An everyday idea made brilliant

We buy your groceries. We pay your electricity bill. We fill your petrol tank. You’ll hear these radio promotions all over the world and, especially during tough economic times, they can demonstrate how a radio station is on the side of its listeners.

But Shree FM in Sri Lanka went a lot further, earning some corporate social responsibility kudos in the process and last week winning the AIB Media award for most creative marketing strategy.

Here’s their competition mechanic…

1. Listeners are encouraged to put a board outside their house and village shop declaring their love for Shree FM.
2. Station staff and journalists on motorbikes go looking for these boards.
3. A lucky winner gets a month’s groceries free. Hurrah.

Now here’s the really smart bit…

The groceries are all purchased from the village store, so the shop has an incentive to encourage its customers to tune to Shree FM and put up a board.

The products of the competition’s sponsors (who included Nestlé) are guaranteed to be part of the prize, thereby guaranteeing exposure for their brands and encouraging the village shop to check they’re in stock.

The local shop makes their biggest sale ever, the listener gets free groceries, the sponsors gain exposure for their products and the station gains brand visibility in the heart of peoples’ communities.

And it doesn’t stop there…

One village, judged to be home to the most biggest loyal Shree FM fans in the country, receives a community centre built by the radio station and its sponsors. How’s that for rewarding listener loyalty?

That’s what happens when you take a single-minded idea like “we pay your shopping bill” and keep building on it.

You can hear Shree FM’s station director explain more about this promotion in this month’s Earshot Creative Review podcast, due out on Monday.