Advanced Online Media was definitely a challenging module to say the least. At first I could not quite get my head around what it was I was supposed to be doing, but after a few classes and getting my head together, I managed to get there in the end. It has helped me to understand the potential of what the internet could be. I have produced a blog where I put together my thoughts and process of the module from the beginning of the semester. I have learnt about online media, although not as much as I had hoped for, which for my generation, is beneficial considering as I am studying journalism in the modern world, where most things are actively run online.
There were moments where I felt lost and had no clue as to how I would carry on. There were a plethora of online tools which I had never heard about, like Storify and Cover it live, which is in aid of live blogging. This module has helped me to realise that online media is more than just simply being online, and that it’s about new products, communication, networks, multiple platforms and new services, as well as being original and creative. Although being original isn’t always that easy, as part of the app pitch process, It required me to come up with a new idea. This was hard considering these days there’s nothing ‘new’, and that theres always something that’s already been done.
Individual Project
When first given this assignment, I didn’t quite know how to go about it. The brief was quite bewildering and very open. What I like about briefs like these when they are vague and very open is the excuse to be very creative about what I want to do. The downside is the fact I have to sit back and actually think what that might be. After spending ages debating on what I wanted to do, I decided to do an info-graph.
At first I wanted to create the info=graph on something based on the film industry as I have such a huge passion for that area, but then there was no story behind it that made we want to stick with that path. There was the whole Oscars things where I could talk about the radical equality- but that had already been done and I was slowly losing interest in the area… simply because I wouldn’t know how to write it. Then I had the idea of doing Marvel versus DC Comics, which would’ve been interesting to me, as there is a huge list of Marvel films, but probably not as much as DC. As I started this, I left it too long until I went back to it and I gave up. I had simply lost interest and so I started over on something else. Lucky I hadn’t left it to last minute, I gave myself a decent amount of time to prepare on the work I had to do, and research and I needed to find.
The next thing I thought about was health and fitness, and how people are either encouraged by it or not. For me personally, I love my fitness routine and find it hard to stay away from the gym and my personal trainer. I wanted to explore in certain areas, what people think of health and fitness in general, and whether their lives have incorporated either the nutritional side of things or just simply being more active.
I had been reading Woman’s Health Magazine, as it is currently my bible and I came across a few facts and figures within a few articles. I think that is where it sparked something in me to do an info-graph on this subject, although I was skeptical about it being allowed or not. After I received the thumbs up from Steve, I went to work and started on my survey. After receiving quite a few responses form my health and fitness surveys, I then took that data and turned it into an info-graph. I wanted to use some sort of correlation between exercise and smoking, and whether or not people who do smoke spend less time exercising than people who don’t smoke and exercise often. I found this to be interesting and very creative. I had never used info graphs before, let alone create one. I never even knew what it was, not really anyway. I enjoyed reading through the responses to the questions, and narrowing the answers down. I felt the freedom to then write about my results and how I came about them. It was interesting for me as well to see how it all turned out. I am happy with it all, although I wish that maybe I could’ve done a bit more to the info-graph, as it might not be as detailed as I think it could’ve been.
App development & Pitch
Coming up with an idea for a mobile app is a lot harder than I thought it would be. For a long time I was stuck on what I wanted it to be about and who my audience was. At first I had two ideas I could potentially use, one being some sort of motivation enhancer and the other a live concert update/ where you can buy cheaper tickets from, as well as engage with others who have similar tastes to potentially create new friendships.
I read the feedback from Jim a few weeks before the pitch was due, which helped me profusely. I gave him the concept of the idea and what I was hoping it would achieve, and to my shock he liked it and said it ‘definitely has potential’. I needed to think about personalising the app, and how it might access other data from other places, like music listened from iTunes, Spotify or Google Play etc. I also needed to think about the revenue side of things, and how it was going to make some sort of profit. Jim suggested having extras at the gigs or even selling merchandise. Another thing is the fact that the music industry could be interested in something like this, places like NME or Pitchfork, as ‘it’s a natural extension of what they’ve always done- alert people to gigs by bands’. To make the app as unique as possible, I needed to do some competitor analysis and ‘check out the competition’. I did this in regards to the website Ticketmaster.
I started off with a few sketches to see what it would all look like, to bring it together on one page. I then used InDesign, used an iPhone template and went from there. I created a few examples of how it would look like, which took me a while as I hadn’t tried something like this before. When it came to creating the presentation, I wanted to have something simple that I could show, but talk more in detail about. When it came to the name of the app, I was struggling on ideas that were simple but catchy as well. I then finally decided on L.I.V.E. It doesn’t stand for anything, as I have been asked about that but I think it gives a good representation of what it is- an app about live music. It stands out.
During my pitch, I was very nervous about how it would go. I had practiced over and over, but still it was never the exact same. I had thought too much about the app that sometimes I forgot the smaller details, which would’ve helped if I had included them into the pitch itself- like funding for example and other examples other than Ticketmaster. I think even though I did ‘enough’, I feel as though I could’ve done a bit more in-depth research on the comparisons, as well as funding and revenue. I tried to explain each section, the section that I gave examples of, in as much detail as possible. I had feared I would leave something of high importance out, or talk too much about things that were irrelevant. I tried not to sway too far from my set path. I concentrated and focused on what I wanted to get out to the markers, what I wanted to make sure they understood about this app. Geoffrey and Dave seemed to understand the concept of the app and agreed that it was a good idea, I think anyway. I was a bit overwhelmed when I finished, that when it came to the questions my head wasn’t quite in the room, so it took me a while to get my head together for the many questions that were thrown at me.
The questions themselves definitely threw me a little bit. Some I thought I could answer easily, but there were some which definitely took a while to think about. Over all though it went well and even though I think it could’ve been better, I also think it could’ve been worse as well. I knew that what I was bringing wasn’t anything ‘new’ as such, but I wanted to give a better approach to just buying gig tickets (having the chance to connect to people from all over the world). I realised that there is some sort of market out there, as the music/ gig/ live music industry in forever growing. There will never be a time where people won’t want to listen to live music. The idea of this app might not be for everyone, but it at least gives the option for everyone, every age and gender, to be able to listen to their favourite bands and artists, live, and it’s right at their fingertips. My idea of it, is a better service for the people who are passionate about listening to live music. Not having to pay ridiculous amounts of money on the extras like booking fees and shipping charges (like Ticketmaster currently do).
Conclusion
After studying this module, I think I have become a better writer, and I have become more imaginative when it comes to thinking outside the box. I have stepped out of my comfort zone and done something I never thought I would do; an Info-graph and coming up with an idea of a brand new app and designing the layout of it as well. And I cannot forget about creating a pitch, as for me that’s a step further than just your regular everyday presentation.
When it comes to writing, more specifically blogging, I have found how important links are within the actual text. I have also enjoyed embedding links into my own work, and hyperlinking one piece of content to another. I learnt a lot from a class about aggregation, how you incorporate other pieces of work into your own, linking each website and taking quotes, making it your own story. But on the other hand, having people aware that it isn’t solely your own. A difference from just out right copy and pasting.
When it came to the app, I was really stuck on designing the layout but, after talking to a few people and getting ideas on how I could start it, I opened up InDesign and once I had a few ideas, I went straight for it and ended up with nine pages/ template examples.
Going through this module over the last few months has opened my eyes into the different types of technology used in online media. As a blogger myself, I have enjoyed being able to post content whenever I get the inspiration. I have definitely learned a lot more than I thought I would from this module, and it should, hopefully, take me far in this life when it comes to getting a career in Journalism, whatever that might end up being.
Thinking outside the box 