My favorite promotion memory of the Q happened in 1979.
The Ringling Brothers circus was in Anniston, and one morning
in the sales meeting Deason asked Wiley if we could do some
kind of promotion with the circus, so they would spend some money.
We brain stormed for a while, and then I think it was Wiley who
came up with giving away "PAC A DERM POO" (elephant crap) on the air.
Turns out the stuff is great for plant fertilizer, etc.
So we gave away s*** on the radio, and people called in to win, - like always.
We also had a gorilla on the roof of 752 Chestnut during the morning show, traffic problem? Oh yeah....
Footnote:
Post didn't want to waste anything so all the left over POO went
in Sidís car one bright sunny warm day, yep, with the windows up.
Also in 79, we gave away a vacation at 20 minutes after every hour, to the correct caller. Well, it blew out the phone company (who was across Chestnut Street), and some big wig from Bell South comes screaming in the door telling Post that the downtown phone lines are going dead from un completed phone calls at 20 minutes after the hour every hour, and we had to stop doing what weíre doing.
And that kiddies, is why radio stations have there own phone exchange these days.
Bob Mayben
Sales guy