Patty Aguilar, AE, Uniradio, EAR Award committee member; Marshall Dirks, director of marketing for Proven Winners; Karin Oster, vice president of Oster and Associates; Bobby Salvato, GSM , Star 94.1; Delana, on-air personality, Star 94.1; Geri Tovar, AE, Star 94.1

According to Clear Channel Radio account executive Katy Bennett, her client Proven Winners, the number one plant brand in the United States, was looking to extend its brand awareness to the general market by targeting women 25 to 54 years old when it launched a radio campaign in January 2009.  And by all accounts, it was a success.

The radio messages that were produced by Oster and Associates and ran on KMYI-FM and on KOGO’s Dr. Laura show were simple but compelling:  “Improving the look of your home is easy with Proven Winners” and “Everyone can be a successful gardener with Proven Winners’ beautiful, healthy and hearty plants.”   Not only was the campaign successful in getting customers to buy the plants in stores, but it encouraged others to log on to the company’s web site and receive a free gardening book, while Proven Winners expanded its database.

Marshall Dirks, Director of Marketing for Proven Winners says that the company documented strong sales figures from their retail partners, including The Home Depot, as a result of the campaign.  Additionally, he says, “we received 20,763 unique sessions to a designated link to our web site.  This was 10 to 50 times more effective than leading magazines with similar links in print ads.” (The results varied based on the circulation of the publication in comparison.)

Star 94.1 personality endorsements helped too. The morning show’s Delana shared “before and after” photos of her home on the radio station’s website.  Karin Oster, Vice President of Oster and Associates believes “the use of traditional broadcast media with non-traditional media really helped impact the audience to its fullest potential.  It allowed us to communicate with the audience on all levels and really stand out from the crowd.  The overall promotion was so successful that we are now taking it to 13 markets in 2010.”

Just as Proven Winners would want, radio is helping the plant business to grow.

Posted under EAR Award Winners

AJ at 60 feet!

Star 94.1 morning show host AJ Machado showed his compassion, daring and showmanship once again this year, as he spent an entire week on a scissor lift crane on behalf of patients at Rady Children’s Hospital in San Diego. His efforts and those of Radio station KMYI resulted in the collection of 101,620 toys for the kids.

At 8 am on October 16, 2009, Machado took up residence on an 8’ x 10’ platform, 60 feet above the Mission Valley IKEA parking lot, vowing to stay until the station collected more than 101-thousand new and unwrapped toys for the children. That happened on Saturday, October 23rd at 6:00 pm.

In an effort to encourage listener participation many celebrities joined the deejay at the site. The Plain White T’s, One Republic, Esmee Denters, the cast of the Lion King, Carlos Mencia, Frankie J, Luis Castillo, Kiptyn from the Bachelorette, the Park View Little League team and Josh Damigo all showed up over the seven day stint, lending their support.

The Park View Little League Team Pays a Visit to AJ

“Despite our difficult economy, San Diegans have always shown their generosity and we were confident this year would be no exception,” said Machado. “Something as simple as a toy can make the fear and pain of a child’s illness or injury easier to bare. The toys we collected will brighten the lives of thousands of children receiving treatment at Rady Children’s Hospital over the next 12 months.”

101,000+ Toys for Kids

This was the eighth year in a row AJ took up residence (eating, sleeping, etc.) on the crane. Contributions were accepted at the event site and at North County Credit Union locations.

Posted under Community Cuts

AJ

Clear Channel Communications San Diego debuts new morning show on Star 94.1 in August.  ”AJ in the Morning” cast includes AJ, Gina the Latina (Big Scoop), Hula as the producer and Delana (Real and Stupid News).  The show airs 6am-10am on weekdays on KMYI. Lil’ Tonya is the assistant producer.

Gina

Delana

Hula

Posted under Behind the Mic

No glass slippers, but lots of smiling faces!

Generous listeners of the Jeff and Jer morning show searched their closets for new or gently used formal wear to help make prom dreams come true for thousands of San Diego teenagers.  More than 6,000 dresses of various styles, colors and sizes were donated and on display at Carmel Mountain Plaza and on Saturday, April 18th, high school girls who wouldn’t have been able to buy a prom dress had the opportunity to choose a gown and take it home, at no cost.

There’s no telling who had more fun – the girls or the volunteers who helped them find the “perfect” dress!

Posted under Community Cuts, Radio