ASIA

The New York Festivals® 2024 Radio Awards competition has appointed Andrew Mark Sewell, Creative Director/Founder at B7 Media to the NYF Radio Awards Advisory Board.Sewell joins the esteemed 15-member Advisory Board, a distinguished panel comprised of globally renowned storytellers and industry leaders, each offering expertise across a spectrum of diverse audio genres. His addition to the advisory board promises to elevate the standards of the NYF Radio Awards and foster a platform that champions excellence in the ever-evolving world of audio storytelling.“We are thrilled to welcome Andrew Mark Sewell to the Radio Awards Advisory Board this year. An acknowledged leader in all aspects of award-winning dramatic and narrative storytelling, he brings vast expertise in creating radio dramas.  With his addition to the Board, we gain the perspective of someone with deep insights into the paths of audio drama’s robust future.”–Rose Anderson, EVP & Executive Director New York Festivals Radio Awards

“It’s a real privilege to be invited by the New York Radio Festival to join the Radio Advisory Board offering me an opportunity to share my knowledge and experience to the next generation of audio drama makers,” said Andrew Mark Sewell, Creative Director/Founder, B7 Media.Sewell, a distinguished BBC executive turned acclaimed radio drama producer and director, brings over 26 years of invaluable experience and numerous impressive accolades for award-winning creative storytelling to the NYF Radio Awards Advisory Board. As the visionary founder of UK indie B7 Media, Sewell has left an indelible mark on the industry, co-creating the groundbreaking audio platform Audioteria.com, dedicated to showcasing exceptional audio dramas by independent producers.“Audio drama has and always will be my first love. Ever since I heard Orson Welles’ seminal radio adaptation of “The War of the Worlds” I’ve been enthralled by the power of audio storytelling. Under our production banner B7 Media we’ve been recognised for our ambitious and diverse range of radio dramas and with the recent launch of Audioteria.com we’re proud to be behind a platform specifically created to celebrate the very best of indie audio drama,” said Sewell.Sewell’s illustrious career is marked by a string of prestigious accolades, including the 2022 ‘Best Drama & Fiction Producer’ at the Audio Production Awards, he brings unparalleled expertise to the NYF Radio Awards, having previously secured 4 Gold, 7 Siver and 2 Bronze, including; Gold, Best Director “I, Robot” (BBC Radio 4) in 2017 / Gold, Best Digital Drama “Dan Dare: The Audio Adventures” in 2018 / Gold, Science & Technology “The Space Race” in 2020 / Gold, Best Podcast Drama, “The Effect” (Audible) in 2022. Sewell’s impressive works, including the reimagining of Dan Dare and the cult classic Blake’s 7, underscore his commitment to pushing creative boundaries.Impressive achievements include serving as the Series Producer for Audible Originals’ compelling docudrama series chronicling the history of The Space Race. His BBC Radio 4 ventures showcase his versatility, from adapting Ray Bradbury’s sci-fi classic, “The Martian Chronicles,” to crafting gripping narratives like the courtroom drama “Barred” and the much-praised modern retelling of the Mahabharata Now in which the law, capitalism, and politics jostle for power in a gripping family retelling of the epic poem set in modern day Mumbai.Sewell’s noteworthy films credits include “Mrs. Palfrey at the Claremont” and a collaborative effort with Canadian director Paul Andrew Kimball on four films— “The Cuckoo in the Clock,” “Roundabout,” “Exit Thread,” and the acclaimed “The Colour of Spring” (2020). Currently, Sewell is attached to the production of the crime horror film “Kill Everything,” alongside Ed Polgardy, renowned for producing the hit horror film “The Wretched” (2019).New York Festivals invites award-winning industry leaders from 6 continents around the world to become members of their world-class Radio Awards Grand Jury. The 2024 Grand jury will be recruited in the coming weeks. Those jurors will include some of the world’s most recognizable voices and captivating content producers in the radio industry. Entries are judged on production values, creativity, content presentation, direction, writing, achievement of purpose, and audience suitability. […]

Riedel Communications announced an expansion of its leadership in APAC to better align with market needs and position itself for continued success in 2024 and years to come. With significant growth in sales and team size, the company will divide the APAC region into two separate teams — Asia and Oceania — to reflect its commitment to a full-service presence in Australia and enhance customer relationships through more focused and direct sales and support services.Effective this October, Chris Johnson has been promoted to the role of director Oceania, overseeing Australia, New Zealand, and surrounding countries. With almost two decades of experience in broadcast and live events, Johnson has been instrumental in leading the region to new heights since joining Riedel in 2016.“We’re really proud of what we’ve been able to accomplish so far in Australia and New Zealand,” said Johnson. “Our success is the result of a great team and our decision as a company to work locally and be close to our customers. We believe that close customer relationships are critical, especially as the broadcast and events industries are undergoing so much technological evolution. Having truly local technical support, service, and operations allows us to further improve our full-service offering across both our Product and Managed Technology divisions throughout Oceania.”

