GENERIC CONVENTIONS OF A WEBSITE

I researched into current web pages which advertise a certain newspaper.
Firslty, I decided it would be beneficial to look at The Harrogate Advertiser's web page and identify its conventions in order to understand a little bit more about how websites invite the buyer. Instead of analysing other ultralocal newspapers to the Harrogate area, I will also analyse a newspaper from a different local area, as most of these local newspaper are published by Ackrill Media group; therefore most of these local newspaper will have the same generic layout.

Here is a screen shot of the Harrogate Advertiser's web page.







The conventions I have identified are as follows:

- Organised layout
- Bold title (however, the title is not substantially large which is interesting, as the masthead on the Harrogate Advertiser's newspaper is noticeably big)
- Hyperlinks and navigation bar
- Search engine
- References to jobstoday and property today etc
- Date
- Updates in a scrolling marquee
- Advertisements
- Subheadings, headings and images
- Letters to the editor
- 'What's on' column

What cohesive links does the Harrogate Advertiser's web page have with the newspaper itself?

- Similar/same articles
- Brand identity and house style
- Date and time
- Advertisements
- Some form of navigation
- Same images

What differences does the web page and the newspaper have?

- Hyperlinks and search engines on the web page
- Small proportion of articles with a link to the full article on web page
- Comment options on the web page
- Web page has scrolling text and other visual aspects which the newspaper does not have

This variation of similarities and differences outline the divergence between the hard print copy of the newspaper and the interactive, modern and 'instantaneous' version of the newspaper in web pages.
New media, for example, the internet has been involved in the decline in profits of print media.

I have also researched on the internet into the common generic features of web pages. One website, Jerz Setonhill.com, states that there are five key factors you must follow to create a conventional and successful newspaper based web page:

- Lead with your best stuff: put your best stuff at the top of the page to keep readers engaged and entertained
- Inform with meaningful links: to provide meaningful information to the reader
- Employ consistent navigation: 'Home' link in the navigation bar and other consistent links
- Prefer simple designs: to avoid confusion and to get straight to the point
- Write scannable text: provide meaningful subheadings, bulleted lists and bold keywords

What about The Hereford Times?

Here is a screen shot of the Hereford Times' web page






Is there any relation between this web page and the Harrogate Advertiser's web page?

- Noticeably different layout
- Hereford has larger title
- Both have main web page conventions such as navigation, images and text

FEEDBACK OF SECOND PAGE

After creating the second page of my newspaper, I wanted to gather a series of audience feedback in order to improve on my piece; the constructive criticism given could possibly help me to create a better piece overall, just like I did with my front page.

Below is a list of feedback I gathered:

Friends:
- "I love the advert and the other images on this page"
- "There are so many articles and I think this page is very conventional"
- "The advertisment towards the bottom right hand corner of the page is really good. I also think that the quality of the rest of the images is brilliant"
Teachers:
- "the Index towards the top of the page needs to be bigger"
- "I really like this page. It seems stronger than your first page at the moment. You need to get your images sorted altogether and the piece will be sucessful"

There is no significant changes I need to make to this page, however, I need to make the font of the Index section bigger and possibly add another image to the Driving Ban article.

CREATION OF SECOND PAGE

The screen shots featured illustrate the drafting process of my second page:


This screen shot shows the basic layout of my second page. I have added text boxes on Microsoft Publisher to create this layout. I believe that by adding specific elements to the page gradually, it helps to create an organised and planned structure.



This again shows the process of adding elements to my page for an organised structure. I have begun adding images as well as text, so that I can see how everything looks on the page. In my opinion, this is the easiest process when creating a media product such as this, as planning is key.



This is a screen shot of the middle part of my second newspaper page. I have added in all articles and images I need besides from the image for the 'HUB' article. This is again, a planning process to see how everything looks on the page.



Here is a screen shot of the bottom of the second page. I have continued to insert articles into the page as well as images. A variation of the articles originate from the articles I previously wrote in the blog. I have also written a few fillers to also insert into the second page.



