On The Air

The other morning I woke-up from a dream to the sound of a woman screaming.

The dream took place in a mythic promotion world where every creative concept was fresh and new, where clients had limitless budgets, and where Carrot Top had never been born. Then, like a full wallet in Vegas, poof! …my dream was interrupted by the sound of a woman yelling the phrase, “Oh my God!” over and over again.

I had awakened the same way I have for most of my post-pubescent life, to my clock radio. However, this morning was a little different: The radio station had just given away a brand new Audi TT Roadster to one very lucky woman.

Shortly after the screams subsided, the morning show played the Barenaked Ladies song, It’s All Been Done. That got me thinking…has it? Radio stations have been giving away cars ever since Ford and Marconi did the first power lunch. So is there anything new out there?

“In promotional marketing, we’re only as good as our last hit, and this is doubly true in the radio game,” says Barry James, vp-programming for WTMX 101.9FM in Chicago, one of the most promotionally active stations in the country. “The key to developing strong promotions is paying close attention to pop culture. “If you’re smart enough to catch the wave and ride the crest, you’re in great shape — because the wave in front of you is worthless.”

If that analogy holds true, WTMX should have a trophy case full of surfing awards. One of the station’s most famous promotions was Urban Survivor, a contest that rode the coattails of the first Survivor TV series by locking 10 contestants in a stuffy hotel room with no TV, phone, or shower for the chance to win $10,000.

Fool’s Gold

Radio stations never seem to stop innovating, and these days are having more fun with their listeners than ever before. Here’s a rundown of several noteworthy April Fool’s Day promos (gathered from Joel Denver’s ultimate radio-resource Web site, www.allaccess.com).

• On WNTQ 93FM (Syracuse, NY), morning jocks Ted and Amy announced that New York state lawmakers would vote on a bill to ban all smoking, eating, and drinking while driving. Cross-town competitor WSYR 570AM’s Jim Reith fielded phone calls from irate listeners and voiced his own approval for the plan.

• On KROQ 106.7FM (Los Angeles, CA), Kevin and Bean announced a free Blink 182 breakfast concert at a local mall’s parking lot. The morning team had pre-recorded the faux show a week earlier in the station’s parking lot. The police department, having trouble controlling the ensuing crowd, demanded that KROQ admit the hoax. However, the station was able to air nearly the entire show.

• WKPS 90.7FM (Penn State’s station in State College, PA) underwent a format change to All Polka. The station received thousands of phone calls — three in favor of the new format. (The most requested song was, of course, “The Chicken Dance.”)

Many advertising and brand professionals still consider radio to be the Great Innovator because of the “creativity from necessity” used to grab ratings and ad dollars. “I can’t say enough good things about how radio has helped promote our brands,” says Judy Hogarth, spokesperson for Hershey Foods, who helps direct the Hershey’s Kissmobile tour. “We’re having great success in getting our message points across.”

“I think the basics may have been done before, but the spins that are being put on today’s radio promotions are creating something completely new,” says industry veteran Sammy Simpson, founder of www.lured.com, a free Web site offering promotion ideas for radio pros.

So the Barenaked Ladies had it right, sort of. But I think I’m still in for a lot more scream-filled mornings.

Jeff Corder is marketing director at Marketing Werks, Chicago. Reach him at [email protected].