To bolster the Product Division business in the region, Erik Miehs will assume the role of regional sales director, starting Jan. 1, 2024. With close to a decade of experience at Riedel, Miehs brings a wealth of technical and managerial knowledge to his new position, having previously served as the Europe system consulting manager and most recently as sales manager ANZ.“I’m proud to be playing a part in writing the next chapter in Riedel’s strong 15-year history in Australia and New Zealand,” said Miehs. “I’m thrilled to take on the new role and continue our team’s expansion in the Oceania region.”Guillaume Mauffrey will continue to lead Riedel’s Asian business units as sales director Asia with an increased focus on developing major markets such as China, Japan, and Southeast Asia. Here, he can rely on a strong management team of regional general managers, with Peter Chen (China), Vincent Lambert (Japan), and Marion Dimayuga (Southeast Asia).“Our new organizational structure reflects the massive growth we’ve seen in both Asia and Oceania,” said Daniel Url, CCO, Product Division. “We are very pleased that we can entrust two very experienced colleagues, Chris and Guillaume, with leading these important regions. Asia remains in good hands with Guillaume, whose leadership has already had a great impact on the region and our growing teams in Tokyo, Singapore, and Beijing. In ANZ, we are building on a well-established and well-attuned team that has been exceeding customers’ expectations under Chris’ leadership – and is sure to continue doing so with Erik at the helm. With this organizational change, both regions can continue their path to success with increased focus.” […]

Content from BPRIn 1914, Gerald Lambert was working for his father’s failing small business and slowly going broke. His company, Lambert Pharmaceuticals, sold an acrid liquid antiseptic to surgeons and dentists to kill germs, but nobody was buying it anymore, leaving the company on the brink of bankruptcy. As Gerald took over, he was struck by inspiration: what if his brand, Listerine, could answer something the public really wanted and recover all those lost sales as a consumer product instead of a surgical agent?Coining the medical-sounding term “halitosis” for bad breath, he launched a mint-flavoured version of his father’s surgical germ-killer and a star was born. The idea that Listerine kills the germs that cause bad breath is one of the most successful brand promises of all time. It told customers that they had a problem and Listerine was the solution they needed.

Radio stations make brand promises all the time. It’s part of the DNA; it tells (or at least should tell) the listener what to expect when they tune in to your station.The brand promise is your commitment to the listener on what you will deliver on air.“Chicago’s Classic Rock”, “Today’s Best Music”, “Best Music Variety”, “Good Times and Great Classic Hits”, “Atlanta’s News Leader”, “Real Texas. Real Talk”, “Real. Raw. Radio”.But just saying it a few times an hour counts for nothing if you’re not delivering on that promise.Remember, listener loyalty begins with trust. If your station is not keeping its most important promise, the brand promise, you will have trust issues.Everything on your station must support the brand promise; if not, it should not be on air.Think of each element on your station as a pillar that supports the overarching brand promise and strengthens it.On a Music station those pillars would be Music, Talent, Promotions, Marketing. On a Talk station they would include Talent, News & Information, Promotions, Marketing.However, if a pillar doesn’t support the brand promise, then it weakens it.A brand promise must be stated clearly to the audience and provide them with a benefit they actually want (not something you think they want).  Fresh breath = Listerine.Your station must live up to the audiences’ expectations that you will actually do what you promise to do. Otherwise, you lose credibility, trust, and eventually listeners & market share.Take for example the major market radio station whose brand promise was “playing the hits you love from the 90s to now”. Trouble is, they were playing three 80s songs per hour and the 90s to now imaging immediately preceded an 80s track!!! That was 18 months ago….. there have been two new brand promises since then…..and the station is still the ratings cellar-dweller.Provide a benefit the audience wants, explain in clear terms why your station can provide what they want and deliver on that promise 24/7…with no exceptions.By David Kidd, BPRMain Pic: Sutterstock […]

Selling Radio Direct with Pat BrysonIn our last newsletter, we spoke about creating good customer service for our listeners and our advertisers. Today I want to continue with the next level in our relationships with our clients: an extraordinary customer experience.We start with the premise that no one remembers “average” or “ordinary”. With the competition we all face today, we must stand out from the crowd….in a good way! In today’s business world, the customer is at the center of business strategy. Service, marketing, sales, all revolve around what the customer needs and wants. Online has gotten very good at not only fulfilling our needs, but anticipating our needs and sending us suggestions for things we didn’t know existed but we can no longer live without. For our bricks and mortar clients to compete, for us to compete, we need to create “Wow” experiences for our clients.

