Zondervan Blog

Zondervan Marketing Named Finalist for Esteemed EFFIE Award

Zondervan, a world leader in Christian communications, is a finalist for the prestigious EFFIE award, the marketing industry's highest global honor, for the successful and effective marketing launch of Inspired By…The Bible Experience.

As an EFFIE finalist, Zondervan's marketing campaign The Bible has a Voice [LISTEN], which launched Inspired By…The Bible Experience, is considered to be one of the most strategic and creative examples of how a brand can successfully connect with customers. The EFFIE Award recognizes advertising effectiveness among American businesses. Criteria for the EFFIE Award include not only visual and creative measures, but also a marketing campaign's ability to produce outstanding results in the marketplace.

Inspired By…The Bible Experienceis currently the most successful audio Bible available. Worldwide sales have achieved more than 700,000 units to date in all formats, including audio CD, MP3 CD, and MP3 download. It has become Zondervan's fastest-selling Bible and was named 2007 Audiobook of the Year, the greatest honor in the audio publishing industry. The campaign has already earned the Silver Anvil Award from the Public Relations Society of America and the Telly Award, honoring outstanding local, regional, and cable TV commercials and programs.

"Inspired By…The Bible Experience is the most ambitious audio Bible to be produced, so the marketing plan to support it needed to be equally ambitious. Marketing a first of its kind product like this required meticulous planning, innovative creative strategies that took us from more typical Bible marketing and into new areas of execution," says Moe Girkins, president and CEO at Zondervan. "It is gratifying to see the work of our dedicated and talented marketing team recognized with such a significant nomination."

Zondervan is a finalist in the EFFIE's New Product or Service category. Past EFFIE winners include: Apple Computer, Schick, Coca-Cola, Lexus, Saab, Kellogg's, McDonald's, Epson, and JetBlue Airways. Since 1968, winning an EFFIE has become a global symbol of marketing achievement.

Inspired By…The Bible Experience(www.zondervan.com/tbe) was produced by Inspired By Media Group and features the voice talent of nearly 400 African-American actors, musicians, and religious leaders. Notable personalities include Forest Whitaker, Denzel Washington, Blair Underwood, Angela Bassett, Kirk Franklin, and Bishop T.D. Jakes. In addition to dramatic performances of the entire biblical text by leading artists and celebrities, the product also features Hollywood-style sound design created at Technicolor Studios and an original musical underscore featuring performances by the Prague Symphony Orchestra.

Happy Easter!

Inspired By... The Bible Experience is pleased to share with you a FREE Easter Story video from Matthew chapter 28:

We are also pleased to share with you a FREE MP3 download of the Easter Story from Matthew chapters 26 through 28, by clicking on this banner below.

Have a blessed Easter!

FREE Easter Story video and MP3 from Inspired By... The Bible Experience

Inspired By... The Bible Experience is pleased to share with you a FREE Easter Story video from Matthew chapter 28:

We are also pleased to share with you a FREE MP3 download of the Easter Story from Matthew chapters 26 through 28, by clicking on this banner below.

Share the news this Easter Season about these 2 free Easter Story presentations from Inspired By... The Bible Experience by sending your family and friends to:  www.Zondervan.com/TheBibleExperience. You are also welcome to share the banner above on your website or blog. 

Have a blessed Easter season!

Inspired By… The Bible Experience Named Finalist for Four Prestigious Audies®

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich., February 6, 2008 – The bestselling audio Bible Inspired By… The Bible Experience (www.zondervan.com/TBE), recipient of the prestigious 2007 Audiobook of the Year award for the New Testament edition, has garnered four additional Audies® nominations for 2008, more than any other finalist in the Audio Publishers Association (APA) competition.

Inspired By… The Bible Experience: Old Testament, produced by Zondervan and Inspired By Media Group, is a finalist in the following categories: multi-voiced recording, inspirational/spiritual, achievement in production, and package design. The New Testament version of Inspired By... The Bible Experience, which quickly became the fastest-selling audio Bible of all time, was honored with two Audie Awards in 2007, including Audiobook of the Year.

