Focus Group Research

In order to ensure that my magazine is successful within my chosen target audience I asked a group of Year 7 students and a teacher, Mr Swain, what they would like in their ideal school magazine.

After questioning Year 7s I discovered they wanted:

• bright colours to grab their attention and make them more interested in the magazine
  competitions that they could enter to win prizes
• lunch menus for the school canteen as they often don’t know what food is being served on what day
• funny/embarrassing stories about teachers

My research from Mr Swain told me:

• our magazine should be every half term so that there it is more fulfilling than a weekly one
• information about upcoming school trips should be included along with photos of previous school trips so parents and students know what kind of thing to expect
• a list of school term dates would be beneficial so that parents know exactly when training days and holidays are
• a ‘thought for the term’ to encourage students to focus and think about what is important eg. revision
• staff department profiles so that students and parents can learn more about their teachers and who each department is made up of and what their exact roles are

I have decided that my chosen target audience is going to be both parents and students and so I am going to incorporate ideas received from both groups in order to achieve this.