Audience Research: SurveyMonkey

Where do you watch music videos?

Using SurveyMonkey, I carried out a small survey on how people watch music videos. Most people used YouTube as their main online music video source and under 30% still used music channels on TV. This shows the change in internet culture; less people are using channels such as MTV to view music videos, as a result, MTV show less music. The growth in internet streaming sites enables audiences to access music videos on various platforms (iPad, smartphones, laptops etc) at home and on the go.

Do you think that artists benefit from music videos in terms of their promotional value?/Do music videos enhance the likeability of songs?

The majority of the respondents said that artists benefit from music videos due to their promotional value and that they enhance the likeability. Half of these respondents fully agreed and the other half thought that they benefited to an extent. One respondent stated that it "depends on the music video". I agree with this due to the different types of music videos such as ones that illustrate, ones that show disjuncture and ones that amplify. For a mainstream audience who want to view the music video aesthetically, I feel that illustrative music videos are most effective in promoting the artist. However, most mainstream artists rely on their fanbases which ultimately means a music video would be unnecessary. They would only alter their image/style in order to draw in a broader audience. Despite this, there are many concept-based videos which either amplify or avoid the meaning of the song for visual purposes - audiences of these types of artists are usually more "niche" and so may enjoy analysing/appreciating the music video to a greater extent than mainstream audiences. These types of music video can attract the broader, mainsteam audience due to its creative value as it usually provides them with something different which could increase sales.

Do you enjoy watching music videos?/How often do you watch music videos?

The respondents all enjoyed watching music videos which indicates that they are an important part of selling an artist and their product. Over half watched music videos on a regular basis (two to four times a week). Over 40% said that they occasionally discuss music videos with others. This result also suggests that it is a very competitive market; artists must always be creating something new to capture this audiences interest.

Some answered with a couple of effective music videos which they believed improved the likeability and promotional quality of a song.