The smiling person you see in the photo is my niece Natalie. Why is she smiling? She just completed a 5K walk. But for her, that’s no big deal. She does a dozen of them a year.
What made this one special is where the finish line was located – on the 50-yard line at the “M” at Michigan Stadium in Ann Arbor – otherwise known as “The Big House.” There is no more iconic college football radio stadium in the country. I’ve been attending games there since the 60’s and I’ve never set foot on that iconic turf.
But Natalie did because she competed in the annual “Big House 5K.” The University of
Michigan isn’t the only school or athletic organization offering this experience. Most colleges and universities hold similar events, as do scores of pro sports organizations.
Because they work.
They give fans who are already “into” health, fitness, walking and running a chance to experience something special when their fields, diamonds, courts, and rinks aren’t being used by their respective teams. And for fans, it’s a “bucket list” opportunity they proudly share all over social media and via word of mouth to friends, families, and co-workers.
We often talk about the Net Promoter Score, a recommendation measure we’ve included in every Techsurvey we’ve field since they first launched in 2004. I place a great deal of weight on this metric, a chance to measure a brand’s buzzworthiness.
And when I’m asked what usually goes into attaining a higher NPS, I point to cool fan experiences as a key component. Consumers want to engage with their brands, but all too often, that’s harder than it should be.
Seth Resler wrote a great post on this topic last month in his “Connecting the Dots” blog. In “Radio Prizes That Are Worthless, But Priceless,” he convincingly makes the case that any station can effectively use existing resources with lots of creativity to provide cool giveaway items the audience will talk about.
In radio, we throw station events, festivals, and other gatherings, but all too often, personality appearances are tethered to a media buy, a sponsor promotion, or some other pay-for-play opportunity that is far from “fans first.”
Thinking about how station fans can actually participate in a brand’s aura is often an afterthought in promotion meetings. And yet, more often than not, they are the moments audience members remember.
I’m guilty of taking these interludes for granted myself. I figure at this point, I’ve conducted well more than 1,000 focus and Listener Advisory Board groups on behalf of stations over my half century of audience research.
And invariably, participants thank me – and the station – for inviting them to be heard. When these groups take place at the station, they’re an opportunity to add a tour and a visit to the air studio. (I advise stations to actually have a live host in the studio on these evenings for obvious reasons.)
Again, it’s often the simple things that “print” – that make an impression for a brand.
And when you think a bit deeper, they are the experiences and moments that satellite radio, digital streaming platforms, and podcasters cannot provide. Every time I see an opportunity to lean into connecting with a station brand and its staff, I encourage the interaction. Because it matters.
But it helps to be thinking in these terms during promotion, marketing, and planning meetings – as opposed to waiting for them to come to you.
And when I saw Oscar Mayer’s new promotion, I couldn’t help but think of the radio application. Yes, they have their attention-getting, iconic vehicle – the “Wienermobile.” But now, they’re repurposing it into a wedding chapel.
A recent story in Marketing Dive by Jessica Deyo lays out Oscar Mayer’s nuptial strategic plan that took place just a few days ago in….where else? Las Vegas and the Little White Wedding Chapel.
Part of the method to this marital madness is research that show more than seven in ten couples planning a wedding get stressed out by the process. Oscar Meyer (and parent Kraft Heinz) is packaging in all the extras – a wiener cake, a wiener whistle quartet, and the Wienermobile itself – in an effort to make weddings affordable and fun.
The brand has firmly placed in tongue in cheek to describe why Oscar Mayer is frankly excited about this promotional campaign. Ed Roland, the company’s manager of brand communications, talks about this new venture with relish:
“Now, as more people seek stress-free ceremonies with their partners, our Hotdoggers are thrilled to reignite the joy of this special day and give them a once-in-a-lifetime experience: a wedding through a pair of meat-colored glasses.”
And the promotion speaks to the other benefit Oscar Meyer and its famous wieners are already deriving from their effort: a viral campaign that has already made the rounds on TV news and lifestyle shows, radio morning programs and personality shows, as well as social media and Internet news sites.
(audio) who WOULDN’T want to get married with the #WienerMobile? https://t.co/BzR9eenINE
— Y94 (@Y94Official) April 13, 2023
At a time when so much media content is serious and polarizing, these kinds of experiential promotions give us all a moment of levity and zaniness, at a time when we need it most.
Oscar Mayer has the Wienermobile. You have a station van, and a whole radio station where a marriage or a reception could take place. After all, those empty cubicles aren’t getting a whole lot of use.
