GQ - Audience & Industries blog tasks

 Audience

Look through the GQ Media Kit and answer the following questions: 

1) How does the media kit introduction describe GQ?

Entering a new era of leadership and influence under Adam Baidawi, GQ explores the powerful and progressive new forces shaping culture, society and commerce in Britain. Building on a 33-year legacy of print excellence across journalism, photography and design, British GQ is today also a digital, social, video and experiential powerhouse – a community where people gather to be inspired and exchange ideas around style, creativity and culture.

2) What does the media kit suggest about masculinity? 

As masculinity evolves and men's fashion has moved to the centre of the global pop-culture conversation, GQ's authority has never been broader or stronger.

3) Pick out three statistics from the data on page 2 and explain what they suggest about the GQ audience.

1.8M - SOCIAL FOLLOWERS. This means that GQ have a strong following with lots of people interested in them and following them meaning loads of people want to be a part of the GQ journey.

212K - READERSHIP. This shows how many people read their GQ magazines when they get published 11 times a year.

61% - ABC1: This shows that the GQ magazines are targeted at upper class wealthy people who are interested in expensive clothes and fashion and celebrities. 

4) Look at page 3 - brand highlights. What special editions do GQ run and what do these suggest about the GQ audience?

The special editions that GQ do run are GQ HEROES: ISSUE & EVENT, GQ HYPE, MEN OF THE YEAR, TENTPOLE VIDEO AND SOCIAL SERIES. Each of these all target their audience as these special editions talk to celebrities and fashion icons and what the next new trend is and even talk about new games being release. This shows that GQ try their best to appeal to every part of their audience so no one feels left behind. 

5) Still on page 3, what does the video and social series section suggest about how magazine audiences are changing? 

In 2022, globally-renowned GQ franchises including Actually Me, 10 Essentials and Iconic Characters launch in the UK, joining local series like Action Replay to create our most dynamic lineup of video, ever. That video programming will also hit all of British GQ’s social channels, where audiences have grown more than 30% in the past year to top 2 million.

Media Magazine feature: GQ

Go to our Media Magazine archive and read the article on GQ (MM82 - page 12). Answer the following questions:

1) What are the elements that go into choosing a cover stars for GQ? 

In the UK, getting the cover right is paramount – at GQ especially, most sales of the magazine

are retail rather than subscription, so the cover has a huge impact on sales. The mistake, though, is to simply try to get the most famous person for any given month who has a ‘hook’ – a ‘hook’ being a film/ TV show/ album etc they’re promoting, and hence the reason they would do the cover in the first place – but the reality is this often doesn’t work. It needs to be the right person at the right time – that always matters more than fame.

2) How is the magazine constructed to serve the target audience? 

Occasionally, there is no hook, but simply someone who will do a GQ cover to help their brand/image etc. Mostly these are not actors but footballers/politicians etc. But the same rule is true: what’s interesting about that person at that time? GQ’s cover with the footballer Raheem Sterling, at the time he was speaking about racism in the British press, is a case in point, and was one of GQ’s best-selling ever.

3) What does the article suggest about GQ's advertisers and sponsorships - and what in turn does this tell us about the GQ audience? 

In terms of advertisers, is brands that want to promote themselves in the sphere

of male, high-end, luxury lifestyle. So, everything from top-tier tailoring to the latest sports cars. These brands are often heritage brands, so the names wouldn’t change much from month to month, or year to year. GQ audience are then interested in luxury, expensive things. Maybe even to appear prestige or materialistic 

4) What is GQ Hype - and how does it reflect the impact of digital media on traditional print media?

One key launch, though, was GQ Hype – a weekly, online-only cover. Celebrities – and their agents/publicists – naturally want a GQ print cover, but with only so many on offer, previously the drop-off from not getting a print cover could be drastic – simply offering them an online-only interview, say, which was understandably a less- than-exciting prospect for established celebrities. So, GQ Hype was launched as a perfect middle-ground. With only one per week it still came with prestige, it was still a GQ cover, designed as one, and so that fact alone meant it would get more attention both on Instagram and Twitter than other online-only stories.

