Christian Music’s WOW Brand Gets New Leader with Hiring Of Ryan Mcneary From Shop at Home and Aol

Nashivlle, Tenn. – A former Shop at Home Network and America Online executive has been named to lead brand development and marketing for the WoW® brand, announced by EMI Christian Music Group, Word Entertainment and Provident Music Group. Ryan McNeary assumed the position of WoW Brand Director this month, and is charged with bringing fresh focus to the brand that has sold more than 20 million albums and videos in the past 12 years. In addition to driving the A&R and marketing process for all WoW titles, McNeary will be responsible for creating an overall brand strategy that will allow for the continued growth of WoW music and print sales, the implementation of new digital and web approaches and the introduction of potential product line extensions.

"WoW has been a proven best-seller and calling card for the Christian music category for more than a decade. In its early years, WoW successfully elevated awareness of Christian music and always delivered on its promise to spotlight the best Christian music had to offer. Even without a dedicated WoW advocate, sales have remained strong in today’s turbulent retail environment, but WoW’s value as a brand has yet to realize its full potential. With his brand experience and impressive resume, we believe Ryan can help us build WoW for the future, " said Bill Hearn, president and CEO of EMI CMG.

Prior to joining the Christian music industry, McNeary held key positions with Scripps Networks’ Shop At Home, first as vice president of business development and most recently as vice president marketing/programming for the pioneering retail television channel. He had been recruited to Shop At Home from American Online for the leading Internet service provider (ISP) in the U.S., where he served as program manager for operations and product development and as senior marketing manager for e-commerce.

"We are so fortunate that someone of Ryan’s caliber was not only available, but was seeking to take the next chapter of his career journey to Christian music, " said Mark Funderburg, president of Word Distribution. "While his significant experiences at two landmark media companies will be of immense and obvious benefit to his work in the Christian music industry, we look forward to empowering him as he creatively looks at new ways to expand the reach of the WoW brand. "