News
World Radio Day: our team’s radio highlights
February 13th marks World Radio Day, the UN’s celebration of one of the most widely used and dependable forms of media in the world.
From delivering breaking news and top-quality interviews with political and business leaders, to hosting insightful podcast discussions and exploring new wave trends, radio is very much at the heart of our day-to-day lives – and is just as important as wider forms of media in our work as an agency. Over 100 years on from the first public radio broadcast in Britain, radio remains just as relevant a news source for millions of daily listeners – although the formats and stations have certainly evolved considerably since!
To celebrate World Radio Day, we’ve asked the Farrer Kane & Co to share some of their favourite things about radio, covering everything from interviews secured to the fast-paced nature of broadcast pitching…
Beth
It’s hard to pin down just one radio highlight, but for me a few standout successes have included: landing Woman’s Hour for a long-standing agency client and renowned women’s health campaigner; securing a recent Times Radio live broadcast for a medical client commenting on the UK’s falling birth rates; and landing a hotly contested slot for a sanctions expert to appear on Monocle’s well-respected Globalist podcast.
Zara
I always love the thrills of broadcast pitching – especially how quickly things move once you’ve secured an opportunity. It’s always really exciting!
The challenges of coordinating logistics and ironing out all the details at speed is worth it once you get to hear the end result.
Ines
Having grown up in a household where BBC Radio 4 was constantly on, it was particularly special securing my first hit on the iconic station.
But my radio highlight has to be Radio 4 interview slots that we secured in the depths of lockdown – including for a leading fertility expert on the Today Programme, and a family law client on Money Box. It was quite something hearing the interviews we’d landed and coordinated playing out loud on Radio 4 in my family home.
Cicely
I really enjoy the whole wide world of radio and how varied it can be. I’ve been lucky to go along to Radio 4 recordings at BBC studios, watch material try-out nights for radio comedies at local pubs, and have even had the chance to commentate on sports fixtures for my university radio station – it’s certainly a special medium!
William
One particular radio highlight was securing an interview on BBC Radio 4 You & Yours for one of our longest-standing property clients. As one of the BBC’s ‘Strand Programmes’, You & Yours can work to a long lead time and require a lot of work to get over the line, so securing an expert interview on there was a real win!
Declan
I very much enjoy the prep support involved with a radio interview – helping a client prepare by talking through briefing questions and discussion points, and then tuning in live to hear them execute the opportunity brilliantly is always a thrill.
Matt
We landed an interview on LBC – one of the UK’s largest radio stations – for a legal client on a recent piece of major employment legislative change. This was a real success, as the news story was an especially competitive one in the media with a variety of experts keen to lend their voice to the conversation – and alongside the LBC interview, we also secured blanket coverage across print and TV channels!
Bronwen
A recent highlight of mine was briefing a fertility and women’s health client for a special edition of BBC Radio 4’s Today programme guest edited by Dame Laura Kenny on the relationship between sports and fertility. It’s a topic I’m really interested in, and it was fantastic to see how much press profile the interview resulted in over the following days.
I was also really proud to be involved in a media campaign highlighting the issue of drug overprescription and antidepressant dependence last summer, securing blanket broadcast exposure and interviews on the likes of LBC and Times Radio.
Imogen
I love the fast-paced nature of broadcast canvassing – it really challenges you to ‘sell’ your story in seconds, and with planning teams being inundated with calls, you have to make a good pitch to pique their interest. It’s really helped strengthen my skills in pitching to all press!
Phoebe
I really enjoyed attending a Roxhill Meets event with a producer at Times Radio – it was great to hear the inside track on all things involved with the running of a major radio station and newsroom, but also to have some of our core agency values reinforced: including the importance of picking up the phone when pitching in to broadcast planners.
Casey
I’ve always really enjoyed being able to tune in to the radio and listen to real people speak in their own voice on stories and issues which mean a lot to them. I also enjoy the rawness of radio – while spokespeople are of course prepped thoroughly before an appearance, there is a lot to be said for the value of knowing how to speak naturally on the spot to a lay audience!
For me, it is funny how a more traditional form of media can feel refreshing and new – and offers different perspectives in an era of digital and social media.
