Ryder Cup's radio temptation

Another golfing PR opportunity is being offered up by the Swansea-based media.


Local radio specialists Town and Country Broadcasting have a tempting little Ryder Cup package available to a sports-loving enterprise.

I met account manager Matthew Anderson in the Uplands Diner, Swansea, today and he was mad keen on his new offering.

Exposure

For an outlay of £1,400 - although I suspect that's negotiable - the broadcaster's Ryder Cup associate will get decent exposure on Nation Radio, Bay Radio and Bridge FM, covering a good wedge of central South Wales.

In the two weeks' run-up to the big Celtic Manor showdown there'll be mentions on five daily promo slots and a few "live reads" by presenters.

Over the three days of the competition there'll be mentions on four daily updates from the course along with more live reads.

The presenter with the rather tasty job of reporting every three hours on the progress of the European and American teams is Gareth Williams, a regular on TCB's saturday sport output.

Nice work if you can get it ... and a tempting promotional hook-up.

Radio, golf ... and Royal Porthcawl bacon butties

Ever fancied dipping a toe into local radio advertising?
Well, South Wales' new kid on the broadcasting block is offering an innovative trial run opportunity.
It features an ad package, membership of a new business club, online presence, a round of golf and a lively networking session.
South Wales Radio account manager Matthew Anderson revealed all when we sat down for a cuppa in the Uplands Diner, Swansea.
His offer applies to all the local and regional stations in the group -  Bay Radio (covering Swansea Bay), Scarlet FM (Llanelli), Radio Carmarthenshire, Bridge FM (Bridgend), Radio Pembrokeshire, Radio Ceredigion and Nation (South Wales).
He said that for £450 each business will get 50 half-minute ads shared between one or two stations. You'll also be a launch member of the Swansea Wales Radio Business Club which he'd like to develop strongly through 2010 with offers and gatherings.
The deal includes a rather attractive event at the Royal Porthcawl Golf Club on Tuesday, November 9. There's coffee and bacon rolls to start, a shotgun start for the four-man teams, 18 holes, dinner in the clubhouse then a presentation and auction/raffle with charity and celebrity hooks.
It's a pleasurable way for Matthew to attract some new business - and it sounds like an effective way for golfers to network and gain radio exposure.
I'll be preparing a brief today for Effective Communication clients but if you'd like more info just give me a shout.
Matthew, by the way, was previously seen on the South Wales media circuit as an account manager with Swansea Bay Business Life. I get the impression he's relishing the new challenge.

South Wales Radio group. Monthly reach stats include: Bay - 55,000, Bridge - 48,000, Nation - 143,000

Radio bosses club together for South Wales business

Good news from Town and Country Broadcasting, whose portfolio includes Bay Radio, Scarlet FM, Radio Carmarthenshire and Nation Radio.
As part of their evolving commercial scene they're about to launch a business club.
Its membership features will include on-air and online promotional offerings with this young company whose reach stretches across South Wales with around 330,000 listeners every month. They have an interesting mix of demographic markets, including the young rock lovers who enjoy Nation to the West Walian audience of Radio Ceredigion.
Its Swansea Bay presence is a strong alternative to the more established Wave and Swansea Sound and offers a greater listenership than community stations such as Radio Tircoed and Afan FM.
The South Wales Radio 2010 Business Club is due to tee off in November, with a golfing-themed event.
I'm due to meet Town and Country account manager Matthew Anderson this week so will report fully on his proposals after that coffee.

Media Master plunges in with Swansea Bay Business Life

With Media Master's own business looking to consolidate a more focused market, a new lane is being strolled this month: advertising.
For the first time, Andy Pearson Publicity has booked space in Swansea Bay Business Life which - by now - will have been mailed to more than 5,000 business people and decision makers.
It'd be welcome if some of them took serious notice of my advertorial. I'll report back in future weeks to discuss the response rate.
The ad, incidentally, features new logo artwork by Swansea's Sigga Design.
In the meantime, here's my blurb as it appears in the high-gloss mag, part of the South Wales Evening Post empire.


IN picking up Swansea Bay Business Life, you made a wise choice. I’m similarly astute in promoting my services here.
The magazine hits thousands of local decision makers, with content finely tuned for the vibrant local business sector.
That’s why you’re reading it and why those like myself, with brilliant professional services to offer, pay to ensure our profiles are raised in its pages.
However, this magazine isn’t the only place I’ll flag up my rebranding. Indeed, I urge all businesses to view the whole media picture in its full widescreen glory.
There are an increasing number of great opportunities for publicity because, thanks to production technology, the Swansea Bay media sector has fragmented markedly.
Choice was once limited to the South Wales Evening Post, Western Mail and Swansea Sound. Now there’s a thriving, multi-tiered communications industry featuring everything from fresh new local-interest websites such as http://www.gowernews.co.uk/ and music fanzines to high-end glossy mags covering style, the arts and lifestyle.
There are new niche broadcasters such as Afan FM and Nation Radio. Whisper it here, but even Swansea Bay Business Life has keen competitors in its lucrative market.
All this means that, although the promotional opportunities are there, the local media landscape has become increasingly difficult terrain.
That’s why Andy Pearson Publicity is essential in ensuring that every penny spent on your media strategy is wisely invested. Editorial pieces should be pitched at the right time to the right journalist, ad campaigns should be carefully considered and soundly structured, promotions should be placed to maximise sales effects.
My own unique database lists, in great detail, around 50 media operations with a foothold in Swansea Bay. It’s there to be used.