Audience and Target Market - Secondary Research

Before I start planning my video, it is important that I know my target audience and can identify aspects of music videos that appeal to them. This is a highly important aspect of targeting for music and is used by large media corporations such as the BBC. One way I have tried to do this is by analysing music videos in the genre (pop-rock) that I want to create my video for. From my two sets of analysis of 'Rude' and 'What I Go To School For', I have noticed a few common aspects that helped make these videos successful;

• A combination of narrative and performance. This is to add depth to the video and synergise with the lyrics while also advertising the band and their instruments.  
• The band or lead singer are involved in both the narrative and performance. 
• The lead singer or 'star' has the highest screen time and is in the centre of the performance.
• Clear mid to long shots of the band performing live with their instruments.
• Simple shots and cuts to keep the video smooth.

In summary, we can see that generally pop-rock videos are filmed in a common setting such as a school, town or club and follow a simple narrative along with shots of a live performance. This is to appeal to a younger target audience from around 13 to 25 years old with a more fun video, compared to some videos in perhaps the rock genre that can be a bit deeper and thoughtful. 

To support this theory, I decided to look back at my AS coursework and the questionnaire that I undertook to learn more about music tastes from different ages. Here is a couple of results that helped me decide on my target market, as we can see that a survey mainly answered by young people came up with pop and rock in the top three most popular categories. Of course, this data may be considered dated as it is a year old and is not representative of music videos specifically, but it gives me a notion that pop-rock as a genre is more of a younger taste.