WHAT HAVE YOU LEARNED FROM YOUR AUDIENCE FEEDBACK?

Leanne Westbury

HOW WE COLLECTED FEEDBACK

We created a questionnaire which contained a mixture of open and closed questions in order to collect feedback on the main text, ancillary texts, and how all three worked together. We collected fifteen written responses to the questionnaires from a varied sample of gender and ethnicity as our texts are targeted at a varied audience.

I also asked two individuals to watch/ listen to/ read the texts and provide verbal feedback as the responses for the questionnaire were fairly limited.

AFTER WATCHING THE OPENING 5 MINUTES OF THE DOCUMENTARY WOULD YOU WATCH THE REST OF THE PROGRAMME?

YesMaybeNo

AFTER WATCHING THE OPENING 5 MINUTES OF THE DOCUMENTARY WOULD YOU WATCH THE REST OF THE PROGRAMME?

The response to the first question proved very positive as all but one of the sample of people to fill out a questionnaire answered ‘yes’. This shows we successfully targeted our audience as the opening appealed to them.

DID YOU FIND THE SUBJECT OF THE DOCUMENTARY INTERESTING?

YesNo

Again the response to this question was extremely positive as only one person (of fifteen) said the topic did not appeal to them. This shows the majority of our target audience who responded were interested in the topic of illegal downloading.

DID YOU FIND THE SUBJECT OF THE DOCUMENTARY INTERESTING?

WHAT PART OF THE DOCUMENTARY DID YOU LIKE THE MOST?

Effec

ts/ T

rans

ition

s

Editi

ng

Form

al In

terv

iews

Brum

note

s Quo

tes

Back

grou

nd F

oota

ge

Vox

Pops

0

1

2

3

4

5

6

The aspects mentioned most in response to this question referred to editing, background footage and vox pops. More specifically it was the tiled vox pops and title sequence within editing and clips of stores, gigs and festivals which featured as background music. It is interesting that the audience particularly responded to the creative aspects of the text within editing such as the tiled shots and shows it may have been effective to create and include more visual representations of things such as facts and statistics using PhotoShop or Adobe Fireworks.

WHAT PART OF THE DOCUMENTARY DID YOU LIKE THE MOST?

WHAT PARTS OF THE DOCUMENTARY DO YOU THINK COULD HAVE BEEN IMPROVED?

‘Expansion on mention of Brum Notes Magazine’

‘‘Text on screen

needed to stand out more and be on screen longer to

read fully’

‘You could have had footage of formal

interviewees working to show their

position.’

‘steadier camera in

parts’

background footage’

‘The music was too loud during formal

interviews’

‘more detailed

explanation’

‘background sound’

‘websites people use

to download on’

All suggestions for improvement are reasonable and mostly refer to minor glitches in the editing/filming process which could have been addressed more successfully than they were such as the scrolling text on screen which did not allow enough time to read. Other suggestions such as the expansion on explanation of the topic and more information about Brum Notes Magazine are things that could be addressed within the remainder of the documentary as it was only the first five minutes we were instructed to create.

WHAT PARTS OF THE DOCUMENTARY DO YOU THINK COULD HAVE BEEN IMPROVED?

DID YOU FEEL THE DOUBLE PAGE SPREAD STOOD OUT AND CAUGHT YOUR ATTENTION?

 ‘pictures were good, didn’t like the colours of

the title’

‘pictures were eye-catching and relevant’

‘good use of colour’

‘there is too much white space’

‘there needs to be more structure and

professionalism’

The response to the double page spread was varied; featuring both positive comments and constructive criticism. The criticism pointed out weaknesses in the text such as too much white space and an unprofessional structure. The text could improved by addressing these points and including more codes and conventions such as page numbers, a byline, a dropcap etc.

DID YOU FEEL THE DOUBLE PAGE SPREAD STOOD OUT AND CAUGHT YOUR ATTENTION?

AFTER READING THE ARTICLE WOULD IT MAKE YOU WANT TO WATCH THE DOCUMENTARY?

YesNo

The feedback to this question was generally positive as twelve out of fifteen responses were ‘yes’, leaving only three people who wouldn’t be influenced by the text to watch the documentary. It is possible that addressing aforementioned potential improvements may alter the response of the minority.

