Sweeps Saves Existing Sponsorship & Spurs New Annual Campaign

by Andrew Burney Federated Media

Case Study Highlights

  • Saved annual campaign threatened by COVID-19
  • 200+ hot, qualified leads for local electrician
  • $1,340 on top of a $40,000 package
  • Inspired advertiser to sign on for brand new annual campaign

The Idea

WMEE-FM is a DMA 110 station out of Fort Wayne, IN. We’re always looking for opportunities to increase our station revenue and secure new advertising partnerships with local businesses. We also recognize one of the biggest places to grow revenue comes from growing our relationships with existing partners.

Local outdoor lighting company, Mr. Electric, is a longtime client of ours. They run an annual broadcast campaign with our station but when the COVID-19 (Coronavirus) hit our area, they showed concern about launching during this major economic shift.

WMEE-FM ran a campaign for local outdoor lighting company, Mr. Electric.

Mr. Electric was seeking immediate leads. Our team at WMEE brainstormed ways we could enrich Mr. Electric’s existing broadcast campaign to deliver more ROI for the advertiser. A sweepstakes would be the perfect way to deliver qualified leads.

As we were preparing to launch this campaign, social distancing measures began impacting many businesses including Mr. Electric. We knew a prize that could be completed outside of a winner’s home would be the most successful for both the client and winner during social distancing.

The Execution

We worked closely with Mr. Electric on the sweepstakes. It was important to pick a valuable, relevant prize to attract the right audience. The advertiser was able to offer a $4,000 LED landscape lighting package – the perfect prize for their potential customers.

WMEE-FM's sweepstakes with Mr. Electric

To quickly qualify the leads Mr. Electric received, our station asked the advertiser to explain qualities of a favorable prospect. Based on this, we added lead-generation questions about an entrant’s home and current lighting situation.

Lead-generation questions from Mr. Electric sweepstakes
Combined with an email opt-in, these questions produced a great prospect list for Mr. Electric. We wanted the advertiser to be able to reach out immediately, so we enabled the Hot Leads Notification feature within the sweepstakes.

Mr. Electric Sweepstakes Email Opt-in

Now, every time a new lead enters the sweepstakes, Mr. Electric receives an immediate email with the entrant’s details and lead-gen question responses. Our advertiser knows when someone says they’re interested in your product, that’s when you should be reaching out to them.

To incentivize participation in the sweepstakes, we allowed entrants to receive five extra chance entries for each friend that entered from their unique code. This would help the sweepstakes get shared to an even bigger audience.

r Mr. Electric Sweepstakes Extra Chances

Additionally, to increase sales for Mr. Electric, we worked with them to include a discount offer for every participant in the thank-you email. This way, everyone feels like they come out a winner, and the advertiser’s sales team has even more incentive with their list of potential customers.

WMEE-FM Thank-You Email

This sweepstakes was added to Mr. Electric’s annual package including on-air commercials, targeted display ads, and social and email marketing. Relying heavily on email, we were able to leverage these elements to help promote the contest and drive entrants.

WMEE-FM Mr. Electric Sweepstakes Invitation Email

The Results

The day after our announcement email almost 500 people entered the contest. By the end of the whole campaign, more than 1,100 people entered.

214 people opted-in for more information from Mr. Electric. Even while the contest was running, the advertiser’s sales team began reaching out to these qualified leads. The client was so pleased with the results that Mr. Electric is starting an annual campaign of quizzes and polls to continue educating and engaging with prospective customers in two key markets.

On top of Mr. Electric’s original $40,000 annual package, this sweepstakes drove an additional $1,340 for our station, and we were able to grow our various station newsletters with a combined 2,200 opt-ins.

But above all that, this promotion provided immediate leads for a client during a crucial time.

Promotions and results like this are perfect at a time when our advertisers are needing immediate, tangible results. It gives both our sellers and our clients more confidence that they should be advertising right now. In a time when the economy is shifting, it’s more important than ever to show a success story like Mr. Electric.

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