Today’s magazines follow a similar structure and although there are some magazines that do not follow this approach, this is the most common.

Magazines consist of four parts. Cover pages, front of the magazine, feature well and back of the magazine.

Study the slide show. Click on an image to blow it up full screen.

The first cover is reserved for the front cover. The second one, on the back of the front cover, is reserved for advertising and is the second most expensive ad page. The third cover page, inside of the back cover, is reserved for advertisers and it is third most expensive ad page in the magazine and the last cover page, on the back of the magazine, is the most expensive ad page.

Look at the three covers from Attitude magazine, what ideologies do they present and how do these fit with the target audience for the magazine?

Chicago is a gay friendly city and promotes diversity and equality. Given the world’s views on America recently (Trump as the new president) promotion is probably necessary too so finding a USP is sensible.
The London Kitchen Store advert plays to the stereotype that gay men have a good eye for design and are interested in home décor.
Emeraldlife insurance is tapping into the security element of the reader’s lives. For any couple/home makers, feeling protected is important and by using two men in the advert, this company is targeting a group that many insurers don’t – or not explicitly.

All of these adverts are overtly targeting the “pink pound” which is estimated to be around £6billion per annum in the UK. In marketing terms the LGBT community are often assigned the term DINK – double income, no kids.
They are thought to have more disposable income than heterosexual couples with children, so who better to target than gay men? Further, these adverts support the ideology that being part of a couple and spending time together both home and away is desirable and what Attitude’s readers should be aspiring to – maybe this suggests something about the target audience’s age then.

Can you name all the different parts of a magazine? Select the correct features from the dropdowns.

mens-health

Study the first few pages of a magazine. Click on an image to open full screen.

Front of the book

This part of the magazine consists of several key pages.

Look at this letter from the editor page in Attitude magazine, what is the purpose of it? What is the mode of address? How does it fit with the Target Audience?

Hover over the image to zoom in.

Historically the gay community has suffered a lot of negativity and in recent weeks and months the world has too, this letter seeks to counteract some of that by praising specific people and places.

The inclusion of statistics and discussion around voting suggests an intelligent and interested reader and this is supported by Matt Cain’s statement towards the end to “do good in the world” conveys the attitude that unity is a stronger force than hatred.

The letter is a personal piece that gives his views on the magazine’s content and also goes some way to explaining his intentions and decisions as editor-in-chief, this is an attempt at creating a connection with the reader through a friendly and conversational tone.