The Adult Contemporary Holiday Primer

The following are ideas for Adult Contemporary stations to utilize for all of the major North American holidays in 2008. 

They are:

• Valentine’s Day / Feature love song dedications all day long February 14th.  Giveaway dinners for two along with roses.  Third party prizes are good, whereby I win it and give it to someone else.
  
• St. Patrick’s Day / AC stations don’t normally get involved in big drinking parties, but St. Patrick’s Day is always fun!  Your morning show should giveaway green bagels & green tea.  The afternoon show to be involved with the happy hour party. 
  
• Easter / The perfect time for Easter egg hunts & giving away chocolate bunnies  to the children.  Be politically conscious that not all of your listeners are Christian and as such treating this as a “Spring Holiday” is likely more appropriate in some markets.
  
• Administrative Assistant’s Day / This was Secretaries Day.  Throw a party and giveaway flowers.
  
• Mother’s Day / This one is a biggie.  Telephones are used more on Mother’s Day to call moms than any other holiday.  We’re all more closely linked to our mothers than our fathers, and as such many often find a busy tone if they wait till 8 o’clock at night to call mom.  Giveaway free phone service. Treat mom like a queen for the day.  Create a section on your web-site where listeners can shop for Mother’s Day gifts that will be delivered last minute.
  
• Memorial Day / This is the kick-off to Summer.  Take your station’s frequency and create a calendar of events that match that frequency; i.e. if you’re 93 on the dial… “then 93 best things to do all Summer from 93 WXXX.”  Distribute it on line, direct mail it, budget providing.
  
• