The document provides an analysis of the Empire magazine homepage layout and design. It notes key elements like the prominent red logo at the top left, main navigation categories listed horizontally below it focused on movies and TV, and large featured images and articles promoting upcoming films. It also describes advertising placements and sections for latest movie and TV show news and reviews below with representative images and highlights. The purpose is to attract readers, promote key content, and generate revenue through advertising.

1. Empire magazine homepage analysis
Toby Haslam
Startingfromthe topleftof the website,the red“EMPIRE” logostandsout inthe white background
to clearlyshowthe well-recognisedlogo,andtoact as a linkback to the homepage. Empire
magazine hasuseditsownspeciallydesignfontforthe logo,one whichhasbecome a leadingiconin
the magazine industry,particularlyfilmmagazines.Reinforcinghow iconicthe logois,ishow itcan
be featuredonmagazinesandbe recognisedevenif itisbehindthe mainimage.Since the boldand
vibrantredstandsout on the background,the website canaffordtohave the logofeaturedata
relativelysmall size.Tothe rightof the logo,andrunningacross the screenhorizontallyare a
selectionof the otherpagesthatcan be selectedandviewed.Theyare separatedindividuallyby
thin,almostinvisibledividersthatspecifyeachdifferentcategory,suchasmoviesandgaming;with
‘movies’‘news’‘reviews’and‘features’inone category.The mostimportantfeaturesof the
magazine are listedfirst,with‘movies’takingthe firstposition.Thisisbecause the magazine
specialisesmainlyinfilmandTV,appealingtoa veryvast audience.Inthiscategoryfeaturedacross
the top, the words‘news’‘reviews’and‘features’are ina greyfontto signifythattheyare sub-
categories.Towardsthe endof thisline are categoriesmore closelyassociatedwiththe businessof
the company,for example theirshopwhichattractsa niche audience of collectors,anda
subscriptionlinkwhichwouldrefertothe circulationof the magazine.Inthe toprightof the
webpage,Empire magazineconformstostandardconventionsof awebpage byincludingasearch
option,signalledbythe instantlyrecognisableandsimplistic magnifyingglasswhichprovides
associationsof findingsomething.
Underneaththe bar of extralinkstomore pagesof the website isquite alarge image thatfillsthe
widthof the page,witha simple logoof someone whothe audience canassume tobe happy,and
the letters‘CASA’.CASA standsforCourtAppointedSpecialAdvocates,andisa charitylinkedto
helpingchildreninamannerof ways throughvoluntarywork.Forthisto be displayedonsucha
large organisation’swebsitesuchasEmpire magazines, the audience canassume thatrevenue made

2. fromthe magazinesandproductsgotowardsthis charity.Alsoandmore obviously,the audience can
associate Empire withgooddeedsandsee the companyina positive light. Alternatively,thiscould
be replacedwithanadvertfor somethinglikeBTor car insurance,where the companieswouldhave
to pay Empire tobe able toshowthison theirwebsite increasingrevenue.
The most noticeable thingonthe webpage isthe mainstorythatisbeingshown,keptuptodate as
the magazine is.Currentto the date of 7th
February2018, the storythat takesmostprominence isa
large image of a scene from JurassicWorld:Fallen Kingdom whichshowsthe ‘miniscule’ChrisPratt
(the mainactor of the film) standingmetersawayfroma roaringdinosaur.Thispicture hasbeen
specificallyselectedasmanydetailscreate athrillingsenseof action,suchas the roaringteeth-filled
jawof the giantdinosaur,the remainsof a vehicle andanotherdinosaur,andhow the actoris posed
as if to be terrifiedof whatthe audiencecaninstantlyassume tobe a near-deathexperience.The
textaccompanyingthisimage reads“EverySuperBowl 2018 TrailerYou NeedToSee”. Empire has
usedthe startingwordas ‘Every’to demonstrate agreatwidthof inclusive informationaboutthe
topic,beingthe film.The choice tomentionthe SuperBowl wouldappealtobothEmpire and
AmericanFootball fansandaudiences,aseveryyearthe SuperBowl showsarange of new film
trailerswhichcompanieshave paidenormousamountsof money toshow. The use of ‘2018’
demonstrateshowcurrentitis,andthe use of a demandingwordcouldpsychologicallymake any
viewersthinkthattheyneedtosee it.Otherstoriesthathave beenshownare showninarelatively
similarfashiontothe mainone,andlinkinsome cases,like two BlackPantherarticleswhichread
“Michael B. Jordanon PlayingBlackPanthersVillain”and“ReadEmpire’sBlackPantherReview”
whichgenerate hype andthe wantto readinformationonthe nextfilmin the giantMarvel
CinematicUniverse.Furtherappealingtoaudiencesisthe interview thatEmpire have done with
actor Michael B. Jordan,whomay appeal to people readingit,evenif theyare notinterestedin
Black Panther,theymaybe interestedinthe actorfrom otherfilms.The laststoryfeaturedonthe
frontpage of the Empire website isreads“ChristopherMcQuarrie TalksOfficial Mission:Impossible
6 Title”.The twomostimportantparts of thisstory are the inclusionof alargelyfamousaction
movie franchise –Mission:Impossible,andthe word“official”whichwouldattractaudiencesasit
suggeststoreadersthat itis notfake information;whichpeople donotwant.

