Websites
Different websites have different purposes depending on the intended audience. There are many positives to making a website, these include: they are cheap and easy to use and create, has access to a large international audience (potentially around 3 billion people), it is another (free) form of marketing and distribution, they can constantly updated and edited (almost live).

When looking at websites, most people judge the website on its home page therefore the homepage needs to include many things to create a good impression of the band/ audience on the audience that are looking at their websites. The home page needs to entice you/ attract the audience so that they would want to carry on browsing the website. The genre should be clear and it should be easy to navigate.

The Beach Boys
First of all, from looking at the home page, I can immediately identify that the target audience is the older generation that were teenagers of the 60's (especially girls). Evidence for this is the old photograph of the band members which would reinforce their memories of the era. In this case it would be teenage girls attracted to these "stars" of the time. There is also a title stating the album "pet sounds"is 50 years old to again catch the audiences attention as their music was made so long ago. This also enforces the star theory as it is stating that the album is still being listened to now, even though its so old, creating a star image for the band as is exaggerates their significance to music. The fact the images used on their homepage were taken a long time ago suggests that they are legendary figures and want to be remembered how they were, keeping the same audience through the years. The band title is done in the recognisable font that was commonly used by them which acted as a logo to identify the band; the blue colour of the writing tells the audience that it is a boy band. The overall message the site is trying to express is how the band will always want to be known as their youthful, fun selves and they don't want to destroy their image for their audience. Their home page also features their latest news, their featured products, and how to keep updated via email and their social networking links.




Bruno Mars
When looking at the home page for the Bruno Mars website, it includes all the key things that will promote the Artist. There are links at the top to direct the audience to the different sections of his website. His titles are in bold and clear making the audience instantly read what it says. In fact, His new singles title is bigger than his own name as a way of drawing attention to it, making peoples eyes go to the 'thats what I like" which could lead to them wanting to hear the single or even buy it. Alongside this, there is a clip from the music video playing in the background- marketing the artists products even more. As you scroll down, there are links you can click on to watch or buy his videos/ music and the formats you can buy it in. He has also included some of his merchandise and tour dates all on his home page which is easy to navigate. At the bottom, there are his social media links and places you can listen to his music leading to the audience having access of all the places they can consume the artists products creating a star image and proving his importance.


When comparing the two websites, there are surprisingly many similarities seeing as their music is so different. The ways you can view or listen to the artists/bands products are evident on the homepage, alongside their products you can buy, and their social media websites. The only thing that is slightly different is Bruno Mars has tour dates and tickets whereas The Beach Boys have latest news- implying they are no longer in the limelight or making music yet they are still seen as "star" figures. In my opinion, the Bruno mars site is more successful as its interactive, its up to date with the social media trends, sells tickets for upcoming concerts and the current and successful"star image" is being created by Bruno.