A customer experience is defined by each touch we have with our clients. It begins before the sale and extends long after the sale. It is the entire customer journey from start to finish. It is a series of events that leave an impression, one way or the other. Customer service is reactive: a customer has a problem, we fix it. The customer experience is proactive. We anticipate their needs before they do.If you think about 5 businesses that you frequent again and again, why do you go to them? Chances are, you can narrow down the reason to one of these: they are cheap, fast, user friendly, they have great customer service, or they represent luxury. Whichever this business is known for, they must be consistent.As we begin to think about how we can provide a great customer experience, we need to think about the touchpoints we have with our clients. Here’s a starter list. Feel free to add your own:First callNeeds analysis meetingPresentationThank youFollow up by the AECreating copyRecording adsInvoicingCustomer calls the stationCustomer emails us.I suggest you look at each of these steps and decide how to make that interaction special. In working with my clients, I’ve heard some interesting stories on how they improve the customer experience. The above list is the minimum. Much of the special experience happens after the sale. The account executive is in touch with the client on a predetermined schedule set with that client. How does THAT client define “exceptional service”?Some AE’s take top clients to lunch on a regular basis. They send “thank you” gifts periodically. When a new client comes on the air, the AE writes a thank you note. So does the manager. A “new client” form is circulated to the on air and internal people with contact information on it. That way, if a listener calls in with a question about an ad, anyone in the station can direct them to the client.One of my clients has a designation for “elite” clients. These are clients spending a certain amount monthly with them. The station arranges outings and parties for these clients. They enjoy perks that other clients do not.Another of my AE’s sends a thank you gift once a month to one of her clients. She refers business to them. And they reciprocate by referring business to her monthly.I read a story about a gentleman who sent a text to Morton’s Steak House: “Hey Morton’s, can you meet me in two hours with a porterhouse when I land at Newark airport?” Obviously this was meant as a joke, but guess what? When he landed, a guy in a tuxedo was standing there with his steak and all the trimmings. Morton’s travelled 23 miles to reward a regular customer and to create a legendary customer experience story.And then there’s the story of Nordstroms who took back a set of tires that were returned by a customer. Nordstroms doesn’t sell tires, but they lived up to their image of “customer first”. The back story on this is that the Nordstroms had been built in the same place formerly occupied by a tire store. This gentleman was convinced this was where he had bought the tires. We have another legendary service story that has circulated for years.What about your station? Do you have legendary service stories? Can you create some? My challenge to you is to assemble your cumulative brain power and brainstorm ways to upgrade your customer experience. Become the station that people talk about and tell legendary stories. It’s the way to legendary revenue also!Happy Selling! […]

In the Wave 2 of GfK Radio Hearing Measurement survey 2023, Malaysia’s Suria FM maintained highest weekly time spent listening (TSL) among four commercial Malay-language radio stations.The station achieved a weekly TSL of 6 hours and 37 minutes and 3.2 million weekly listeners.It had previously emerged on top among four commercial Malay-language stations in the first survey, Wave 1 2023, in April.

The Suria Cinta segment (Sunday to Friday, 8pm to 1am), hosted by DJ Lin, retains the highest weekly TSL across all Malay-language commercial stations, with 3 hours and 5 minutes.Weekday segments like Cik Piah’s Gaya Suria (10am to 1pm) and Muzik Top Suria (1pm to 3pm), as well as Sharifah Shahirah and Tyzo’s Suria Petang (3pm to 7pm) also recorded the highest TSL among four Malay-language radio stations.Meanwhile, the Morning Morning Suria segment (weekdays, 6am to 10am), hosted by Ajak, Shuib and Suraya, recorded the second-highest TSL among four Malay-language radio stations, with 2 hours and 22 minutes.“Suria FM just celebrated its 16th anniversary on Nov 24, and the results for Wave 2 2023 serve as a meaningful gift for the whole Suria FM community. Thank you to all the listeners who continue to support and choose Suria as their preferred radio station and for making us relevant in the radio industry until now,” said DJ Lin, who’s also the station’s general manager. […]

The New York Festivals® 2024 Radio Awards competition has announced this year’s distinguished Radio Awards Grand Jury.This year’s world-class Grand Jury comprises distinguished radio industry leaders from 19 countries across 6 continents. This jury panel of 100+ esteemed content creators, industry visionaries, and iconic voices, includes directors, producers, journalists, writers, and sound artists who personify passion and innovation in audio entertainment. The reputation and diverse expertise of the 2024 Grand Jury ensures that every entry receives the meticulous attention it deserves during this peer-judging process.“We are thrilled to welcome these globally recognized super-achievers to the 2024 Grand Jury,” said Rose Anderson, EVP & Executive Director New York Festivals Radio Awards. “Their collective wealth of hands-on knowledge, their commitment to excellence and the proven mastery of their craft in fields as diverse as investigative journalism, audio books, drama, talk, and live events show how robust the world of radio is today.”