3. Scrollingdown,acollectionof imagesare accompanied bycaptionsaboutmore stories;all sitting
undera red separatingbarthat reads “Latest Movie News”.Eachimage has beenchosenspecifically
to make viewerswanttoclickon the links,suchasthe recognisableeyesof Marvel’santi-hero
Venom,orthe unmistakeable cockpitof the MillenniumFalconfromStarWars, but witha new cast.
As well asthe images,the captionshave beenmade toappeal tothe largestamountof viewers,for
example name-droppingagiantfilmfranchise suchasFast and Furious.Onboththe top row of links
and on the rightof the page are twoadverts,withthe mostimportantfeature forEmpire isthe
revenue theywouldgainfromcompaniespayingtouse the space onthe website.Empire would
make additional moneyfromthe amountof viewersthe website wouldgetandthe factthat the
companymakingthe adverthave probablypaidmore to feature their advertisementonthe toprow
– meaningitismore probable thatthe audience wouldsee itwhenonthe website.One of the
advertisementsfeaturedonthe rightof the page isaimingto sell the Blu-Rayeditionof Blade
Runner2049, the modernsequel tothe classicandwell-knownsci-fifilmstarringHarrisonFord.This
adverthas beenshownhere asitfitsinverywell asa filmDVDona filmwebsite,withlinksto
Amazonthroughthe hyperlink“ShopNow”,accompaniedbythe similarlineof copyof “OwnIt
Now”.Underneathall of thisand before the nextsectionsitsalarge greybar thatspans almostthe
widthof the page reading“SHOWALL”. Thisis a directlinktomore of the latestmovie news,and
previousmovie newsfrommaybe afewdaysor weeksago.
Followingthisare verysimilarsectionstitled“Latest
Movie Reviews”and“LatestTV ShowReviews”,which
are almostidentical toeachother. A selectionof nine
of the latestfilmandTV showreviewsfeatured,
showinganimage fromthe production,accompanied
by a clearstar rating out of 5, the title of the
production,anda short startingsentence thatgivesa
small preview of whatiswritten overall. The star
ratinghas beenshown insimplisticblacksymbolsof
stars to easilycommunicate aconclusiveoverview of
the review,andthese have beenplacedona white
backgroundto emphasise this.FilmsorTV showsthat
have beengiven5star reviewshave the symbols
showninred,makingthemstandout amongthe
crowd of blackstars. The picturesthat have beenused
alongwiththe stars and the captionare specifically
chosento give a little insightintothe filmorTV show,
for example, TheWalking Dead showsa graphic
picture of a zombie,orTheMercy featuresanimage of
famousactor ColinFirthto appeal tothe audience
withrecognisable faces.Asmentionedbefore,the
advertthat resemblesthe subjectof the homepage
followsthe movementof the website –alwaysstaying
inthe viewer’sline of sight.