"It's a distinct honor to be among the Audies finalists for two consecutive years," says Paul Caminiti, vice president and publisher of Bibles for Zondervan. "We didn't set out to win awards during the production of Inspired By… The Bible Experience. Our vision was to produce an audio Bible that was groundbreaking, second to none and that would help people engage the Bible like never before. The success of the product to date and the overwhelming consumer feedback we've received tell us we accomplished that goal. This recognition from the audio publishing industry is the icing on the cake and we're grateful for it."

Hosted by APA, The Audies are the only awards program in the United States devoted entirely to honoring spoken word entertainment. Winners in all 30 categories will be announced May 30, 2008 at The Audies Gala held at the Millennium Biltmore Hotel in Los Angeles where performers, authors, producers, publishers, and media will celebrate the year’s best audiobook productions.

Finalists for Audiobook of the Year, which recognizes the audiobook that has made the most significant impact on the audio publishing industry, will be announced next month.

Inspired By… The Bible Experience features the voice talent of nearly 400 African-American actors, musicians, and religious leaders. Notable personalities include Blair Underwood, Denzel Washington, Forest Whitaker, Angela Bassett and Cuba Gooding Jr. In addition to dramatic performances by leading artists and celebrities, the product also features Hollywood-style sound design and effects, and an original musical underscore featuring the performance of the Prague Symphony Orchestra.

Inspired By… The Bible Experience is available in stores nationwide in New Testament, Old Testament, and Complete Bible editions; nearly 500,000 copies are in print or have been downloaded on the Internet. It is available in CD and MP3 formats as well as audio download. A behind-the-scenes “making of” video, audio samples, news, and reviews can be found at www.zondervan.com/TBE.

About Inspired By Media Group
Branded by its signature banner Inspired By…, Inspired By Media Group, Inc., is committed to serving the faith-based and general markets by creating family-oriented products that are culturally relevant in scope. With more than a combined 40 years in the convergent areas of music, television, film, theater, literature, new media and technology, the company is an industry leader in delivering contemporary multimedia products. Visit Inspired By Media Group on the Web at www.inspiredby.com.

Zondervan, a HarperCollins company, is a world leader in Christian communications and the leading Christian publishing brand. For more than 75 years, Zondervan has delivered transformational Christian experiences through general and academic resources by influential leaders and emerging voices, and been honored with more Christian Book Awards than any other publisher. Headquartered in Grand Rapids, Mich., with offices in San Diego and Miami, Zondervan conducts events and publishes its bestselling Bibles, books, audio, video, curriculum, software, and digital products through its Zondervan, eZondervan, Zonderkidz, Youth Specialties, Editorial Vida, and National Pastors Convention brands. Zondervan resources are sold worldwide through retail stores, online, and by Zondervan ChurchSource, and are translated into nearly 200 languages in more than 60 countries. Visit Zondervan on the Internet at www.zondervan.com (mobile site: zvan.mobi).

Angela Bassett video interview on The Bible Experience

"Hollywood actress Angela Bassett visited Cleveland to take part in a Martin Luther King Day celebration at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.Bassett read scripture from a recording called The Bible Experience. She is among leading actors and actresses who have provided their voices for a collection of Bible stories." From MyFox Cleveland, Monday, January 21, 5:44pm.

Watch a video interview of Angela speaking about The Bible Experience at this link, which includes: "I love the word of God. It was an opportunity to mesh my belief system with my profession... to use the gift I believe God has given me, that's to be an actress and to convey emotion and human experiences."

You can watch another video with Angela reading briefly from Exodus 14:8 from The Bible Experience at this link.

NOW AVAILABLE: Monday-Friday free DAILY PODCASTS of Inspired by...The Bible Experience. Subscribe to the 2-minute segments directly from iTunes or Zondervan.com by going to http://feeds.feedburner.com/TBEPodcasts. The daily podcasts will run through the end of 2008. Each podcast will feature a dramatic audio presentation from the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John in chronological order.

