Create ideas for the clients and planning (U4: P2, P3)

Create ideas for the clients and planning (U4: P2, P3)

Learning outcome 2(U4): Be able to initiate, plan and design a new interactive media product to a client, is assessed in this task

Proposal 

Purpose

The purpose of the website that needs to be produced is promoting MegaMovies new sci-fi film called Bionic Attack!, which will be launched along side their new sci-fi comic which needs to be advertised and marketed as they’re looking to diversify into the comic industry. This website will need to be entertaining as the target audience’s attention needs to be held, which won’t happen if the website is boring. MegaMovie requested that this website be easy to use, provide users with a positive experience, and include relevant information about their new film and comic. This website also has to be able to be viewed on a number of devices. It’s also important that MegaMovie’s social media handles be included, and linked on the website so users can click, and be redirected to their social media pages. This website will also have the purpose of journalism as they will be constantly updating the viewers of the website of new and upcoming projects and events. Lastly, this website also needs to allow consumers to buy merchandise forms he franchise, and promote script writers.

Target Audience

This interactive media product needs to be targeted towards a target audience of 15-18 year olds. This means when creating the interactive media product, it needs to meet the needs of teenagers within that age range. For example, when advertising the movie, and the comic on the website, we should include a synopsis so they know what its about and they can see whether they’re interested in it. Sci-fi is quite a broad genre as it can range from aliens to monsters and even Mecha characters. By including the type of sci-fi branch the film is, it gives the audience more os a sense of what they’re about to watch. Furthermore, people of the age may also be interested in certain actors and actresses, so, when advertising the movie, we can also list the cast members so that viewers can see if anyone their interested is involved in the film. Lastly, we can also include character introductions for each character in the comic so the viewers can get a feel for the art style they’ll will be looking at, as well as if they align, or relate to any of the characters in the comic before reading.

For the comic, the brief also stated there is a secondary target audience of 12-15 year olds. Whilst there is only a three year gap in-between the youngest of both target audiences, the secondary target audience will have a second set of needs. For example, if audiences within that age range are looking at a big block of text, chances are they’ll get un-interested and click away. This means we should include fun images relating to the site in order to break up the text and keep their attention. As well as this we can add colour to the website that ties in with the movie and comic in order to keep the site on theme. This will also meet the needs of the primary target audience.

The website will need to meet both these target audiences needs. In order to do this we will include information that the target audience might want to know such as the cast for the film. This way, users can see if any of their favourite actors are included and therefore become more interested in the show. Another one of the target audiences needs would be plenty of visuals. These visuals will ensure that the target audiences stay interested in the content and will draw them in. This means we will need to include plenty of images and videos relevant to the movie and the comic the website is trying to promote

Content to be included

The website must feature a minimum of 6 pages, minimum 2 forms of interactivity and must include images, animation and audio/video as stated by the brief.

The images included should feature posters and screen grabs from the movie in order to advertise the movie Bionic Attack to the target audience, along side relevant advertisement media such as front covers and posters for the comic Attack of the Bionics. We can also include video advertisements of Bionic Attack in order to fill the video and audio content requirement.

More content to be included is the social media links to the social platforms that MegaMovie are on. The aim of this is to link MegaMovie’s social media accounts so that the target audiences can click on these links and be taken to the social profiles so they can keep updated about the movie and comic. We need to make sure were linking social media platforms popular amongst the wide age range 12-18, these platforms will include TikTok, Instagram, Snapchat and twitter.

More important content to include would be forms of interactive content such as buttons, videos and shops. Merchandise shop was one of the requirements in the brief so we will include an interactive merchandise shop on one of the pages of the website. Users can interact with this by clicking on the item they want and choosing colours and sizes for their items. Furthermore another form of interactivity will be featured with the use of video elements. Users will be able to interact with the video with the pause and play button, and adjust the videos volume.

Lastly we will include information about MegaMovie along side modes of content such as email, phone number and PO box. We will make sure that with this content we will also include the working hours of the company so that those calling know when they will be able to talk with someone.