Here, I have decided on my final main article on the second page, and inserted an image. I have also left space for the article itself.



This is almost the final product as I have inserted all of my articles I am completely happy with the layout. There are a few images I need to fulfill completion, as well as an advertisement. I may advertise a clothing line in the Harrogate area or even a florists to support the greenery of Harrogate.


This is the advertisement I made for my second page; it involves an image I took of my friend in cotemporary clothes to market a contemporary clothing line in Harrogate, Laudanam. I really like this advertisement as I believe it to be quite powerful; the use of black makes it stand out and the image is of a high quality.


MY FINAL PIECE

AUDIENCE FEEDBACK - 1ST PAGE

After creating the first page of my newspaper, I wanted to gather a series of audience feedback in order to improve on my piece; the constructive criticism given could possibly help me to create a better piece overall.

Below is a list of feedback I gathered:

Friends:
- "I really like the layout and it looks really neat. Some of the images aren't of a good quality though"
- "I like the use of green and I like the photography in the advertisement but the other images aren't as good"
Teachers:
- "Most of the images contain props or places as opposed to people. There needs to be images which contain the people of Harrogate"
- "There needs to be less images of shop fronts. One is enough"
- "The font should be bigger on the headlines as this can be seen in most newspapers"
- "I love the colour scheme and how it you've made a conventional house style. Everything is good apart from a few images and possibly the advertisement"

I also thought about the changes I could undergo in order for my front page to be a lot more successful:

- Images: these to need to be of a lot better quality, as most were taken from a mobile device. I also need to vary my angle of each image, as most on the front page are medium shots, therefore I need to take images of close ups and long distance shots. People need to be included in most of the images also in order for the newspaper to seem ultralocal. Possibly a photograph of the headteacher at Harrogate Grammar School would be good for the main article.
- Advertisement: this needs to be far more interesting than a photography based advert. Possibly an advertisement of a flower shop could be put here in order to compliment the greenery of Harrogate and its well known flower shows.
- Headlines these needs to bigger in order for the reader to be able to identify the article quickly.

Here are a few changes I made to my final piece which originated from my feedback:

- I have taken a photograph of the Head Teacher of Harrogate Grammar to support my main article; the previous image which can be seen on my drafted piece came from the internet as it was not my own. I have gone for a close up shot of Mr Sheriff (the headteacher) in order to vary my angles in each image.
- I have inserted images of a group of girls in order to support the article of Jakes restuarant and the Bar Crawl. I wanted more images of people in my newspaper as opposed to shop fronts that lack human perspective.

Here is a screen shot of the overall product:

PHOTOS & MANIPULATION

Most photographs shown on the front page of my newspaper have been taken from a mobile device. The main image is not my own, as this is temporary; I wish to take an image of the headteacher of Harrogate Grammar to support the article.

Using a mobile decreases the quality in the images, so I may need to use an SLR camera if I wish to replace my current images.

First I had to pick my images from a collection of shots, and then edit that final image. For example, for the article about Jakes restuarant, I had to pick from a variation of images of customers in Jakes restuarant:



I then edited the image in photoshop using a range of tools.


Here, I have used the Saturation and Hue tool to make the image a little more believable in terms of colour, as the image turned out to be quite bright as it was captured on an average digital camera.

Here, I have demonstrated the use of contrast and brightness.

I continued to edit all of my images as previously shown. Photoshop CS4 is a brilliant program to use for editing images and is used for professional photographs.

CREATION OF FRONT PAGE

The screen shots featured illustrate the drafting process when beginning to create my front page:

Here is a screen shot of the first stage of my newspaper front page. I began placing text boxes on the page to get an idea of the initial layout. The text box tool can be seen in the tool bar from Microsoft Word and is an easy application to use. After this stage, I then began to figure out where all of my news stories could potentially go, so I inserted the titles from each of my stories into the text boxes. I have also began to maintain a sufficient house style as I have used the colour green throughout the front page; I felt that the colour green could also compliment the greenery of Harrogate, and the well known Harrogate Flower shows.