Recruited from the ranks of globally renowned companies, these leaders and storytellers are at the forefront of championing innovative storytelling across all genres and platforms, including news, documentary, entertainment, sports, and image.The  lineup of companies our jurors represent encompasses global networks, production companies, radio stations, publishing houses and more including BBC, Radio Mitre S.A., Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, SiriusXM, Geller Media International, Pushkin Industries, HarperCollins Publishers UK, Radio-Canada Ohdio, DMC Studio Argentina, Talkers Magazine, Radio Mirchi, B7 Productions Limited, Accompany Studios, Open To Debate, Zinc Media, Bioneers, iHeart Media, TBI Media, Magnum Opus Broadcasting, NASA/JPL, Radio City, Virgin Radio UK, New York Philharmonic, Crooked Media, Seoul Media Foundation TBS, Radio City, CliffCentral, Virgin Radio UK, and Clare FM.A partial list of prominent jurors includes:
ory Belfi, SiriusXM, Vice President, Talk Programming, USA
Andrew Biggs, Imaging Producer / Director, Eyesound – New Zealand
Benoit Bories, Director/Producer, Faïdos Sonore/Créations sonores – France
Rina Broomberg, Director, CliffCentral – South Africa
Diego Cannizzaro, Owner & Director, DMC Studio – Argentina
Jennie Cataldo, Owner & Producer, Accompany Studios – USA
Chris Colbert, Chief Executive Officer, DCP Entertainment – USA
Clea Connor, CEO Open To Debate – USA
Nick Davis, Executive Director, Engagement & Inclusion, Canadian Broadcasting Corporation – Canada
Zayd Ayers Dohrn, Playwright/Screenwriter/Executive Producer – USA
Padraic Flaherty, Head of Operations & Group Program Director, Clare FM – Ireland
Rebecca Fortuin, Senior Audio Editor for HQ, M&B and Farshore, HarperCollins Publishers – UK
Lauren Hansen, iHeart Media, Producer – USA
Emily Harris, Bioneers, Media Producer – USA
Dylan Haskins, Commissioning Executive for Podcasts, BBC Sounds & BBC Radio 5 Live – UK
Havoc Franklin, CBC Radio, CBC Content Development – Canada
Geoff Jein, Independent Producer – UK
Steve Levine, Owner & Producer, Magnum Opus – United Kingdom
Liliana Manna, Independent, Journalist – Argentina
Leslie Mullen, Producer, NASA/JPL – USA
Götz Naleppa, Drama Director & Sound Artist, Naleppa Audio Productions – Germany
Anurita Patel, Vice President, Zonal Programming & Audacity, Radio City – India
Karen Pearson, CEO, Folded Wing – UK
Jason Phipps, Head of Content & Development, Chalk + Blasé – UK
Helen Quigley, Head of Production, B7 Production Limited – UK
Tim Rohan, Independent Journalist – USA
Des Shaw, Co-Founder, Zinc Media – UK
Helen Shaw, Founder/Director, Athena Media – Ireland
Lou Simon, SiriusXM Radio, Vice President, Music Programming – USA
Alison Toomey, Real Films Ltd, Producer/Director/Co-founder – Ireland
Mark Travis, Director Media Production, New York Philharmonic – USA
Elisabeth Weilenmann, Director, ORF – Austria
Karena Wynn-Moylan, Presenter/Producer, Bay FM radio 99.9 – Australia
View this year’s distinguished 2024 Grand Jury: HERE.The NYF Radio Awards Grand Jury meticulously reviews all entries during online judging panels, evaluating each submission based on industry-specific criteria to determine scores. The judging panels award Gold, Silver, and Bronze Trophies, with the highest-scoring entries earning the prestigious Grand Trophy. Additionally, the awards include Special Industry Awards recognizing the Broadcaster of the Year and Production Company of the Year.The annual National Press Club Award will go to the highest scoring entry in the following news program categories: Coverage Of Breaking News Story, Coverage Of Ongoing News Story, Nonfiction Series and News Podcast.NYF’s Radio Awards receives entries from radio stations, networks, and independent producers from over 30 countries around the globe. The mission of the competition is to honor the achievements of the men and women who make up the global audio storytelling community.All Entries in NYF’s 2024 Radio Awards will be judged by the NYF Grand Jury of 100+ producers, directors, writers, and other creative media professionals from around the globe. Entries are judged on production values, creativity, content presentation, direction, writing, achievement of purpose, and audience suitability.Award-winning entries for 2024 will be showcased in the Radio Awards winners gallery. To view the 2023 Radio Awards winner’s gallery, visit HERE.  All award winners will be celebrated at the 2024 Storytellers Gala on April 16th.To enter the 2024 Radio Awards please visit: HERE, for additional information visit: Rules and Regulations and 2024 Radio Awards categories. The entry deadline for the 2024 Radio Awards competition is January 31, 2024. […]