Client Needs

MegaMovie (our client) needs us to create an interactive media product available on a range of devices to advertise their new movie Bionic Attack, as well as the comic produced Attack of the Bionics along side it. To meet these needs, I shall be producing a website with various interactive elements such as buttons, links, animations, along side separate pages advertising the movie and comic. Once the comic is published, viewers will be able to read the comic online, as well as download it to their device so they can read when they’re offline. In order to attract people to the comic, the website will feature character sheets where users can learn about the characters in the comic, as well as little easter eggs throughout the website that advertise the comic. Then, to advertise the movie more, we will include a cast list so viewers can see if any of their favourite actors are involved, as well as a synopsis, and clips from the film (that down spoil anything) in order to attract audiences more.

User Needs

The needs of the user are extremely important as these are the people who are going to be using the website, and they’re the people who we need to advertise the content (movie and comic) to. User needs include easy accessibility to the website, and easy navigations thought the entire website. If the website is difficult to access and navigate, users will be less inclined to use our website, so therefore our advertisements and comics won’t reach audiences. Furthermore, if the website is hard to navigate, the message and content were trying to get across won’t be received on the receiving end (the target audiences). This means less of an audience, and therefore revenue for MegaMovie as people won’t be able to buy merchandise, or get information on the film and comic.

Another huge user need would be legible and readable text/fonts. If the writing is in a complex font, the text could be hard to read, therefore deferring people from using the website. This means the font used for the website should be simple and easy to read. On top of this, proper language will have to be used in order to maintain a professional look to the website. Whilst the website is being marketed towards a younger target audience, the language must still be appropriate and proper.

Lastly, an appropriate colour palette will be expected by users. We must use colours that dont clash, but compliment each other. If the colours clash, it can be harsh on the eyes, and people won’t be inclined to continue using our website. Furthermore, the colour of the test is also important as it has to be on a colour which makes it easy to read. For example, we shouldn’t make the colours of the text and the background clash as the text will then become hard to read and won’t serve the purpose it’s supposed to.

Delivery Format and Platforms for use

The website will be available for view on electronic devices such as computers, smart phones and tablets ranging from different companies such as Apple, Microsoft, Dell, Google etc. This is a great range of devices to deliver the website on as these are the only devices that people are able to access websites on, so making sure that we include every device in our delivery, makes sure we are able to reach as much of our target audience as possible. This is because not everyone has laptops, so only making this product available on laptops will severely limit us in terms of audience reach.

Platform Budget

As our website features a comic, we need to make sure that the drawings and designs dont get stolen from others without permission. This means we will have to hire a copyrighter in order to copyright all our original designs, meaning we can take legal action against anyone who steals our content. Copyrighters can also check our our content to see if we have copied original content from anyone else, and help us avoid a lawsuit. The average hourly rate for a copyrighter is £50-£70, and they typically make £400-£500 a day. So therefore when budgeting, and spending said budget, we need to include the wages for the copywriter.

Furthermore, royalties need to be considered when budgeting. This means we need to pay the creators of the content we embed into the website royalties as the website brings in income. The typical royalties percentage can range from 25% - 75% but this can depend on whether you’re getting royalties on a percentage amount of the entire website income, or if you’re only getting royalties on the income generated by the product on the website you own.

Lastly, we also need to budget for website/domain hosting. In the UK, depending on what hosting plan you use, web hosting can cost as little as £2 a month, or all the way up to over £400 a month. This means we need to do research on the best hosting plan for the content were providing in order to find the best, cheapest price for hosting our website.

Sample Materials

Design Ideas

The aim for the design of the website is to get it to fit in with the aesthetic of the movie as well as the comic. This means i’m going for a more sci-fi, metallic look for the website. This will give the website an over all better feel if all the aesthetic stay consistent rather than having a website that doesn’t fit the aesthetic of the products its advertising at all, this can drive people away from using the website because they may get the wrong idea about the movie and comic.

