ASIA

Jeff Tan, 29, is the winner of Mediacorp’s talent hunt competition, The Star Voice, at the grand final held on August 25.Previously named ‘The Sound Makers’, the competition has discovered and seen many personalities who have risen to fame over the years, including YES 933FM’s Chen Ning, Hazelle Teo, Zhong Kunhua and Lee Teng.Over the last six weeks, nine hopefuls had been competing for the title in a series of weekly challenges and knockout elimination rounds – with guidance from one of three celebrity mentors: LOVE 972 DJ Dennis Chew, CAPITAL 958 DJ Pan Jiabiao and YES 933 DJ Zhong Kunhua.

Tan, an audio-visual journalist, edged out fellow finalists Joey Tay and Jensen Wang to win more than S$80,000 worth of prizes and a one-year contract with Mediacorp.In the final stage of the competition between Tan and Tay, they had to transform into talkshow hosts to interview local celebrity, Mark Lee. Tan, who was the oldest contestant in the competition, managed to impress the judges with his ingenuity and hosting skills, and he also garnered the highest number of votes from a separate panel of DJs.The judging panel was made up of Taiwanese host Mickey Huang, Mediacorp’s Lead for Chinese & Malay Audio, Rebecca Yap, actress/host Kym Ng, as well as actor/host Mark Lee. Their scores formed 80 percent of the overall results, while the remaining 20 percent was made up of voting results from DJs across Mediacorp’s radio stations.Simone Lum, Mediacorp’s Head for Growth & Audio said: “The Star Voice underlines our commitment in nurturing the next generation radio talents and we are delighted that the competition has attracted close to 1,000 applicants. Through this, we have witnessed the immense display of eloquence from our quick-witted contestants and we are extremely proud of their great performances thus far.” […]

There are now under two weeks to go before Radiodays Asia on the 6-7 September at the Shangri-La Hotel,  Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.On Wednesday the program includesMythbusters – Programming Myths that are Costing you Ratings – Ken Benson (P1 Media Group, USA)

This session will bust 5 widely practiced programming techniques and tell you why they don’t deliver what you think, and we’ll share how to use these 5 techniques to improve your ratings.Mirchi: From Radio to Digital Audio Entertainment – Udit Tyagi (Chief Digital Officer, Entertainment Network/Radio Mirchi, India)Radio Mirchi in India, part of the Times Network, has made a huge transformation from traditional radio to digital audio entertainment of all kinds. They will present their journey and current strategy as well as present their new audio ad network. Sport on the Radio – What Type of Content Will Engage Fans? – Adam Carruthers (TV/Radio Host, ASTRO Supersports, Malaysia), Guy Dobson (Director, Asia Radio Concepts, Australia)Sport on the radio has become a mainstay of listening in Europe, North America, and Australia, but it hasn’t taken off in Asia – yet. What type of sports content builds audience figures, and can contribute significantly to radio’s revenues?The ABU’s Radio Asia conference takes place on Sunday 4th September (training day) and Monday 5th September, followed by RadioDays Asia on Tuesday 6th and Wednesday 7th September.The two conferences have worked together this year to offer a Super Radio Event Week to help radio and podcast companies across the region regroup and rethink after the effects of covid on their businesses in the past two years.radioinfo is a media partner of Radiodays so readers can still save USD $70 by booking with our special code.The discount code for radioinfo readers is RINFKL Register at radiodaysasia.com/register, then go through the credit card payment process and apply the code just before payment for your discount. […]

Indian network Radio City has unveiled ‘Business Titans’, an international event to recognise Indian business leaders who have strived and thrived to attain success through resilience and consistent innovation. The first edition of the event will be hosted from August 26 and 28 in Dubai.The core objective of the event is to provide Indian enterprises with a recognised platform to augment their business excellence.‘Business Titans’ has over 20 business categories across multiple industries including consumer goods, education, pharma and healthcare, finance, electronics and electrical appliances, jewelers, dotcom, clothing/apparel, basic industries, IT, services, food, restaurants, travel, health and fitness, auto, home services, real estate, media and entertainment, and start-ups. The first edition of Radio City Business Titans – Chapter Dubai will feature Indian business moguls, Bollywood stars and social media influencers.

