QUESTION 3: WHAT HAVE YOU

LEARNT FROM YOUR AUDIENCE

FEEDBACK?
COLLECTING RESEARCH
I conducted my market research by creating a questionnaire that included both quantitative
and qualitative research regarding my productions and my audience’s habits in relation to
music. I decided to ask about my audience’s music preferences and habits to see if they were
part of my target audience which would then enable me to decipher if my target audience
enjoyed my print productions or if they were better suited for another age range or gender. I
also asked questions regarding the effectivity of my productions and their weakness so I can
learn where I need to develop my skills for the future and what audiences respond well to.
There were certain questions that had boxes for the audience member to fill in that were left
blank, suggesting that either the question wasn’t clear enough for or that people prefer tick
boxes and multiple choice questions. This means that for several questions, I didn’t receive
feedback from everyone who filled out the questionnaire which in turn means that I was
unable to collect as much data as I wanted to. However, overall, conducting the questionnaire
has been very useful because it has highlighted both the strengths and weaknesses of my
project, therefore allowing me to see where I need to improve as well as what audiences
respond well to.
 60% of the people who answered my questionnaire fit into the age
parameters of my target audience, suggesting that the feedback I
AGE have received will be useful because its coming directly from the
people that my productions were aimed at. This will allow me to see
how effective my productions are and if they achieved their aims.
 My productions were primarily targeted at women which means that the
80% female response to my questionnaire will be helpful because, much
GENDER like with age, it will allow me to assess whether my target audience
reacted well to my productions and if I effectively customised it to them.
 The preference for both Indie and Pop among my responders in useful
because it means I am getting feedback from people who are familiar
GENRE PREFERENCES with the genre and its conventions, therefore allowing them to
analyse my productions against what they already know and love.
LISTENING HABITS
PLATFORM PREFERENCES
 ‘the reflection of the
beat of the music in
the edit’ Visual Style
‘the colour
grading’
Editing ‘the camera
‘the movements’
flashbacks’
‘cuts back to the
artist’ Favourit
e Aspect
‘the use of
flashbacks’
‘the girl’s
emotional
Narrativeturmoil and
how it was
‘the illustration of paired with
the lyrics through the music’
the girl’s
behaviour’

FAVOURITE ASPECT OF THE

VIDEO
 16% of the people who
42% of the people who answered the answered the
questionnaire could relate to this theme. questionnaire could
relate to this theme.
Theme of The Idealisation of the
Heartbreak Past

Are there any

aspects of the
music video that
you can relate to?

Caitlin’s Behaviour Didn’t relate to the video

21% of the people who answered 21% of the people
the questionnaire related to this who answered the
theme. questionnaire
didn’t relate to the
video

RELATABILITY
 60

50

40
Percentage

30

20

10

0
Indie Pop Other
Genre Identified

IDENTIFYING THE GENRE OF

THE MUSIC VIDEO
 Percentage

Saw A Link Didn't See A Link

IDENTIFYING A CORRELATION
BETWEEN THE MUSIC VIDEO AND
THE PRINT PRODUCTIONS
IDENTIFYING THEMES IN THE
VIDEO
 Summarising the Narrative

Unable to Summarise the Narrative

Able to Summarise the Narrative

0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80
Percentage

NARRATIVE
 Percentage

More Likely Less Likely Music Video Is Irrelevant in Buying Process

LIKELIHOOD TO BUY THE ALBUM

BASED ON THE MUSIC VIDEO
 Likelihood to Buy the Album Based on the Poster
90

80

70

60
Percentage

50

40

30

20

10

0
More Likely Less Likely Poster is Irrelevant in the Buying Process
Likelihood to Buy the Album

LIKELIHOOD TO BUY THE ALBUM

BASED ON THE POSTER
 ‘the transitions could be
‘match the beat more ‘confusing
smoother’
‘too many jump often’ story’
Narrative
Editing ‘it was too typical of
cuts’
the genre and not
‘events original’
progressed too
Weakne quickly’
ss

Camerawo
Acting rk ‘more slider
‘the girl’s acting’‘the first meeting shots’
felt a little forced’

WEAKNESSES OF THE MUSIC

VIDEO
 ‘the back panel is difficult to
read’
‘needs more colour’ ‘could be
Visual Style bolder’

Weakness

Genre Correlatio
n
‘doesn’t tell me ‘the poster and CD
anything about the cover are too
music’ similar’

WEAKNESSES OF THE PRINT

PRODUCTIONS
WHAT ARE THE STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES OF YOUR
PRINT PRODUCTIONS FROM YOUR FEEDBACK?

My print productions were a strength of my project because when asked to suggest a weakness of my CD panels
and poster, several people said that they couldn’t identify one as well as nearly 80% of responders saying that the
print productions would make them more likely to buy the album. This implies that my print productions were
effective as they promoted audience interest and intrigued the audience. From this, I have learnt that bold visuals,
such as the one I created with shards of newspaper, are effectual because they grab people’s attention and make
them eager to learn more. However, several people did suggest that the addition of colour would have made my
print productions stand out more, implying that the inclusion of a pop of bright colour would have made my print
productions stand out even more.
In relation to my print productions, I learnt that some people found the back panel difficult to read which suggests
that perhaps I should have made the font a different colour, or a larger size, so that it stood out more from the
image of Finn’s face and the newspaper that obscured parts of it. I wouldn’t change the overall design though
because responders commented on how interesting they thought it was, implying that with a few tweaks, it would
be very effective.
After receiving my audience feedback, I discovered that some responders thought that the poster and CD cover
were too similar. This implies that I should have edited the designs differently in order to reveal multiple things
about the album, as someone else said that the design of the CD cover, and by extension the poster, didn’t tell
them enough about the album. Overall, I have learnt that while my print productions were effective and appealed
to my target audience, there are still several ways in which they could be improved.
WHAT ARE THE STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES OF YOUR
MUSIC VIDEO FROM YOUR FEEDBACK?