As the website is sci-fi themed, the website will feature a mix of shades of grey, as well as neon hints to fit the codes and conventions of the sci-fi aesthetic. As well as this, some features of the website will be black and white to match the aesthetic and colour scheme of the comic Attack of the Bionics. Lastly, the fonts used on the website will match the fonts used in the comic for the title and main body text as this will ultimately true everything in together.

A specific element that will be included in the website will be a hamburger icon. This icon will release a drop down menu of all the other pages in the website, the user can then click on one and be directed to that page. This means the navigation will take up less space on the other specialised pages, whilst it will be displayed across the top of the screen on the main home page.

The website will also include breadcrumbs on the home page. The website will give a brief synopsis of both the movie and the comic, and under that there will be a ‘Read more’ link (breadcrumb) in which viewers can click and be taken to the movie/comic’s respective page.

For users to get to different pages, they will click the navigation buttons which are labelled with the corresponding page. This main navigation menu will be spread across the top of the web page. It’s typical for website to have their navigation at the top, or on the left side of their website. So by sticking to typical codes and conventions, users won’t get confused by unconventional placing of elements.

Wire frames/Website storyboard      

 Mood board

This mood board includes inspiration for the colour scheme, design, and elements of my website. I have included the two fonts in which I will be using, as well as the colour scheme for my comic which I will integrate into the website in order to keep the aesthetic of the website constant. The layout and designs I have put on this mood board focus around a sci-fi and bionic sort of theme in order to stick with the theme of the comic and the movie being advertised.

 Navigation Map/Sitemap

Graphical User Interface (GUI)

On computers, users should be able to move their mouse, and click on the interactive elements of the website such as buttons in order to perform specific actions. For example, if someone were to move their mouse to the ‘Download as PDF’ button on the Attack of the Bionics web page, and click, ideally the PDF file of the comic should appear in their downloads file.

Similarly, if someone were on a smartphone or tablet, they should be able to press on the screen and interact with the interactive elements of the website such as buttons and videos. For example, if a viewer of the website on a smart device were to press the play button of the movie trailer on the Bionic Attack web page, ideally, the video should start playing, and even sound should come out if the device is not on mute.

We aim to have as many interactive features as possible, in order to make the viewers experience more enjoyable, and also simple. For example, interactivity when it comes to the merchandise tab will be extremely helpful to users as they should be able to choose their size, and perhaps even different colours of the object they intend to buy. If we serve viewers a positive experience, they are more likely to use out website again, and recommend it to friends.

Commercial considerations

We need to make sure our website is being advertised as widely as possible to ensure we have a large user base. Whilst we will be advertising the website on our social media platforms through techniques such as hyperlinks, this will only reach the people who are already following us. We need to make sure that our website is advertised to more than just our following. In order to do this, we could potentially look into similar websites/companies to ours and try get sponsorships. If we were to get sponsored by these companies, and advertised by these websites, we will be able to spread news about our website to an even larger audience than just our following. It is important that we only do this though companies and websites that are similar to our own because otherwise we will be advertising our website to a completely different target audience with different needs and interests.

Furthermore we can look into more traditional methods of advertising such as billboards, posters and even magazine adverts. Posters at places like bus stops and train stations will be beneficial as those are typically the areas where we can reach our target audience on their way to and from school. Billboards are also efficient as our target audience will get to see them as they’re being driven/driving themselves places, or if they’re just walking past. Lastly, magazine adverts will be effective if they’re put in the right magazines. We would have to make sure that the magazines in which we are advertising our website are relevant to the content we deliver. For example, as our website delivers sci-fi content, we should look for sci-fi, science, film and comic magazines to advertised in compared to magazines with a fashion or food focus.

Lastly, in terms of generating more income in terms of our own website, we should open advertising space on the website for other companies to come and pay us to advertise them. As our website is advertising a sci-fi film and comic, we should only accept offers to advertise companies/items which fit the theme of our website, and things that our users will be interested in. For example, we could advertise figurines from other appropriate sci-fi franchises. That way our user base will be actually interested in the item being advertised, generating more income for the company that paid for the advertising space, and us.

Production Schedule