Ashit Kukian, CEO of Radio City said: “Indian entrepreneurs are rapidly moving in the direction of growth by integrating innovation and technology in their core business functioning. It is remarkable to witness businesses that have strived hard to attain success in their sector by being resilient and we strongly believe that such businesses deserve a stellar platform to celebrate their triumphs.”“Through Radio City Business Titans, we aim to strengthen the entrepreneurial domain by encouraging business leaders to continue thriving in their respective fields and positively contribute to the economy. As we mark the first edition of Radio City Business Titans, it is going to be an absolute delight to honour and felicitate revolutionary Indian entrepreneurs at the most extravagant destination ‘Dubai’,” he added. […]

Malaysia’s Fly FM is launching a month-long manhunt for the Fly FM Fugitive.The station will give out clues about the fugitive’s whereabouts both on-air and via their social media platforms five times a day.The fugitive will also be calling in to the station and using a distorted voice to give hints about his location.

He could be anywhere from shopping malls and petrol stations to iconic landmarks or just walking along random streets and listeners have to try to figure out the fugitive’s hiding location from the clues, then head over there and try to find him.The contest segment will be held every two hours, with each one featuring a different prize money amount out of a total of RM 50,000. […]

Selling Radio Direct with Pat BrysonAn underperforming salesperson leaves. What’s our strategy?In our last article we talked about what happens when we lose a salesperson. How do we safeguard their accounts? We discussed a best-case scenario where the person leaving had good relationships with their clients. The list of new “orphan” accounts is usually a substantial one. We gave steps to re-establish relationships with these important accounts as quickly as possible.

Today we will discuss what we need to do when a salesperson leaves who was not performing well. Chances are, either you have experienced a decline in the amount their clients were spending, or you have seen accounts cancel or fail to renew. The person who takes over these accounts may have to correct problems.How do we begin to recover these accounts?Scenario Two: The underperforming salesperson leaves:
Research the accounts. Check their billing history, their production. Have they reduced or cancelled? If so, when?
Ask people in the station if they know of a problem with the account. Arm yourself with all the information you can collect.
If at all possible, make the first contact in person. You are there to introduce yourself and to schedule an appointment. Be ready to experience resistance.
When you get an appointment, do a CNA. You want to uncover everything you can about how the client feels about the station. You may not have to ask: the client may come out guns blazing with a litany of grievances about their treatment:
“You’re the first person I’ve seen in months.”“No one would call me back or answer my emails.”“The only time I ever saw someone from your station was when theywanted to sell me something.”” The last time I used your station you really screwed it up.” 
Listen to the client. Once you know their concerns, work with your manager to correct them. If you can resolve their issues, you become the hero.
6.Never make your first contact about raising rates. They probably NEED to be raised, and chances are the schedules they have been using are not effective. Develop the relationship first. Now you can introduce appropriate scheduling and rates as time goes by.Unfortunately, many times these problem accounts are given to novice salespeople. With the number of stations who are short of salespeople, this may be our only option. This will require the manager to coach the new salesperson through these interactions. If possible, the manager should go with them on the first contact.People want to feel that they matter. When we provide bad or no service to clients, we are telegraphing our low regard for them.Note: Our clients are businesspeople who employ staff. Every one of them has had a bad employee at some time. They understand that a bad employee does not necessarily represent the values of the station. Sometimes reminding them of this will soften their ire. Now, follow up with exceptional service!Happy Selling and happy recovering! […]

Thai Public Broadcasting Service (Thai PBS) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with India’s public broadcaster Prasar Bharati as part of broader cooperation between the two countries.Prasar Bharati is India’s public broadcaster and a statutory autonomous body which comprises All India Radio and Doordarshan Television Network.“Thai PBS and Prasar Bharati share similar values as public broadcasters. The MoU is the first step of our cooperation in exchanging of news and programmes, and cooperation in programme production and other areas to help contribute to a better understanding between peoples of the two countries,” said Thai PBS Director General Wilasinee Phiphitkul signing the MoU on behalf of Thai PBS.

“Our MoU with Prasar Bharati should provide Thai PBS with a great opportunity to help our audiences learn more about India through news and programme exchanges and vice versa,” she said.Indian Ambassador to Thailand, Suchitra Durai represented Prasar Bharati in signing the MoU. […]