Purpose of the front cover
One of the main reasons for the magazine cover is to entice the reader!
The magazine has numerous functions to grab attention to potential buyers, which I am going to show you.
Masthead
The name of the magazine displayed in a specific typeface. This is the visual branding of the title and is often done in a specially designed typeface to be easily recognised and unique.
Tag Line
This
goes near the masthead, and is sometimes attached to it. It shows what the magazine is about or who it
might be aimed at
Central Image
This
is one of the most important parts of the front cover as it catches a reader’s
eye before they look at the printed text.
The central image will be relevant to the magazine’s purpose and
audience, and will often be strongly related to the feature article.
The Cover Model
For many magazines, a cover model will be used.
This may be a celebrity, or well-known individual connected with the
magazine’s genre (e.g. a rock star posing for a music magazine); or it may be a
photographic model.
Anchorage
This
is a term that refers to how images are referred to. In magazines, images will be anchored by
captions (directly explaining what the pictures depict), by coverlines, or by
articles and headlines.
Secondary Image
They
may be used on the front cover to help promote other features in the magazine,
usually anchored by a coverline.
Cover Line
These
are located at various points on the front cover, telling readers about the
magazine’s contents – and specifically, the articles they’ll find.
Mode of Address
Mode
of Address refers to the way that magazines communicate with their
readers. Some magazines will use a direct
mode of address, communicating with individual readers. This might be through use of the cover model
(e.g. pointing directly at the camera), or through the use of 2nd
person pronouns (“you”).
Puff
As
in “puff of air”, this is a device which helps to draw attention to and promote
certain elements in the magazine. They
are often set against colourful backgrounds and are shaped – e.g. rounded. Quite often they advertise a “freebie” or a
special feature in the magazine
Pug
Pugs
are the “ears” of a magazine and are placed at the top left or right-hand
corners of a front cover. They usually
display a promotion from that magazine’s edition, or possibly the price
Barcode/Price
Straightforward
features, but they need to be strategically placed. The barcode shouldn’t distort any of the
cover’s principal features, and the price will usually be displayed nearby.
Colour
this is used to great effect. Some
magazines will alter all the colour schemes from edition to edition (masthead,
coverline fonts, etc), while others will alter some colours to coordinate with
the central image.
Font
Front
covers will display a variety of font choices, usually adapted to infer meaning
to the text they’re displaying
