Audience Profile

This magazine has a target audience that is mainly interested in the Hip-Hop and R’n’B genre. In the top centre of the page we see that there is almost something like a slogan saying, ‘Vibe; redefining hip-hop’. This automatically allows for us to know that this is a magazine with a direct target audience. This shows that they do not cater to the needs of those who are possibly interested in indie or rock, it solely being hip-hop.

The website has a clear and easy layout, with sections that when clicked leads the audience to different aspects of the magazine and its online features. This is clever as they are able to incorporate features that don not exist on the magazine that they print and sell in stores. Features like ‘Vixen’ and signing up for the newsletter might not be on  the actually magazine and having an online alternative could interest those that aren’t necessarily interested in buying handheld magazines.

Vibe magazine is a popular magazine that is mostly read and known about in the United States. Most people are unaware of the date that the magazine started, some thinking that it began in 2006 when in actual fact it was created in the late 90’s. It was created by musician Quincy Jones who wanted to make a magazine about music with the fact that he was musically inclined. So that the magazine would definitely be able to launch in 1993, he partnered up with Time Inc. Since that time the magazine has been bought and sold by various companies including Miller Publishing, Spin Magazine, Wickes Group of Companies in 2006 and InterMedia Partners. Even though this was the case, the magazine was created and launched by Jones and Time Inc.

There have been many artist and musicians that have featured in the Vibe magazine.

Having an idea of who has been in the magazine will give a rough idea as to when Vibe magazine really started. Among those musicians are the late Michael Jackson, R. Kelly, Eminem, The Fugees, Lil Wayne, Keyshia Cole, Jennifer Lopez, Beyonce, Mariah Carey, Snoop Dogg, TLC, and Brandy. Some, if not all, of these musicians were already popular in the early '90s. Being such a magazine which focuses Hip-Hop and R’n’B as a genre they have a large amount of competition. Vibe focuses more on Hip-Hop and R’n’B music than any other types of music. In this regard, the closest of its competitors may be XXL and The Source, which focus on rap music. Rolling Stone may also be considered a competitor.

 

The generation that the magazine is being aimed at is the age group of about 17 demographic. As this a generation where they are high on technology, having a website means that they can access the website from their handheld devices such as Blackberry’s and iPhone’s. The website has the option to sign up for a subscription. Having access to Internet and e-mail from handheld devices such as these mobile phones makes it more likely for there to be a wide audience who make use of the online services.