Our annual listing of 25 media executives who made a difference this year and are shaping how 2018 will look.
Nicole Byers, Editor-in-chief, The Australian Women’s Weekly
It’s been close to four months since Nicole Byers switched titles at Bauer Media Australia to become the new editor-in-chief of Bauer’s flagship. She had been editor-in-chief of OK! for the past seven years. Byers was married during the year and her start at The Weekly was delayed by a pre-arranged honeymoon. She started work at what was crunch time for the magazine. With 13 editions each year, the busy November-December period sees three editions go on sale within a two-month period, including the always anticipated Christmas edition.
The power of the brand is something that Byers has marvelled at since she arrived. “People do respond quickly to emails and answer your phone calls, which is lovely,” she told Mediaweek. “The big challenge for media in general is how to keep pushing forward with the digital offering and increasing the brand footprint any way they can.”
Byers noted The Weekly is part of the Now To Love offering, which harnesses the digital strength of Bauer’s biggest brands. “It is good to be able to reach more people and perhaps a slightly different audience. In days gone by websites used to be a reflection of the magazine and catering to the same people. It has become a great way for us to reach an audience we might otherwise not get to with the print product.”