Visit Zondervan's Inspired by...The Bible Experience's feature page at www.zondervan.com/tbe for audio clips, videos, and more information.

Got your Bible Experience?

This is the behind-the-scenes video of the making of Inspired by... The Bible Experience, a fully-dramatized and symphonic-orchestrated reading of the entire Bible performed by an unprecedented ensemble of distinguished African-American actors, musicians, and clergy such as Denzel Washington, Blair Underwood, Angela Bassett, Juanita Bynum, Shirley Caesar, Samuel L. Jackson, Cuba Gooding Jr., Kirk Franklin, and many more.

NOW AVAILABLE: Monday-Friday free DAILY PODCASTS of Inspired by...The Bible Experience. Subscribe to the 2-minute segments directly from iTunes or Zondervan.com by going to http://feeds.feedburner.com/TBEPodcasts. The daily podcasts will run through the end of 2008. Each podcast will feature a dramatic audio presentation from the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John in chronological order.

Visit Zondervan's Inspired by...The Bible Experience's feature page at www.zondervan.com/tbe for audio clips, videos, and more information.

The Bible Experience FREE Daily iTunes Podcast!

Zondervan is pleased to announce that we are releasing a brand new FREE daily podcast featuring The Bible Experience on iTunes!

The daily podcast runs Monday through Friday through the end of 2008. Each daily podcast will feature a 2-minute clip from the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John in chronological order. The Bible Experience is produced by Inspired By... Media Group and published by Zondervan. The daily podcast clips are edited by Westar Media Group.

If you have iTunes loaded on your computer, click on this link to subscribe to The Bible Experience daily podcast:
http://www.itunes.com/podcast?id=208626850

If you don't have iTunes, you can subscribe to an RSS Feed of the daily podcasts or listen online at this link:
http://feeds.feedburner.com/TBEPodcasts

We hope these free daily podcasts will provide you with encouragement and growth in your spiritual life in 2008. Please share the news of these daily podcasts with your family and friends.

Visit The Bible Experience feature page at www.zondervan.com/tbe for even more audio clips, behind-the-scenes videos, and information.

"Celebrity voices power a new 78-CD Bible"

The Southern covered The Bible Experience this past week with an article titled "Celebrity voices power a new 78-CD Bible." You can read the entire article at this link. Quotes from the article include:

"'This turned into something far bigger than the original version," said Paul Caminiti of Zondervan, which published and is distributing "Inspired By ... The Bible Experience."

Robert Jeffress, senior pastor of First Baptist Church of Dallas, supports the project. "I think it's a quality presentation of God's word, and I'm for anything that makes God's word more accessible to the public," said Dr. Jeffress, who was recently named pastor of the church, long a bulwark of conservative theology. "Paul said, 'Faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of God.'"I think the 'Bible Experience' reminds us that the Bible was poured through the lives and personalities of individuals, and helps bring those words to life.'"

Visit The Bible Experience feature page at www.zondervan.com/tbe for audio clips, behind-the-scenes videos, and more information.

FREE Christmas Story Download on iTunes

The Christmas Story from The Bible Experience is now available as a FREE download on iTunes.

If you don't use iTunes, the free download is also available on audible.com.

We want to wish everyone a Merry Christmas and thought this would be a nice gift. We hope you enjoy it!

TV One's "The Making of The Bible Experience"

On Sunday December 9th TV One presented "The Making of The Bible Experience," a one-hour special that goes behind the scenes of the making of the historic audio book The Bible Experience. This is a captivating audio performance of the Bible presented by a stellar ensemble of today's top-name actors, musicians, clergy, directors and award-winnnig producers. Celebrities interviewed in the special include Blair Underwood, LL Cool J, Star Jones Reynolds, Malinda Williams, and Jeffrey Wright. Encore airings will be on Saturday, Dec. 15 at 6:00 AM, Sunday, Dec. 16 at 2:00 PM, and Friday Dec. 21 at 9:00 AM (all Eastern Standard Time).

Visit The Bible Experience feature page at www.zondervan.com/tbe for audio clips, behind-the-scenes videos, and more information.