CPR Promotional Check-Up - Aug 24, 2011

World's Largest Office Party

This is always a great bit and in this vibrant economy, an even better one. It came up today because a station that has a Hard Rock Café in town, has been asked by the client for some promo ideas.

It's really very simple. You get a location (I've seen it done in a Hyatt, in a bar and in a convention center). You fill it with the appropriate thematic accoutrement:

• Dancing
• A tree
• Gift exchange
• Mistletoe
• Street Teamers dressed as elves
• Morning guy as Santa
• A supply closet to make out in
• A copying machine (figure it out)
• Contests between competing workplaces
• A photo set up so you can get "shot" with a lampshade on your head
• A DJ as a proxy boss so you can get drunk and tell him/her off without losing your job.

I've seen multiple clients brought in, not just the venue. Bacardi sponsored in San Francisco. The paper sponsored Sober Cabs in Minneapolis. Staples in Austin.

It could be as boring as "just come". My preferred methodology is that you play off "The Grinchest Boss" and have listeners call in and (voice disguised) out their employer as a cheapskate. Win admission for everyone in the office.

Night Before Thanksgiving

Someone in Sales should be out, locking this down, NOW. Why? Because the Wednesday night before Thanksgiving is traditionally a BIG night for clubs. Kids home from college. No work the next day. It ends in "day". (We all need our excuses to drink. Lighten up.)

One of the stations was looking for a theme. Understand that many of the people who would WANT to be going out will be committed to sitting around the living room getting caught up with rellies.

What if, on your website, you had a section to sign up for your Escape Call/Text. You log on, pick a time and a number to call/text them.

So, at 8:15 pm, after hearing about Aunt Dotties childhood on the farm near Bloomington, Illinois, my cell phone rings. I answer, make the appropriate number of "Uh huh's", "yes's", "when's?" and "for how longs?" and hang up.

I then turn to the 300 relatives crammed into the family room at my in-laws and say "Darn. Jerry has a problem. I need to get home and re-send something to the manager in Hawaii or I'm going to have take off ALL tomorrow and rewrite their imaging. Something happened with their computer system." I make the appropriate number of sad goodbyes, tell everyone I'll see them tomorrow and flee to Club Cancun where Lucas from KDWB will be doing free drink specials for 18 year-old girls with bad self-esteem and daddy issues.

The other option is to ENCOURAGE the listeners to bring the cousins they're supposed to be entertaining with games of Risk, popcorn and re-runs on TBS.

Do "Night Out With The Living Cousins". Bring someone with an out-of-state ID and they get in for free. Do a Cousins Dating Game where my cousin from Oregon is up on stage getting blindly set up with some other local's out-of-town cousin. I mean, it's not like they're ever going to see each other again.