Task 13: Question 2 - How effective is the combination of your main product and ancillary texts)?

The main product which we created was a music video for the song 'Faded' by Alan Walker. We then created two print artifacts which were the digipak album and the magazine advert.

We felt that it is important that the music video would meet the needs and wants of the audience. This means that it be of high quality which means that it should have high quality footage and professional editing, which was done so. After carrying out a survey on Survey Monkey (www.surveymonkey.co.uk) as part of primary research, I found that 53.33% of respondents find music videos with storylines 'very interesting'. With such a high percentage, it was clear that the music video should have a storyline or context behind it which is why we based the video around a teenager who had suffered from memory loss before searching for his memories which had 'faded' away. The high percentage also shows that using a music video like this would be very effective as it seems to have a high demand which means there would be more viewers and the artist would be able to generate more revenue from adverts.

The digipak album consisted of four parts. It was important that we used detailed photo editing and ones that would appeal to the target audiences. By using Adobe Photoshop, we were able to create our designs with a number of layers and using the tools in the software

As the character in the main product was seen as a disadvantaged and isolated character due to mental disability, the front cover of the character was very fitting as we had the character staring at the camera and breaking the fourth wall as if they are begging for innocence. Therefore, the emotions in the products are effective because it encourages audiences to view the product and be encouraged to purchase it. Furthermore, having the character staring at the camera on the front cover makes it obvious that the music artist is the character in the video.

We found that breaking the fourth wall by having the artist stare at the camera was very effective in terms of advertising products. One product we were influenced by was Steve Aoki's advert. Having him stare at the camera makes it obvious to the audience that he is the artist and helps create a brand identity for the artist, therefore indicating brand growth. In terms of the colour, the blue filters on the advert also inspired us. We thought we could use them to make the product look more professional and more appealing to customers. In terms of the camera's angles and distances, it can vary between medium shots and close-up shots, as shown in the Steve Aoki advert. Positioning the artist in the middle of the advert makes the artist the center of attention and really creates a brand identity for the brand, as shown in our print artifact.

Nowadays, music artists are often seen as brand images and idols, especially to their fans. Therefore, social media has had a large impact on this. For example, Ed Sheeran has a Twitter account with over 17 million followers. This means that this many people are able to keep updated on any new releases or albums such as when he released his new song to his followers. One advantage of this is that thousands of his followers are able to view his products, meaning he is likely to gain large audiences and make more album sales, generating more revenue. Another advantage is that people are able to 'retweet' and share his posts. This links to viral marketing and how people can share his posts to make more people view it. Doing this gives the music artist more followers and therefore new customers when purchasing his products, which heavily indicates the growth of him as a brand.