Day #4 (as promised): Late February-March Ideas

• Frozen food month idea for grocery store, vendor and even appliance dealer who sells freezers. Stock freezers full of frozen food and give away keys that unlock the freezer. Winner gets all the food and the freezer.
• SPRING TRAINING: A counter-balance to the strong female appeal of the current music is a cool prize for guys: a trip to either Spring Training or to a Fantasy Baseball Camp. Especially effective in regions where the weather is cold and snowy. Be sure to capture the data base information on the men who enter or who will be the recipient of the prize if a woman enters for them. Aggressive stations will design special direct mail station promotional pieces that are male-focused.
• SPRING BREAK FOR ADULTS/FAMILIES: Consider a Spring Break giveaway for adults: a long weekend trip to places like the Florida Keys, Bermuda, the desert Southwest (of, if you have a sister Classic Rock station, destinations that listeners might have gone to when they were in school: Daytona Beach, Ft. Lauderdale, etc.). For families, consider locations like Disney World/Disneyland. Or give a choice: a tennis, golf, spa getaway, even skiing, etc. Works well with combination of on-air listening and at at-client registration.
• HELP FOR THE HOMELESS: Winter's bitter cold nights are especially problematic for homeless persons. Organize a drive to collect sleeping bags that can be distributed by community organizations.
• LEVI STRAUSS BIRTHDAY (February 26): Celebrate by offering special trade-in prices to everyone who brings in a pair of jeans to be donated to charity. Alternately offer special discounts to everyone who wears jeans into the store...or have a contest for the best-decorated jeans (best-filled jeans, etc.) with the winners getting free jeans.

(More February Ideas) Presidents Day (February 21)

Give away "President Portraits" - some "Lincolns" ($5 bill), Hamiltons, Grants, etc. Award for correct answers to trivia questions about the respective presidents who are on the bills you are giving away.

Alternately, give away "Lincolns and Washingtons" for every song someone can name from the previous hour.

Or ask a question every hour 10a-3p and award a "Presidential Collection" (one bill from each President) to the first person to fax in all the correct answers.

Or do a variation on the "Dollar Bill Game" giving away "Presidential Collections" for people who can match partial serial numbers on any dollar bill they may have ("I'm looking for a dollar bill with two 8's").

The WXXX bank isn't closed today. Listen for the first few bars of "Hail To The Chief" to call in and win pictures of Presidents on legal tender.

Frame up a collection of as many denominations as you'd like and have people guess who the portraits are of with a drawing from all the correct guesses to win the collection

Win a cherry pie plus what's inside. At the sound of the tree chopping, call in to win a pie from a local bakery plus what's inside…concert tickets, CDs, cash, T-shirts. Perhaps even a weekend in the Presidential Suite at a local first class hotel. Be sure to stage with plenty of effects like squishy sounds of reaching in the pie.

Presidential Fun And Games. Morning show games feature quotes/trivia with listeners matching the item to the correct President. "I Cannot Tell A Lie" where each member of the morning crew claims to be giving a true piece of Presidential trivia but only one is telling the truth. Give away videos of "American President."

PS: BONUS FUN FOR WASHINGTON'S BIRTHDAY (February 22)

Morning show bit. One partner announces that he, like George Washington, can't tell a lie. Listeners call in and ask DJ questions that he must truthfully answer. Screen for questions that are entertaining but not too embarrassing.

A Month Of Ideas In Four Days (Part 1)

LINCOLN'S BIRTHDAY (February 12)

A good grocery promotion. Pass out certificates (numbered Lincoln logs?).

Award Lincoln-oriented prizes like (cheese) logs, "four score" (80) of something, Log Cabin syrup, etc.

Add in discounts to anyone wearing a beard, over 6 foot tall (Lincoln was a tall guy), etc. Have a drawing every "four score" minutes. Good appearance idea.

(tomorrow: last-minute ideas for Valentine's Day)