The publisher of the magazine Little White Lies is TCOLondon. This is a company which specialises in slightly off the wall, individual and quirky takes on stories which would not usually get views, or angles on films which are not usually assessed. The very branding of the website (www.TCOLondon.com) as shown below differentiates itself from other forms of media by defining itself as a breed, something which is lifelike and ever evolving. From work in skateboarding, phone companies, games consoles, and sponsoring YouTubers, their list of partners ranges from Grolsch to Audi. This shows where the inspiration for Little White Lies comes from, as well as why the company decided to back such an out-there product. Even within their distribution, with Little White Lies originality being an online-only magazine, they establish themselves against the norm and through this use of technology cater to a specific audience.
This audience is that of 18-30 year olds who are either young professionals in or students of media. They must have significant disposable income because of the monthly subscription of £3.95 for a product which, looking past its potential as a collectable and art, provides less than a week of entertainment. This suggests than that like Empire and Sight&Sound, that the demographic for the company is ABC1 and massively involved with South East London promotions. This is done in the Barbican, BFI and Picturehouse cinemas' and film festivals which caters to the sort of indie film buff audience with disposable income. The benefits of this are found within independent and cult cinema fans who would rather discuss films as an art form rather than just passive entertainment. The magazine caters to independent critics and in depth interviews with cast, directors and producers in order to help their readers form opinions upon the films they cover.
The magazine, along with others' of its type, use mosaic geodemographics in order to establish the type of person their product is going to cater towards. An audience segmentation can be found below. This shows that the majority of the audience is found within London based Hipsters which falls under the magazines demographic of Group O buyers, standing for Urban Intelligence that 'Mostly consists of young and well educated people who are open to new ideas and influences'. It also caters to audiences such as Group E, young people who have gone through higher education and can be liberal of idea, and have access to disposable income. It caters to this audience through claiming to be about truth which connotes authenticity. Because of this, the more niche audiences of Arthouse film fans and Aspiring filmmakers are also catered towards, while more mainstream film fans and design students are left to read magazines like Empire and Total Film.
The purpose of the magazine fits with the publisher's slightly independent style of reporting. Even from the weight of the paper the magazine feels like a substantial product, filling a gap in the market for collectors items concerning film, which is then corroborated through the hand drawn/graphically modified artistic style of the covers (Of which they employ independent designers) and the typography of the front cover. The choice of film is also essential as to its purpose, and in turn the sorts of audience which are going to read it. Taking up yet another niche gap in the market, focusing on films such as "Black Swan" and "Let The Right One In", they decipher films which are not only in between the mainstream and indie genre but also those which are going to obtain a cult following. Due to this, in combination with the subtle yet aesthetically pleasing cover which screams that the magazine producers know their movies, the magazines' purpose is to fill a gap in the market between Empire's mainstream coverage and Sight & Sound's more individual movie coverage through an artistic and bold cover, substantial page thickness and quality which would leave you wanting to show your collection off to your friends.
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