Radio showmanship (Jan-Dec 1946)

SHOWMANSHIP IN ACTION Promotions and merchandising stunts that will lift a program out of the ordinary. Beverages GOLD STAR FINAL In Fort Wayne, Ind., the gold star attached to the automobile license plate is a sign of distinction. It also reminds Farnsworth WGL fans to tune-in the Gold Star Final. Every day the highlight of the quarter-hour newscast sponsored by the Hoff-Brau Brewery Corporation is the announcement of the Gold Star winner of the day. That honor goes to the person scouted that day in downtown Fort Wayne as the most courteous and safest driver. Evidence that the Gold Star promotion meets with the approval of Fort Wayne's thirsty: instead of asking for Hoff-Brau Beer, many customers now ask for Gold Star. When Hoff-Brau put its John Henry to the current 52-week contract, it was old stuff to brewery officials. Hoff-Brau, oldest and largest advertiser on WGL, has retained the Gold Star Final program throughout its radio advertising history. Series has been under the HoffBrau banner for ten consecutive years. Commercials hue to the institutional line, with approximately 45-seconds lor the sales pitch. Feather in the WGL cap: in spite of a drastic rate increase during the past several months, this was no bottle-neck when it came to signing the new contract with Hoff-Brau. AIRFAX: Pint Broadcast: 1935. Broadcast Schedule: Monday through Saturday, 6:45 7:00 P.M. Sponsor: Hoff-Brau Brewery Corp. Station: WGL, Fort Wayne, Ind. 98 Power: 250 watts. Population: 117,246. COMMENT: Reminder gimmicks are all to the good. Here's one that's worth its weight in gold. Device points up the fact that public service need not be dead weight when it comes to the ledger page. Certainly showmanship devices which make one program stand out from others of the same type are all to the good. Department Stores DETECT-A-TUNE Strains of familiar music are what keep KLRA, Little Rock, Ark., listeners tuned to the Blass DetectA-Tiine show. The pay-off: Blass Club Money for the correct identification of mystery tunes. Listeners are called at random from a scientifically selected list of Greater Little Rock telephone numbers. Those who correctly name the mystery tune pocket $15.00 in Blass Club Money redeemable in store merchandise. Those who fail to correctly identify the mystery tune receive a merchandise certificate as consolation prize. Those telephoned have one minute in which to identify the tune. They also get plenty of help from the announcer in tune identification. For the benefit of those not listening to the program, announcer gives them a chance to hear the music via the telephone. Commercials for the Gus Blass Department Store are interspersed between mystery tunes. Copy sells the store as a whole, is largely institutional. AIRFAX: Detect-A-Tune is fully copyrighted and protected, exclusive to one sponsor in a community. Syndicated series was produced by Phillip G. Back & Co., Adv. Agcy., Little Rock. Broadcast Schedule: Monday through Friday, 7:55 8:00 P.M. Sponsor: Gus Blass Department Store. Station: KLRA, Little Rock, Ark. Power: 5,000 watts. Population: 125,225. Producer: Phillip G. Back & Co. COMMENT: Merchandising angle here serves as an excellent traffic builder, and in the retail sales picture, store traffic is the pot o' gold at the end of the rainbow. Because those telephoned need not be listening to the program to qualify for the prize, there is no implication of lottery. RADIO SHOWM A NSH I P