Latest billboard layout-final design

This is the final design I have created and the one I will produce ultimately for my final billboard piece. I settled on this one as i thought it was most effective in comparison to the first which I produced. The newspaper articles themselves will be shown in a transparent effect behind the text to make them the background, and make the text more prominent almost as if it acts as the guide to where you should look, emphasised further by the "AroundThanet" with glow effect to attract the eye to this particular section.

Of course, I need to let my focus group know of the changes and also ask them what they think about the design, whether its an upgrade, or if they think its a step backwards.

Jack: "I think the design here is a massive improvement on the previous design, the primary reason being that more care has been taken into the aesthetic appeal of the billboard, such as the use of transparent effect on the newspaper articles to create the desired effect and make the billboard on the whole more effective because this improvement on the image and quality going into the production is making it easier and clearer what exactly the message is that they are trying to give.

Ellie: "I don't think you can label this design as anything other than a significant improvement on the first layout, because it seems every aspect has been enhanced or fiddled with to improve it in some way, in relation to how clear it is to understand, this being the statement displayed on the billboard of "Don't Waste Your Time" in comparison to the original "You Only Need"..I think this makes more sense as a statement on the billboard, it is more effective as it gives a clearer message.

first billboard layout

Although this design and actual representation may seem simple, it is how I look to project my ideas for my billboard best. The 'x's represent the vast amount of jumbled up sections and segments from various newspapers consisting of titles, headline, articles, images, all made to look busy and squished in the space, completely taking up all of the billboard space apart from the middle text, which will stand out on the page by myself implementing an effect to the font such as bold, and shadowing. This text will read "You Only Need", with the 'You' covering the first section on the top, then following to the 'Only Need' in the space below, on the same level and slightly smaller in size, to reach the bottom section where the newspaper name will be placed, "AroundThanet". I aim to give the overall message of this design as everything seems confusing and its almost as you dont know where to look, but then the "AroundThanet" shines the light, giving a simpler take on things that everything that you need in a newspaper is here.

Local newspaper billboard research? General billboards

After looking for billboards that local newspapers use, I saw that I couldn't find one to post and research. Therefore I picked out two big brands to analyse, looking primarily at what they do to attract and maybe inspire the public eye, as these billboards are most usually displayed in areas that attract a large footfall, like city centres etc.

This is one of Nike's billboards, and the first feeling you get from looking at it is that its dramatic, with in particular the emotion on Franck Ribery's face as he is putting all his concentration and focus into his match perhaps. This feeling is emphasised by the slogan or message that they use: "acceleration meets imagination is next level". This is meant to be inspiring and affect the public, the person that sees the message and make them think: I want to be like that, I should be bettering myself, therefore this is effective and increases the already massive population and sales generation directly possibly from the billboard itself, because this could persuade the viewer to go and purchase the nike sports wear in the hope that it would benefit and increase their performance.

The Windows phone advertisement has an effect on the audience that comes across as friendly, and the colour scheme, a 'calm' green, along with the font which is thin and light. In terms of the actual content of the billboard, what it says: "meet the new Windows Phone" gives a message that it is interacting with you as a viewer of the billboard and saying that perhaps this phone comes with a level of importance and significance to him/her, that it will help them out in some way. Furthermore the design is very simple, which creates the effect that it is easy to look at and understand, hence making their message they are trying to convey easier to actually get to the viewer and possibly sell the phone with greater ease.

Newspaper name/logo

I am thinking about what the name of my newspaper will be. This is needed to progress through my ancillaries and main task because it is crucial and will feature in all my pages. I want to create something that is likeable and rememberable, something which can form a reputation as a recognised brand, like Metro or Kent On Sunday around Thanet.

I am aiming to intergrate 'Thanet' into the name and have the logo relate, as I want this to be something all members of Thanet can familiarise themselves with and therefore appriciate more, as this paper will be aimed primarily to Thaneterians.

At the moment in terms of the name I am contemplating something simple..

 "ThanetDaily"
 "AroundThanet"
 "The Thanet Issue"

I was a bit undecided on which out of the three I would go for, so I held a vote of my media class. 8, and the majority, went for "AroundThanet".

I agreed because I felt this was the most catchy and had a sense of care and passion for the district because the "Around" has the feel that it comes important to us to report the stories throughout Thanet to the population.

AroundThanet

I am thinking about using this font, Cooper STD Black, in addition to bold effect for the text of my title.

Tag line
I will have a tagline to add to the catchy effect.. I was thinking something unique that will stand out as its own thing so it becomes recognisable and distinguished to the public. I went with "Grab Your News Fix..Exclusive to Thanet". This is effective in my opinion as saying that it is exclusive to the area implies that the newspaper is specially produced with the reader in mind, only specifically distributing news to that area that the reader habitates in therefore having a sense of the content inside will serve a significance to the reader.

Layout of website- focus group opinion

On first thought I realise that I indeed am not highly skilled on the subject of creating websites, and as much as I am greatly interested in going about making my website for my newspaper, I need to talk to my focus group to make sure I am doing the right things, because alonngside my innovativity only comes the knowledge of what a tutorial holds in building this website.

