Paired with the previous post on the Asia Podcast Summit, there’s also something else for you lovely podcasters: Introducing, the Asia Podcast Awards!

Asia Podcast Awards (or APA for short) is run by MeaVox Live, a podcast consulting and education company based in Singapore established by founders Ling Ling Tai and Raven Lim. Both of them are podcasters as well!

It’s a good way to attract all the interesting podcasts out there in Asia, who might benefit from the spotlight this can offer.

How does it work?

The main categories are:

  • Business (eg. careers, entrepreneurship, marketing, etc)
  • Education (eg. courses, self-improvement, etc)
  • Entertainment (eg. talk show, comedy, music, TV, etc)
  • Technology (eg. tech news, blockchain, etc)

If you’d like to nominate a show (ahem your own!), you could go here:

Click the ‘NOMINATE YOUR SHOW’ button on the right!

It’ll lead you to a Google Form:

Fill in the blanks, and you’re set!

It’s fascinating to start seeing nominations from India to Malaysia, from Singapore to the Philippines. Plenty more countries are being involved too including China, Japan, and Thailand!

Just remember that the criteria for a show to be eligible is the following:

  • A minimum of around 10 episodes
  • Still active
  • Must be made in Asia

If you’ve done so, all the best and good luck in getting those good scores =)

Why do this?

Podcasting is on the rise here. Scratch that, it’s already here. For those interested in podcasting, either a listener or creator, let’s celebrate what we have right here around us!

In another post, I’ve outlined some of the different factors that can affect podcasting consumer behaviour, even by nation (it’s a good talk with James Cridland of Podnews, highly recommend you check that out!). If there’s a unified platform to get recognised for great content, it’ll create buzz and may attract other interesting players! What’s cooler than being able to partner with a show who has won awards across Asia?

It’s a good indicator of quality too: these shows are supposedly the best of the best, the cream of the crop. If you’re a listener and want to hear the best in each category, the APA is a good reference for you!

From a business perspective, brand advertisers, as well as companies looking for partnership opportunities might find this interesting. As an advertiser, it’s easier to determine the value of a show if it’s already vetted by the Asian podcasting community. Brands want the biggest bang for their buck by reaching out to the popular and recognised shows first. For partnership opportunities, it serves as a pseudo-directory: there might have been some shows that they have missed. Maybe there were some new shows they did not consider in the Philippines, and now is a good chance to reach out them that way.

MeaVox wants to build and connect the fragmented space here. Podcasters in the region are silo-ed and those who are interested in the space itself might find it difficult to navigate. Different countries have different podcasting behaviours, apps, and levels of technological development that are huge factors. Since each country varies, it becomes murky, and pair that with the lack of a unified Asia community, it can seem daunting.

It’s why APA is fantastic: it’s a start, and it lets other listeners + creators know what’s out there. Just thinking about it makes me really excited for what’s coming out in the future!

What’s the timeline?

The timeline is the following:

  • Initial shows to be handed in by September 22th
  • The judges will then be given time to listen to each show (esp. their favourite episode) and judge it according to specific criteria. Some of the criteria range from production quality to delivery of content and creativity. As long as you make great content it should be a contender for the top spot!
  • Closer to the date, the top 3 of each category will be shown up for people to want to vote for these shows! So support your favourite show by sharing the results and help them with getting nominated for the best of their category. The nominated shows will be competing for the best of their category, but also for the best podcast category as well!

So what are you waiting for?

If you have a show and you want to be recognised for your good work, head on over there and nominate your show!

Can’t wait to see what amazing shows there are in Asia!

—Norm