Analysis of NME Magazine

Front Covers

The colour scheme changes in each issue to suit the cover star and the images

NME – Key StatisticsMale Readers: 66%Female Readers: 34%Median Age: 23Student Readers: 35%ABC1: 61%C2DE: 39%Circulation: 23,924Readership: 289,000

The NME audience have a strong relationship with NME and completely trust the brand: -

- “I can trust it” - “Its full of facts that we should all know but don’t BUT we do now thanks to

NME” -“Honest no-holds barred reviews”

NME audience feel a real affinity with the journalists “The writers seem to really understand what is important to me”

(NME Media Press Pack November 2012)

Contents Pages

NME – Publication History

• The Magazine’s first issue was published on March 7th 1952 after ‘Accordian Times and Musical Express’ was bought by a London music promoter Maurice Kinn and was relaunchedas ‘New Musical Express’. On November 14th 1952, NME created the first UK Singles Chart. The first charts were a list of the 12 best-selling singles in the UK, sourced by the magazine itself in regional stores. The first UK number one was ‘Here In My Heart’ By Al Martino.

• It started as a music newspaper, and gradually moved toward a magazine format during the 1980s, changing from newsprint in 1998. In the 1970s, NME became the best-selling music publication in the UK.

• An online version of NME, NME.com, was launched in 1996. It is now the world's biggest standalone music site, with over 7 million users per month.

Double Page Spreads

NME – Reader Profile

• “The NME audience are very influential in their social circles and are twice as likely as the average to be the first amongst their friends to know what is going on”

• The NME audience are obsessed by music. Reader research has proven that they rely on the editorial and the ads to keep them up to date with new music. This knowledge then makes them the authority in music in their peer group.

• NME readers are influential when it comes to mobile phones. They are 3 times as likely to convince friends and family about what mobiles to buy.

IPC Media

• IPC Media is a consumer magazine and digital publisher in the UK.

• IPC Media are the publisher’s of more than 60 iconic magazines.

• They publish around 350 Million copies per year.

• IPC Media publishes NME Magazine

• IPC Media was originally started due to competition amongst the many publishing companies that existed in the mid-1950s

Why is NME suitable for my final Magazine?• I think that NME is a suitable magazine to base mine on because it focuses

on the same genre I would like to use and the magazine shows a real understanding of its target audience. In my magazine, I would like to include artists from alternative music and interview them on their lifestyles and their music in a casual, down to earth way. I like this style because it brings the magazine to the audience’s level and it becomes easy to relate to.

• In my magazine contents I will include the same features as NME such as Reviews, Gigs, News etc. because NME has shown that this is what the audience wants.

• One difference I will make is that I was make the audience younger. The target audience for NME is males aged 17-30 however I would like my audience to be males 16-24.