This stage of my front page contains the following newspaper conventions so far:

- Cover lines
- Header
- Large Masthead
- Colour - house style
- Puns (e.g. Adjudicator "RULES" Admissions Unfair and The "MOUNT" On Cheltenham)
- Borders
- References to page numbers (e.g. "see page...")
- Large font for main article and masthead

Here is the second stage of drafting my newspaper front page. I began to insert my newspaper articles as well as understand where my images initially need to be. This process helps, as you can see visually whether certain articles fit into the text boxes or whether the layout must be changed. All of the articles included in my newspaper can be viewed in the previous blog: articles.


This stage of my front page contains other newspaper conventions so far, such as:

- Articles which include typical newspaper language (which will be dicussed further on in the blog
- Inserted an "online" column

This screen shot shows a more complteted stage of the newspaper; where I have inserted my news stories and began inserting the images to support the text. I have also included an "online" section which appears to be conventional in all ultralocal newspapers. By doing this, the buyer can then refer to the online page if they cannot access the paper itself. I have also inserted a picture box for where my advertisements will go, and a barcode which lies beneath a "recycled newspaper" logo. All ultralocal newspaper also include this recycling logo, in order to try and help the environment in saving paper resources. The grey text boxes to the left of the barcode include two other newspaper stories based on crime. These are grey, as they are added fillers which are also evident in other newspapers.

This stage of my front page contains the added newspaper conventions so far:

- Grey texts boxes for fillers
- Images to support text
- Barcode
- Recyling logo
- Space for advertisements

Here, I have inserted cover lines into the header of the newspaper, and I have also supported these with images. In my opinion, the images shown here are weak, and so are temporary, as I need to experiment with my photography a little more (for more information, see the next post: manipulation of images. i have also inserted a ....... which includes the price, website and date of the newspaper. I have done the following as these are typical newspaper conventions, and even the thicker border around the main article mirrors typical ultralocal newspaper conventions. Visually, the images and possibly the layout itself could be tweaked, but I would like some audience feedback on the final piece before re-doing certain aspects of the front page.


This screen shot shows the column to the right of my newspaper. It includes a section featuring key stories which are included inside the newspaper. All three images were taken from a mobile device, however, the poor quality weakens the overall effect. These smaller images need to be redone with a mega pixel camera in order to give the newspaper a professional look. Below these images, I have included page references and captions so that the audience is aware of what's happening and what the images are about.
Again, the borders around the main article can be seen here which is a main convention in ultralocal newspapers.

This screen shot involves my advertisement. I have used an original photograph taken from my photograph course to support the greenery of Harrogate. Although the advert itself markets a photography based campaign, the actual image itself is captured in Harrogate and compliments the consistent green influence in my newspaper.


Here is a screen shot of my final piece. I now need to gather a series of audience feedback in order to improve on anything which could influence the sale of the newspaper.

AUDIENCE RESEARCH & MISSION STATEMENT

This questionnaire will help me to create a successful newspaper, based on the feedback I recieve. This will also help me decided upon the newspaper I will create: whether it may be a national or ultra local paper etc.


The following questions are based on local newspapers in your area. This is a mulitple choice questionnaire unless specified otherwise.

1) Are you male or female?
[] Male
[] Female

2) How old are you?
[] Under 18
[] 19 - 30
[] 31 - 40
[] 41 - 50
[] Over 60

3) Do you purchase a local newspaper? If not, does your household?
[] Yes
[] No
[] Sometimes

4) What type of newspaper do you purchase and what is it called?
____________________________________

5) When do you purchase your local newspaper?
[] Daily
[] Weekly
[] Twice a week
[] Monthly
[] Yearly

6) Why do you buy your local newspaper? (If more than one, please specify)
[] Because I like to know what's going on in my area
[] Because I like to find out about future events
[] Because I like to see if there's anything I can do to help my area
[] Because I like to enter competitions and complete crosswords

7) What is the last story that caught your attention and what was it about?
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