One of the key strengths of my music video that was revealed by doing audience research was the relatability of my protagonist, Caitlin’s
story and the emotions she experience. This, and the theme of heartbreak, were what was commented on the most when responders were
asked if they could relate to the video. This implies that I effectively appealed to my target audience because they could relate to Caitlin and
understand her pain, therefore suggesting they could connect to the video which worked to make it more effectual. Furthermore, 73% of
people were able to accurately interpret the narrative, suggesting that it was coherent and something that they are familiar with. However,
several people commented that the narrative was cliché and could have been more original. While as a group, we consciously made the
decision to follow a stereotypical narrative to associate Finn with the Indie genre, my audience feedback implies that people are bored of this
and want more originality from their artists. This could be why only 50% of responders said the video would make them more likely to buy the
album. However, I discovered that over a quarter of people don’t let music videos influence their decision to buy the album because they are
more focused on the music, which suggests that while music videos can spark audience interest, and I could have done more to achieve this,
for some people it is of little consequence.
Another strength of my video revealed by my audience research was the editing. People commented on how the colour grading worked to
separate the past from the present and to reveal Caitlin’s emotional state, therefore making the themes and message of the video more
prominent. This suggests that, illustrating Stuart Hall’s audience theory, the audience was able to ‘decode’ my production and for the most
part had a preferred reading of it because they accepted the ideas I proposed. In addition to this, people also enjoyed the cuts to Finn
performing the song, implying that this is a genre convention that is still popular among audiences and is something that helps them connect
to the music more.
However, several responders said that the transitions between shots could be improved to make the editing smoother while others believed
that the jump cuts were clunky. This could suggest that some audience members had an oppositional reading of my music video as they didn’t
agree with the way using the jump cuts to convey Caitlin’s fragility and racing thoughts and instead found them confusing and ineffectual. Its
common for audience members to respond differently and disagree with messages that producers put forward. This feedback has suggested
that there were perhaps other, clearer ways for my to connote these ideas that viewers would have found more enjoyable.
DID YOUR PRODUCTIONS TARGET THE RIGHT AUDIENCE?

The quantative questions that opened my questionnaire regarding age, gender and genre
preferences revealed that the majority of responders belonged to my target audience and
were therefore the ideal candidates to evaluate my productions. However, it was also
interesting to get the views of people who were older than my intended audience or preferred
different genres of music because it revealed the overall effectiveness of my productions as
people who wouldn’t normally pick Indie to listen to or buy still enjoyed it and would buy the
album based on what I produced. I think I targeted the correct audience because nearly 80%
of responders said they could relate to the video, suggesting that I selected the correct
themes to focus on and that the themes were related to issues that late teens can connect to.
Although, 40% of my responders were older than my target audience, suggesting that these
are themes that everyone can relate to because them are common aspects of life and are
part of growing up. Furthermore, both male and female responders said they would buy the
album which implies that the Indie genre is less gender specific than other genres with the
wide range of people it can appeal to, regarding both age and gender.
DID YOUR AUDIENCE READ THE PRODUCTIONS IN THE WAY
YOU EXPECTED THEM TO?

The responders were able to identify the themes I felt were most prominent in the video, with
isolation and relationship issues ranking highest on the list of possible themes. This suggests
that I effectively conveyed these themes through the different aspects of my music video,
such as the narrative and the editing. However, the theme of identity was only selected by
12.8% of responders, suggesting that they didn’t think it was relevant as other options they
were presented with. From this, I can learn that I needed to make this theme clearer as I
believed it was one of the main themes in the video and it was one of the strongest links
between my music video and my print productions. Perhaps if I had made this theme more
evident in the video, a larger percentage of responders would have been able to identify the
correlation between my productions. I could have made this theme more prominent by
extending the period of time my narrative takes place in, therefore allowing more time to be
focused on the past and the confident way Caitlin used to behave which would have allowed
for a more noticeable contrast between her behaviour in the present and would reinforce how
the end of her relationship has caused her to doubt herself and lose touch with who she was.
ADDITIONAL FEEDBACK

During the editing process of my productions, I received feedback from both my teacher and
my peers, during which they offered both new things I could include and evaluated what I had
already done. This was incredibly useful because it meant that I continuously got feedback
from a variety of different people as I made my products, allowing me to vet new ideas to
them and see what their opinions were. For example, when colour grading my footage, I was
able to ask my peers what they thought was effective and if it conveyed the themes of
isolation and loss accurately. While it took several attempts to find the right way to colour
grade my video, it was beneficial because it was something my audience picked up on as a
way of illustrating certain themes.
CONCLUSION
From my audience feedback, I have learnt that there were several areas of my production that
were particularly successful. The audience responded well to my print productions, finding the
design intriguing and saying that it would make them more likely to buy the album. That
doesn’t mean it’s not without its faults, however, several responders commented on the lack
of colour and suggest that the addition of a bright colour could make it stand out more.
Furthermore, some people said there should be a greater variety between the design of the
CD cover and the poster, suggesting that they want to be able to interpret a variety of
different things about the album by being presented with different images in the marketing
process. In relation to my music video, I learnt that I need to make several of my themes
more obvious while devising a more unique narrative that will work to intrigue me audience
the way my print productions did. However, the characterisation of Caitlin appealed to my
audience and was one of the key things they were able to relate to, implying that she was the
right character type for my target audience. Overall, while I believe my productions were
successful in appealing to my target audience and promoting Finn’s music, there are still
areas in which I could improve my project as a whole.