AFTER READING THE ARTICLE WOULD IT MAKE YOU WANT TO WATCH THE DOCUMENTARY?

AFTER LISTENING TO THE RADIO TRAILER WOULD YOU WANT TO WATCH THE DOCUMENTARY?

Sales

YesMaybeNo

Interesting, upbeat music

It grabbed your attention with the opening question

I liked the beat.

The radio trailer proved more successful than the double page spread as thirteen of fifteen people said it would influence the likelihood of watching the documentary, the remaining three responding with ‘maybe’. There were no responses that said ‘no’. Some responses included brief comments on the text about the music and impact of the opening question- showing that using a conventional rhetorical question successfully engaged with the audience.

AFTER LISTENING TO THE RADIO TRAILER WOULD YOU WANT TO WATCH THE DOCUMENTARY?

DID YOU FEEL THE DOCUMENTARY, RADIO TRAILER AND DOUBLE PAGE SPREAD WORKED WELL TOGETHER?

Yes Doc and trailer yes, not mag

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

14

16

The response to this question showed that the main text and ancillary texts do work well together as all but one responses were positive. The one response that differed showed that the individual felt the documentary and radio trailer worked well together, however the double page spread lacked consistency within the combination.

DID YOU FEEL THE DOCUMENTARY, RADIO TRAILER AND DOUBLE PAGE SPREAD WORKED WELL TOGETHER?

WHAT DID YOU THINK OF THE QUALITY OF THE INTERVIEWS SHOWN IN THE DOCUMENTARY?

‘good quality, shot well,

good sound’

‘addressed issues well’

‘detailed explanation and good vox pops’

‘relevant, well chosen experts’

‘one of the interviews had

lighting issues but the content was

good’

‘professional set up’

All responses were positive, however small issues were pointed out such as lighting in one of the formal interviews. This is something we expected to be picked up on as the lighting during filming the interview was insufficient which is something we should have picked up on during the filming process.

WHAT DID YOU THINK OF THE QUALITY OF THE INTERVIEWS SHOWN IN THE DOCUMENTARY?

DO YOU FEEL THE QUALITY OF THE SOUND IN BOTH THE DOCUMENTARY AND RADIO TRAILER WAS GOOD?

 ‘good sound, music fitted

well’

‘clear and easy to understand’

‘music was sometimes

overpowering’

‘radio trailer- sound levels

aren’t all equal

‘slight level difference in

documentary but consistent over

all’

‘background noise in vox pops

sometimes distracting’

Several discrepancies in sound levels were addressed in response to this question. We did alter sound levels in order to ensure they were appropriate and sufficiently audible when layered and did not expect as many aspects to be picked up on. This response stressed to us the importance of sound levels and attention to sound during filming.

DO YOU FEEL THE QUALITY OF THE SOUND IN BOTH THE DOCUMENTARY AND RADIO TRAILER WAS GOOD?

FOCUS GROUP RESPONSE

The individuals who were asked to provide some detailed feedback commented on all three texts. One male, aged 23 and one female 18 were asked to ensure the feedback came from both genders as the texts are aimed at both.

Documentary:“The vox pops were good but could have been filmed in more places like town centre to get a wider age range involved.”

Radio Trailer:“ The opening to was good because it grabbed your attention but there could have been more sound effects or change in music because my attention drifted half way through.”

Double Page Spread: “The layout does look like something you would see in a magazine but the attention to detailisn’t there. It wouldn’t grab myattention enough if I was flickingthrough a magazine.”

Documentary:“The content was good but some things were only briefly mentioned, making it feel a bit rushed. It would have been good to hear more about Brum Notes and maybe mention big music companies.”

Radio Trailer:“It was good that the voice over was the same and the opening question really makes you listen. The sound varies a bit but not too much.”

Double Page Spread: “It does look like a real article but it could have done with having a fancytitle and some graphics to interest who its trying to appeal to.”

The response picked up on some of the things already mentioned in the questionnaire responses which shows that aspects such as sound levels and white space are particular aspects within the ancillary texts that should have had more attention paid to in the production stages. Other useful suggestions were made such as filming locations and design ideas for the double page spread.

FOCUS GROUP RESPONSE