 

5) Finally, what does the article say about additional revenue streams for print magazines like GQ?  

Extra revenue streams are vital to the magazine business these days– it’s almost impossible to survive

without them. It’s about deciding the key areas in which the brand is strong and focussing on those, rather than expanding into areas you are not

Industries

Your industries contexts are divided into three areas - Conde Nast, GQ's website and social media content and the impact of digital media on print industries.

Condé Nast

Read this Guardian news article on editorial changes at Condé Nast and answer the following questions: 

1) Who was previously GQ editor for 22 years? 

Dylan Jones, who has presided over men’s style bible GQ for 22 years, is to step down.

2) What happened to the 'lads' mag' boom magazines such as Nuts, Maxim and Loaded? 

Jones was credited with keeping GQ above water while others, such as Nuts, Maxim, Front and Arena closed down or, in the case of Loaded, went online only after circulation falls. Jones has distanced himself from the “lads’ mag” boom of the 1990s, saying it “denigrated our culture”, but he continued to argue that a successful magazine needs “a libido, whether you are French Vogue or Vanity Fair”. 

3) What changes have been taking place at Condé Nast in recent years and why? 

Jones, the most recognisable British departure from Condé Nast for a while, is not expected to be the last. The company says it will “continue to bring together our European business” and is “entering into a collective consultation process to evolve some of our teams, roles and capabilities”.

Read this Press Gazette article on Conde Nast. Answer the following questions:

1) What does the article suggest about Condé Nast's recent strategy? 

Last year Conde Nast merged the global editorial teams at several of its international magazine brands including GQ, Wired, Vogue and Conde Nast Traveller under a new digital-first strategy designed to produce less duplication of content. The changes will also involve new focus on digital income streams over print advertising revenue, with about 25% of the company’s revenues over the next four years invested into prioritising the expansion of video and digital content to boost online subscriptions and e-commerce.

2) How does chief executive Roger Lynch describe Condé Nast and why? 

Chief executive Roger Lynch told the New York Times the digital-first changes meant Conde Nast was “no longer a magazine company,” saying it has “70 million people who read our magazines, but we have 300 something million that interact with our websites every month and 450 million that interact with us on social media”.

3) What does Adam Baidawi say about Condé Nast, GQ and culture? 

Baidawi told Press Gazette: “Conde Nast, as much as anything else, is in the business of shaping and reflecting culture. Culture moves, and we have to move with it. This means that Conde Nast will always be up to date with the trends and how life and culture around them changes so their audiences feel like they're not bored or not up to date with the changes and trends going on around in the world. 

Read this FIPP feature on Condé Nast diversifying into video and streaming content. Answer the following questions: 

1) How is Condé Nast moving away from traditional print products?

“Condé Nast is the gold standard of storytelling, with iconic global brands that have had lasting appeal for generations of audiences around the world." This means that the company is focusing on reaching those segments of its audience who do not watch traditional broadcast and cable networks. 

2) What examples are provided of Condé Nast's video and streaming content?

“Last year we announced the launch of the Condé Nast Influence Network, our alternative to traditional broadcast and cable networks, showcasing our unmatched ability to create video content that resonates with consumers and drives the cultural conversation,” said Drucker Mann (Global Chief revenue officer and president of US revenue & international at Condé Nast).

3) What does the end of the article suggest modern media audiences want? 

“Audiences want to be participants, not just passive viewers – and of course, they want content 100 per cent personalised for them,” said Chu. 

GQ website, video and social media content 

Visit the GQ website, Instagram and YouTube channel. Note that some of these may be blocked in school. Once you have looked over GQ's online content, answer the following questions:

1) What similarities do you notice between the website and the print edition of the magazine?

Logo is the same it is always on the left hand side along with the colour scheme which is typically black and white. The GQ being in black and the background staying as white. 

2) Analyse the top menu of the GQ website (e.g. Fashion / Grooming / Culture). What do the menu items suggest about GQ's audience?