I set about doing a template in order to get a rough idea of where the different features of my website were going to sit on the page.

This design will be replicated throughout the sport page, and the 'Contact Us' page will simply be the sections across the page stating different methods of contacting the newspaper, links to emails and numbers etc. The home page also represents the main news page.

I went to ask what my focus group thought.

Billy: I think the layout does look to be done in a stylish manner, with images fitting in with the articles in their individual sections with great effect, creating ultimately a smooth look and ease of manouvering the website page.

Chloe: In terms of the actual features planned to be intergrated into the page with the view to blend with the layout to create a what seems to be professional structure that will fundamentally reflect the newspaper's style and aims, this template is efficient. The idea of having a search bar that allows the viewer to observe a variety of stories from different areas in Thanet is a great idea, because this firstly benefits the viewer as it is quick and simple, which means no hassle in trying to navigate to the page they are looking for through a series of links, and in turn benefits the newspaper because if the viewer can find out with such ease what is happening in their local area, they will be sure to keep up to date with the progression of the website of the fact that they will be putting more stories out then be persuaded hopefully to pick up the newspaper as a reliable source of news while they are out and about.

Newspaper website research (sports page)

Newspaper website research ('what's on' page)

How to use Wix website builder

Focus group discussion- layout

In order to move forward with the production of my newspaper for my main task, I wanted to get confirmation that what I was doing was appriciated by others and not just something I deemed appealing to the eye. Therefore I went about consulting members of my focus group to see what they thought. 85% of the group overall took a like to the two designs, with the other 15% having a few opinions on how the structure could be altered in order to improve the appearance to a reader.

Jack: I think the front page follows an efficient style, like everything was meant to go together with the other features of the page, therefore making the page overall seem fluent and pleasing to the eye also. In terms of the actual features proposed, I like the promotion for the inside magazine. Of course even though the task will not produce a magazine in reality, it is still effective as it gives that extra bit of content, making the newspaper look busier.

Sophie: Personally I believe that if these features that make up the whole structure on the front page all piece together ulitmately, it will serve as a stylish start to the newspaper. Looking at the two pages on the inside its clear to see that there is a unique structure being formed, with nice seperatrions from articles and other features and not just blocks of image and text, the pages tend to follow a pattern. To include an ad that takes up half of the second inside page is, technically a smart idea in reality because this is an attraction point and conveys to the reader that this ad holds an importance within the page as it takes up so much room. The reader can't not look at it.

Rose: I think having the ad take up so much space is a turning point which could disrupt the professional structure of the pages, therefore the content of the ad needs to be thought about very carefully as the description needs to suit the tone that this newspaper wants to follow. Class etc.

Summaritively I noticed that the primary element the focus group tended to take a dislike to was the ad, and its size especially in relation to the style of the paper. After taking a while to ponder whether this opinion will affect my layout and pursuade me to alter this factor, I came to the conclusion that I myself maintained an appriciation to the ad and its size, as it adds a hint of variation to the house style, therefore seperating it from other competitors within the area.

shot list: newspaper

Front cover
main story- shot of The Goose in Ramsgate (man stabbed outside in early hours)
side story- shot of Margate stadium (Margate win FA Cup)

Inside pages
1st article- shot of turner centre, low angle shot (the turner's financial boom)
2nd article- shot of ccvi common room (A2 level boundaries increase)
next page: shot of Minster cricket ground (Minster cricket team worries)

Two pages of newspaper layout

This is how I am going to lay my inside pages out. Once more I have drawn inspiration from Kent on Sunday as I like how the style reflects a professional outlook making the newspaper collectively a thorough read in addition to elements such as the article content.

Front page layout-Inspiration KOS

This is what my front page will look like in terms of structure and appearance. I have studied Kent on Sunday's approach and have in some way mirrored their style, but will of course add individuality to the final piece.

The layout itself is quite simple, but effectively feeds information through its sofisticated structure. This is in addition to the actual content of the articles, headings and images all of which will give the newspaper a professional look.

Focus group discussion- Newspaper genre

It is time that I had chose which type of newspaper I was to base my own newspaper on. Tabloid that followed a simpler style or a classier more complex type were the options so I asked my focus group which they would prefer in order to get a consensus which I can take into account on what i chose.

75% of the focus group agreed on the more elaborate newspaper style. I asked some of them why this was.

Jack: I prefer it because the layout and style is very professional, more so than a tabloid of a simple style and therefore I think the right target audience would highly appreciate the effort that goes into structure and intellectual opinion in comparison to bold and brash headlines and images with simple articles used by tabloids.

Sophie: More complex style is the better choice because even though the content will not appeal to perhaps a mass audience on the commute like the simpler tabloid does as it is much easier in a small timeframe to gather knowledge on news, the complex style delivers stories much better and its in depth coverage is a winning factor for me.

I have confronted my focus group and received their detailed feedback. After hearing the pros and cons I have decided that I will base my newspaper on the smarter and slightly more complicated style of tabloid, and my work will be in the style of this genre. Personally I would have rather used this anyway because I believe that it comes across as a much more technical paper, with emphasis on style as much as on detailed articles and this fits in well with my ability to produce thorough stories.