8) Newspapers use a process called "dead donkey" in order to fill in the spaces of some newspapers. These are stories which contain very little detail and are often ignored by readers. Do you read these smaller stories?
[] Yes
[] No
[] Sometimes


9) Have you ever paid attention to a specific advertisement in your local newspaper, and thus considered into buying the product? If so, what kind of advertisement was is?
[] Yes (Please specify ___________________________________ )
[] No

10) What kind of photos do you expect in a local newspaper?
[] Good quality photos
[] Bad quality photos
[] Boring photos
[] Informative photos (conveying a message)

11) Do you feel that the containment of images are beneficial in your newspaper?
[] Not at all
[] Sort of
[] Yes, definitely

12) In your opinion, does your newspaper attract you visually? If so, what?
[] Yes ____________________________________________________ (Please specify)
[] No

13) Do you consider the price you pay for your local newspaper to be reasonable? (Please write down the price you pay for your newspaper next to 'Yes' if specified)
[] Yes _______
[] No

14) Finally, what, if anything, would you change about your local newspaper?
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Thank you for taking the time to fill out this questionnaire. Your feedback is greatly appreciated.


Questionnaire Feedback and Results

After creating the questionnaire, I decided to hand it out to 50 people, ranging from the age of 16 up to 40. I felt that this specific age group actually read newspapers, due to the maturity of these ages. I also felt that 50 pages of feedback is just the right proportion of information in which I can benefit from.
The results for all 14 questions are as follows:

1) 64% (32/50) were male
36% (18/50) were female

2) 40% (20/50) were 18 or under
34 (22/50) were 19 - 30
12 (6/50) were 31 - 40
8 (4/50) were 41 - 50
6 (3/50) were over 60

3) 100% (50/50) all purchase a local newspaper, or their household does.

4) Purchases range from; The Harrogate Advertiser (80%:40/50), The Knaresborough Post (10%:5/50) and The Ripon Gazette (4%:2/50)

5) All 100 (50/50) purchase their newspaper weekly, however, they also purchase other newspapers which do not benefit their local area (e.g. The Daily Mail, The Mirror) daily or monthly.

6) 44% (22/50) ticked all the boxes. 46% (23/50) specified the "Because I like to know what's going on in my area" option.

7) Local news headlines differed variously. Most speculation consquenced from the death of Michael Jackson, Swine Flu, and politics.

8) 60% (30/50) ticked the "sometimes" option. 30% (15/50) ticked the "no" option and the other 10% (5/50) opted for "yes"

9) 73% (38/50) specified "no" to reading advertisements.

10) 80% (40/50) specified the "good quality" option. 20% of those also opted for the "boring photos" option.

11) 62% (31/50) opted for "definitely". 38% (18/50) opted for sort of or not at all.

12) The majority of the feedback said that images and interesting headlines attract them towards a newspaper.

13) 98% (48/50) agreed that the price they pay for their local newspaper is reasonable.

14) Changes differed from:
- "there should be less so-called "dead donkey" stories as they seem irrelevant and no one really pays them any attention"
- "main headlines should be more important, e.g. Something tragic as opposed something which isn't very important"
- "more pictures"
- "larger writing for us old ones who cannot read very well!"

82% (41/50) felt that no changes should be applied to their local newspaper.

My Mission Statement

It is my aim to create a successful newspaper for the Harrogate area. Due to this, the newspaper I am creating needs to be ultra local, as the newspaper will include news relevant to the Harrogate area only. I also aim to target 21-41 year olds, as this age group carried the majority of people who read newspapers in my questionnaire. The majority of the people tested were also male, so the articles I include on the first two pages of my local newspaper may potentially be male bias. Because I have chosen to target an audience of above 21, the articles I choose to write about need be relevent to that age group. The news values I wish to include within my newspaper are going to be, proximity (as this will apply to people living in the Harrogate area), and social and human significance (as some articles may affect all people living in the Harrogate area). I do not wish to include the value politics as politics is normally advertised in national newspapers. The newspaper will be 75p, as I will gain extra income from the advertisements featured in my newspaper. Other factors such as layout and structure will be later considered in the production.