Many stations already sponsor funny, escapist promotions. So why not think experiences? And at a time when so few other global media platforms could pull these off, the more the merrier.
And funnier.
Jacobs Media has consistently walked the walk in the digital space, providing insights and guidance through its well-read national Techsurveys.
In 2008, jacapps was launched - a mobile apps company that has designed and built more than 1,300 apps for both the Apple and Android platforms. In 2013, the DASH Conference was created - a mashup of radio and automotive, designed to foster better understanding of the "connected car" and its impact.
Along with providing the creative and intellectual direction for the company, Fred consults many of Jacobs Media's commercial and public radio clients, in addition to media brands looking to thrive in the rapidly changing tech environment.
Fred was inducted into the Radio Hall of Fame in 2018.
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Thank you for providing Exhibit A of my “See, This Is What I was Talking About” campaign at our public radio station. A wedding…hmmm… (I came very close to getting married at Zingerman’s in the early 80s.)
Years ago, before working there, I contacted the station manager and asked if they’d donate a “station experience” for an elementary school charity auction. They agreed. A parent was the winning bidder and their kid was heard on the air. You can’t buy better warm fuzzy PR, or long term investments in next generation listeners.
Great promotion and thanks for this comment.
I never knew there was a “Big House 5K”, I am going to have to do that. My dad was a Michigan grad, he loved his school and the Wolverines and he talked about “The Big House” all his life. I have wanted to visit Ann Arbor someday to see his school, and this would be a great thing to do in his memory. This gives me a real incentive to plan, thanks for mentioning this run!
I’ll see you there next year, Mark.
Not sure why people don’t quite understand that in our business-but too many times…”you can win a Amazon gift card”. “A pair of tickets to the (insert team) game.” I thingk you’d rather win “$1,000 to spend on what you’d like at Amazon.” Win “the chance to see the (team) destroy their league opponents (other team) at (venue). “Hear Billy Joel sing to you at (venue)”.
This texting of the keyword stuff is about as emotionless as it can be. Describing the euphoria of winning $1,000 to splurge on a shopping spree at Victoria’s Secret might elicit a positive listener reaction.
Great thoughts, Fred. Radio should do a better job of painting that landscape rather than describing the contents.
Dave, your comment needs to go viral. I had an Ops Manager many years ago that explained giving away the experience, not tickets. His example was tickets to a local amusement park, tge example being something like “win the chance to feel the rush of the wind through your hair, screaming as you ride the top roller coaster in the world, the Phoenix.”
Let’s get out hte paint, Dave. Thanks for the strong comment.
“…The brand has firmly placed in tongue in cheek to describe why Oscar Mayer is *frankly* excited…”
I see what you did there Fred!
Ha! Good catch. (Did Fred even catch it?) Reminds me of the old line, “To be frank…I’d have to change my name.”
What do you mean – “Did Fred even catch it?” Do you think this stuff writes itself?? I love little Easter eggs now and again.
Thanks, guys.
Don’t forget “…this new venture with relish.”
Who can forget these contests when MTV was new:
The Pink House in Bloomington, Indiana.
A roadie for Springsteen.
Talk about giving away an experience.
I think that’s better than the sales manager who wanted to give away refrigerator magnets.
MTV and Vh1 were famous for these, thanks to wizards like Jarl Mohn (aka Lee Masters) and Jeff Rowe. At 91X one year, PD Mad Max came up with “A 6-Pack of Yugos” given away to one “lucky” winner.
In my years with Fairbanks…
24 Hours in LosVegas (an airline was starting direct service to Vegas from Indy) Free to the callers until the DC 10 was full
A weekend for you and your family at the Southfork Ranch. KVIL at the height of the Dallas TV show’s popularity.
A Farah Fawcett look-a-like contest trip to LA, a day on the set, and a meet and greet with the cast. A stay at the Beverley Hills Hotel and 1.000 in cash. WVBF Boston when I was the PD.
BTW, the winner’s boyfriend wouldn’t let her go, because he couldn’t (on parole) a couple of years later, he had his partner Whitey Bulger kill her. She was among the bodies dug up as evidence before Whitey’s trial. Her boyfriend was Stevie “The Rifleman” Flemmi. Stevie had been her mom’s boyfriend, then he spotted her daughter.
There are a bunch more, but Debbie Davis’s story always sickens me. She was a really nice kid, trapped by a monster.
Thanks you, Robert.