Audience Theories

In order for a product nto be successful it must have an audience that will consume it
All types of companies study their potential audiences to create products that will appeal to their wants and needs
Audiences can be split into several categories

• Age
• Ethnicity
• Sexuality
• Gender
• Occupation
• Earnings
• Expendable income etc

Demographics

Defines adult population
Groups them into categories defined by their jobs

• A - Higher management, bankers, lawyers, doctors, and other professionals
• B - Middle management, teachers, creative media (graphic designers)
• C1 - Office supervisors, junior managers, nurses, specialist clerical staff (white collar)
• C2 - Skilled manual workers, plumbers, bricklayers (blue collar)
• D - Semi-skilled and unskilled manual workers
• E - Unemployed, students, and casual worker

Psychographics

Mainstreamers 

• seek security - tend to be domestic, conformist, conventional and sentimental. Favour value for money, family brands. Majority group

Aspirers

• Seek status - materialistic, orientated image, appearance and fashion. Attractive packaging more important than contents. TYpically younger people. Clerical or sales jobs

Succeeders

• Seek control - stong goals, confident, strong work ethic, supports stabilty. Brand choice is made of self reward and quality. Typically higher management and professionals

Resigned

• Seeks survival - rigid and authoritarian values. Interested in apst and tradition. Brand choice stresses safety and familiarity. Usually older people

Explorers

• Seek discovery - Energetic, individual. Values difference and adventure. First to try new brands. Younger demographic - students

Strugglers

• Seek escape - alienated and disorganised. Few resources beyond physical skills. Buys alcohol and junk food. D and E demographics

Reformers

• Seek enlightenment - Freedom from restrictions. Personal growth.Social awareness and independent judgement. Anti-materialistic but aware of good taste. Attended higher education and buy products for quality

Stuart Hall

• All texts are polysemic (can have multiple meanings)
• Texts can be "read" in different ways depending on the audience's identity, cultural knowledge and opinions
• He states that texts can be "read" in 3 different ways
• Preferred reading
• The audience responds to the product the way the media producers expect them and want them to
• Negotiated reading
• The audience partly agrees with the message or product but may disagree with other parts
• Oppositional reading
• The audience is in complete disagreement with the product or the message 

AS
17-20 year olds
D + E
Reformers, explorers and mainstreamers
Attracted their attetnion through tour dates and free bees - new and different music 
INterviews - attract mainstreamers - Tinie Tempah but then interviews with Noel Gallagher would attract reformers and explorers - edgy
Adverts for River Island in my plan - popular high street brand that they can spend disposable income on
CD ads - interest explorers - interested in new music

A2