Why Great Ideas Always Win For Radio

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Our thanks to Kate Lattimer-Maguire, Senior Account Executive for Alpha Media in Lincoln, for sharing this advertiser success story with us this week. Creative ideas Kate put in front of a client have resulted in a lucrative annual partnership for that client and for Kate’s station.

by Kate Lattimer-Maguire
Paws 4 Fun is an indoor dog park and boarding facility that opened in Lincoln, spring of 2017. As this was a totally new concept to our market, the client needed awareness and education. He had mentioned at our initial meeting that if he could just get people to see his state-of-the-art facility and speak with the staff, he felt confident they would become long-term customers. My goal was not only on-air components, but ideas to drive even more listeners to his facility.

The ideal target was women/moms 25-54. I came up with an annual plan on our Top 40 station, 106.3 KFRX, that greatly serves that demo. In addition to a high frequency monthly commercial schedule that the client recorded with a jingle, I also included non-traditional elements, many that were customized.

Success stories sponsored by SunFunMedia.com

For the grand opening we did a “Business of the Week” campaign where we highlighted the new business on-air, online, as well as on-site during a week-long campaign, along with gift card giveaways. We then followed up a couple months later as a lead sponsor of our popular 30th annual kids run, The Mayor’s Run on KFRX. Again, getting exposure with additional mentions as well as a coupon in the packet that went to all kids, in turn essentially the moms.

A few months after that, we did the “Pic a Pet” photo contest on KFRX, encouraging our listeners on-air and online to upload their furry kids. Every entry had a bounce back offer and I was able to capture all emails for the client. The overall winner of the photo contest received a $100 gift card to Paws 4 Fun.

The final custom promotion we utilized was in the fall, called “Bark at the Moon, Doggie Trick-Or-Treating.” This was a HUGE success for the client! We (him and I) both sold “booths” to local vendors. Anyone from dog-related businesses to gyms, health care, retail, etc. We ran station promos, as well as social postings to promote the event as well as a live broadcast day-of.

The event generated over 300 dogs in costume and well over 1,000 humans, again whose emails were all captured for the client’s database. We did a “Costume Photo Contest” where we uploaded all photos of the dogs to his Facebook page and asked attendees to like, share, and encourage friends to like their pet to win. His social exploded.

We are currently right in the process of getting the 2nd annual Bark at the Moon event underway. We have doubled our vendor booths, noting that everyone from last year couldn’t wait to sign up again! The growth they have experienced in our market and from radio has let them be able to explore a location in Omaha, Nebraska, which they are currently in the process of with hopes to someday franchise!

This is now an annual partnership event. The revenue my client receives from a day of signing people up for memberships and what he sees immediately afterwards is incredible!

Radio Ink: Tell us what the first call on the client was like.
Kate: You know when you first meet someone and you just know you’ll be friends beyond just a professional relationship? That’s what it was like for myself and Leon Kilmer, owner of Paws 4 Fun. We just clicked. I was a veterinary technician for many years of my life so just being able to connect over our love for dogs was immediate; plus we have similar personalities. The first meeting ideas started flying, including my desire to start a huge annual dog trick-or-treating event in our community. Pretty sure we closed the first meeting not even knowing logistics!

Radio Ink: Why/how does the jingle make the client stand out?
Kate: I am so lucky to have an incredible production team. We were able to find an awesome music bed that had a “dog jingle” at the beginning and even a quick one again about 20 seconds in. It makes you know it’s Paws 4 Fun every time his commercials come on, plus it was no charge to the client, which he was thrilled about.

Radio Ink: How did you come up with the out-of-the-box ideas for the client?
Kate: Being a dog (and cat) owner myself, I know how much people love their pets and that my camera is filled with pictures of them. I really wanted to have fun with many concepts by connecting to those emotions pet owners have and include the client in so much more than just commercials on-air. We really are reaching people in all areas of their life by being on-air, online, and on-site, by doing pre-roll videos of his facility, quarterly social contesting/pics and fun events at his location with our personalities and community, or them on-site with us — as well as everyday continued branding and awareness on our top station on-air and streaming.

Radio Ink: How do you know the client is satisfied?
Kate: Since Leon and I and so many of my other clients have such an open form of communication, we are very good about discussing expectations, results, new concepts, etc. I would never take all the credit for a business’ success because it is so much more than just effective marketing. It’s them day in and day out making sure when people do act on their marketing efforts, that they as well as their pets have a great experience and want to go back, which the staff at Paws are fantastic about. I have seen their growth and loyalty of their customers, and knowing that they are already looking to grow and expand makes me so happy.

Radio Ink: What advice to you have for other salespeople to think about more than spots?
Kate: I know we all hear it everyday, but it is so true: we need to be more than just a “salesperson” selling radio air time. The most fun part of this career is collaborating with local clients like Paws 4 Fun and just having fun with marketing by thinking outside the box and coming up with great ideas across all your platforms with great content.

Reach out to Kate to congratulate her on doing such an awesome job for her client and representing radio at [email protected]

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