Biography
Rick Shiu operates InQuest Communications, a premiere direct response marketing and media company, providing a blend of business analytics coupled with creative marketing, writing and production, as well as operational logistics and strategic planning to their clients.
Since 1995, Shiu has successfully managed nearly 1 billion dollars in direct response television media in varied categories including fitness, health/beauty, entertainment, housewares, and business opportunity.
Through his analytics, negotiation and supervision, Shiu has managed total weekly TV spending levels of $3 million across multiple campaigns (including individual campaigns in excess of $1 million), and annual spending of over $100 million helping companies he's worked for, grow by over 300%, generating company revenue in excess of $500 million in annual sales. This culminates to over $1 billion in television advertising managed.
Shiu helped launch the hit product, The Ab Flex, and continued with other products such as The Ab Trainer, Ab Coach, and the Bun and Thigh Roller. His work on fitness home videos includes P90X, Insanity, Turbo Jam, Turbo Fire, Brazil Butt Lift, 10 Minute Trainer, Slim in 6, Yoga Booty Ballet, Power 90, Body Gospel, and many other programs.
During his tenure at Beachbody as their Vice President of Media, Shiu produced company benchmarks of success including optimizing their fitness advertising. Once thought of as seasonal, Shiu made fitness sales sustainable throughout the year, maintaining continually profitable advertising at the impressive minimums of $1 million per week, dispelling the myth of certain categories being seasonal versus managing perennial profitability.
In 2011, Shiu simultaneously held the #1, #2, and #3 ranked infomercials on the prestigious Infomercial Monitoring Service (IMS) charts for 8 consecutive weeks with P90X, Turbo Fire and Insanity.
In addition to the fitness category, Shiu has also launched or managed successful television campaigns including Micro Crisp, Micro Buddy, The Miracle Blade, The Ultimate Chopper, Smartware, and other household kitchen products in the housewares category. Other campaigns and categories include home business opportunity, fashion apparel, beauty / cosmetics, entertainment home video, music, automotive, and many other "as seen on TV" products
Shiu has appeared as a speaker at several of the Electronic Retailing Association (ERA) conferences educational sessions as an authority on media as well as direct response campaign management, also having served on several committees and councils for the organization. Shiu has been a featured speaker for the ERA's educational sessions in 2006 "DRTV (Direct Response Television) 101 Workshop"; 2009 "Navigating the Media Buy in Today's Market"; 2009 "Changemakers in the Media Realm"; and 2013 "The Money Pit : What Does a Launch Cost?" as an expert professional panelist.
Shiu also manages the business affairs of several fitness trainers including Robert Brace, Sophia Perez King, Shay Kostabi, and The Weaver Triplets, with focus on their direct to consumer opportunities within the home fitness realm.
Shiu is currently in development of "The Bounce System" with Dr. Wendy Scinta, which is an affordable at home program to help fight childhood obesity and strengthen the foundation of family through education and entertainment, blending nutrition, fitness, philosophies and activities.
Shiu comes with a formal education in media, having a degree in Broadcast Communication Arts from San Francisco State University with an emphasis on the Business Aspects of the Electronic Media, as well as a B.A. in Liberal Studies : The Social Sciences and a degree in Ethinic Studies : Asian American Studies.
As an individual talent, Rick Shiu began his career as a production assistant on M.C Hammer's music video for the hit, "U Can't Touch This" and subsequently has been involved in the writing and production of infomercials and direct response commercials, including campaigns for The Pancake Puff Pan, Specialty Merchandise Corporation, Fit Logic's Little Black Pant, The Urban Rebounder, D28 for Life, and Color it New. Shiu was also responsible for the casting of George Takei for The eCommerce Club's infomercial.
Shiu has appeared on radio, print, online and digital, including appearing in a nationally broadcast commercial for The GSN (Game Show Network's) 2009 Game Show Awards with Howie Mandel.
The company, InQuest Communications is also a member of the Direct Response Marketing Alliance (DRMA), and Shiu was nominated for the DRMA Member of the Year in 2012.