The GQ audience is aimed at upper class people as some of the options at the top such as fashion and watches are expensive to buy especially whenever GQ advertise any clothes as they are expensive designer labels such as Luis Vuitton and Gucci. 

3) What does GQ's Instagram feed suggest about the GQ brand? Is this appealing to a similar audience to the print version of the magazine?

The Instagram feed I feel is very much familiar and appealing to a similar audience to the print version of the magazine and on both print and online they focus on high A-List celebrities on their front covers which quickly grabs and attracts audiences attention. In addition to this I feel like this helps boost the quality of GQ's brand as it shows they are not cheap and are expensive and filled with loads of information which is worth their audience's money.

4) In your opinion, is GQ's social media content designed to sell the print magazine or build a digital audience? Why?

I feel like GQ' s social media content is designed to both sell and build their digital audience and make it grow. This is because people can view what GQ's content is about and see what kind of brand they are and what they focus on which can help GQ be able to make more sales if people are interested with their content. Furthermore, since GQ have their own social media content platform this gives their audiences a way to comment below on their magazines and content they publish which can help GQ build a better stronger digital audience as people will have a way to communicate with one another and share their thoughts and ideas on their magazines. 

5) Evaluate the success of the GQ brand online. Does it successfully communicate with its target audience? Will the digital platforms eventually replace the print magazine completely?

The GQ brand online successfully communicates with its target audience as GQ always focuses on high A list celebrities that everyone knows about which helps grabs audiences attention. In addition to this, I do think that digital platforms will eventually replace the print magazine completely due to the significant and rapid rise of how technology is and how advanced it is going. Even though it is a tradition to have magazines printed out, I feel like society will change and evolve out of the traditional way and all forms of magazines will be found online and not be able to be found printed anymore. 

The impact of digital media on the print magazines industry

Read this Guardian feature on the struggles of the UK print magazine industry and answer the following questions:

1) What statistics are provided to demonstrate the decline in the print magazines industry between 2010 and 2017? What about the percentage decline from 2000?

Sales of the top 100 actively purchased print titles in the UK – those that readers buy or subscribe to – fell by 42% from 23.8m to 13.9m between 2010 and 2017. Since the start of the internet era in 2000, the decline is 55% from 30.8m, according to the Audit Bureau of Circulations.

2) What percentage of ad revenue is taken by Google and Facebook?

Google and Facebook account for 65% of the $6.5bn (£4.7bn) UK digital display ad market. They are also strangling attempts by magazine and newspaper publishers to build their digital ad revenues by taking about 90% of all new spend.

3) What strategies can magazine publishers use to remain in business in the digital age?

“Magazines do still play an important part in client schedules – if circulation is holding up,” says Phil Hall, the chief commercial strategy officer at the media buying agency MediaCom. Not all sectors of the magazine market are under such pressure. Luxury titles such as Vogue and Tatler, where the advertising is often a big reason readers buy them, are proving resilient. Specialist magazines, catering for more niche audiences with interests ranging from shooting to model railways and ponies, are likely to always have a print fan base. Wildman says for magazines to survive they must build a brand beyond the core print publication.

4) What examples from the Guardian article are provided to demonstrate how magazines are finding new revenue streams?

Time Inc in the US, which publishes People, Fortune and Sports Illustrated, has just been sold to rival Meredith for $1.8bn; the UK arm was picked up by Epiris. Last year, Immediate Media, which published 60 titles including Radio Times and Top Gear, was sold to the German publisher Hubert Burda, owner of Your Home and HomeStyle, for £270m. 

5) Now think of the work you've done on GQ. How is GQ diversifying beyond print? 

GQ are moving on and adapting just as how Adam Baidawi says "Culture moves, and we have to move with it" which GQ are doing as they have built an online social media channel and have gotten themselves a strong following which shows that GQ are moving along with time and the changes of how society is and how they are not just staying as just a print magazine anymore and are exploring different ways to attract audiences. Another way they have gone beyond their traditional print is having their own Condé Nast Influence Network which is a video and streaming content which gives their audience an insight into how life isl ike working at Conde Nast and how much pressure they face to make sure everything is perfect and fit for their consumers.