Kentish Gazette inside page codes and conventions

Thanet Extra inside page codes and conventions

Kent on Sunday inside page codes and conventions

Kent and Sussex Courier front page codes and conventions

Kentish Gazette front cover codes and conventions

Thanet Extra front page codes and conventions

Kent on Sunday front page codes and conventions

Prezi tutorial

Prezi is a stylish way of portraying your work, an alternative to PowerPoint. I will be using Prezi's to present my research, so I used this tutorial to work out how to use them.

AUDIENCE RESEARCH 1: TARGET AUDIENCE 5 Regional Newspapers

Before going about addressing my main task, first of all I need to find some inspiration. I researched Thanet and Kentish local newspapers to help identify my own target audience.

                                                               Kentish Gazette


This paper's audience struggle to range lower than Kentish citizens aged 21, due to primarily the content of its headlining stories and the depth into which it explores hobbies and interests much admired by the middle aged of the county. Examples include gardening, home care and various collecting type hobbies such as the collecting of historic memorabilia. The paper maintains its status as mainly a tabloid, however and perhaps most importantly primes its focus on the breaking news throughout Kent, such as crimes, sporting news etc. As taken from the newspaper's official website, The journalists from the Kentish Gazette provide regular news updates throughout the day, alongside all the latest Kent news and sport from the rest of the KentOnline network from the KM Media Group. This shows that the paper is dedicated to bringing the very latest news to the county residents, so primarily they will become regular buyers of the paper to be up to date with whats going on in their area. Whilst I was browsing the website, I also noticed that next to their logo it had stated: "the UK's fastest growing regional news network". Quite how true this really is remains to be pondered, but it is an indication of the direction they want to go with this paper.





                                                                       Thanet Extra


Its a weekly freesheet tabloid newspaper distributed to homes and through pickup points and brand-to-hand distribution in the Isle of Thanet area in north-eastern Kent, including the towns of Margate, Ramsgate and Broadstairs and the smaller town of Minster (YourThanet.co.uk). It wants to target the family homes of the Thanet District in general offering all that a tabloid has to offer that would appeal to all ages considering sport news and even youth news such as the latest events. Another product of the KM Media Group, this paper aims to be snappy and to the point with the very latest news, hence its name "thanet extra".









                                                                 Kent and Sussex Courier


This paper is important effectively to parents because the paper likes to include updates regarding schools, for example "Schools warned over sex pest". This type of breaking news will encourage parents to then enforce a new mentality into their child when attending his/her school. Its age target can vary but is mainly suited to adults, male and female. It is always published in at least two editions that covers both the western parts of Kent and the area of Sussex due to an almalgamation of a number of Kent and Sussex newspapers, according to Wikipedia.

 

 

            Kent On Sunday

Kent on Sunday is a multi-award winning regional newspaper covering the county of Kent in the United Kingdom. It is published on every Sunday of the year and is available from supermarkets, garages and newsagents. The newspaper is the flagship paper of the KOS Media publishing company.
The main focus of the paper is to provide the County with a regional, informative news and a sport service. The paper also covers retail, leisure and lifestyle features, plus jobs, cars and property sections it also has more local editions under the your local series which are digital news and sport based titles with all the traditional content of jobs leisure cars and property as well as a comprehensive leisure and lifestyle section. (Wikipedia.org). They aim to provide the county with the most accurate and comprehensive regional news possible, and distribute through business rounds since the paper first launched in 2009. At first glance the paper does seem very professional and is clear that its initial target audience is commuters, because also of the the fact that it is now being distributed to various train stations and airports.It maintains a broadsheet style, much similar to that of The Guardian. I would summarise its age range going from young adults right through to readers of a much higher age, because its technical layout instils a feeling of information being employed with a touch of intellectualism.

                                                                       Thanet Gazette

Sold as a weekly tabloid paper throughout Thanet, and remains the biggest purely Thanet-based newspaper in terms of sales. This could have something to do with the fact that the paper first launched in the late 1800's so it has a hint of reliabilty, trust in the paper that flows through thanet every Friday and the locals that have bought the paper for over a century know what to expect. Overall the paper provides the general view of latest news in Thanet in a similar tabloid layout to Thanet extra, but excels purely because of its reputation for being the oldest and best known paper.

My Brief

Brief 8:

The first two pages of an original local newspaper (if done as a group task, each member of the group to produce an individual edition of the newspaper, following the same house style), together with two of the following three options: • a billboard poster for the newspaper; • a radio advertisement for the newspaper; • two hyperlinked pages from the paper’s website

I have decided to follow this brief because on initial analysation it appears the brief that best matches my strengths and interests, therefore making it easier to produce the work to the best of my ability.
My long term aspiration is to be a journalist and I will use this task as a platform to represent my adoration for writing in the style of a journalist, hence the idea that the articles in the first two pages will be all my own work, as an attempt to replicate a top newspaper journalist's style of work.