for others.

Recreation of existing digipak

My Recreation- Front

Recreation, Middle

This is my recreation of the digipak 'Deleted Scenes From The Cutting Room Floor' by Caro Emerald. Using Photoshop I have matched as close as I can the colour, fonts used and images as the actual digipak. This has really increased my knowledge of photoshop as it has pushed me to try to get things perfect. The final outcome isn't exactly the same as the original, but I feel that it passes!

Recreation- Reverse

Actual Cover

Actual Reverse

Focusing on Star Image

I have been focusing on star image on the album covers, and have been interested to see a prominent links between all photos portraying the artist on the digipak cover. Here I have created a mind map with the rules I discovered must be applied when photographing the 'star' for my digipak.

The difference between a digipak and a CD case

^This is a digipak^

And this is a CD case.

There are a number of differences between the two:
A digipak refers to a certain kind of CD case, the one that I will be designing. It essentially consists of a plastic disc tray that has been glued inside a folded cardboard case. Digipak once referred specifically to the patented digipak packaging but has now become a genericized trademark that is basically used for any cardboard centred CD packaging.
They are made of paper, and despite this they were once considered the environmentally friendly version of CD cases, however they have remained less common due to the fact that they can survive less wear and tear than jewel cases, particularly when they are in the store, ojn top of this they have higher manufacturing costs.

A jewel case/ CD case consists of 3 peices of plastic put together to create a protective case for the disc. The plastic disc pinner is generally the same as in the digipack, yet information about the CD including the case is pinned in to the front of the case, and printed onto separate paper. The back artwork can be held securely in place between the CD and back plastic.

WHY I FEEL THERE IS MORE VALUE ON A DIGIPAK

The digipak has 6 sides, therefore there will be more opportunity for visible artwork, information or promotions. This way the artist has a better chance at attracting potential buyers, such as fans, as they will see the digipak as more than just a disc of music, it is a collectable item as well. In comparison to the jewel case, all of this additional information is easier accessible, the sleeve in a jewel case is easily ripped when removed or put back into the plastic grips, making it unappealing to remove. On a digipak all information is very easily accessible.

WHAT I AM GOING TO NEED TO INCLUDE IN MY DIGIPAK

• The artist name
• The album title
• The names of the songs on the album
• The copyright label
• The record company
• Album credits
• Lyrics?
• Album artwork
• Barcode
• Disc holder



Bat for Lashes Digipak, front and back

Experimentation with Fonts

I have been looking on Word, to see if I can find the perfect font for my digipak, and also any promoting posters for my album. The fonts have to be consistent throughout the advertising process, in order to create regularity and familiarity. So far my favourites (the ones that suit the tone and ambiance of my music video best) are the Rosewood STD for my main and for the smaller lettering the Perpetua Titling. I will now try this out with my images, to see if it goes well together.

1. Lana Del Rey

I wanted to investigate how different musicians promote themselves when releasing an album. I chose to look at Lana Del Rey, as she will be releasing her first album in two weeks from now. This way her methods are up to date and I am able to follow relevant news stories about the artist. I have looked at the text and image she has used, which is important for the branding, and have analysed the marketing campaign for her release. I have focused on her choice of colour, font and image, looking at what they connote. I have also followed closely her lead up to the release.

Please view my Prezi to find out more!

Lana Del Rey on Prezi

Digipak

Now my music video is complete I am going to focus on creating a digipak that complements the style of my music video. I have been playing around with some still frames taken directly from my movie, and edited using photoshop.

Possible digipak cover

However, although creating this has been a great practise for my photoshop skills, this is not the cover I will use. I want to create an entirely new image, using my main characters wearing their masks.

Approximate layout of the cover

This will follow this sort of layout, with the character sitting cross legged in front of a plain white/black background. There are 6 sides to the digipak, so therefore I will take the same picture, using all four characters, each different character will be on a different side. The remaining two side will be for the song names and also the CD. I will use still images taken directly from the movie for these sides.

Layout of my digipak

Final Cut

Here is the final cut of my music video, please leave any suggestions for improvement you may have.

Shooting and Editing process

This short voice recording records the way my video has changed since my original plan. I also explain why changes were needed to be made, and whether they have been successful or not.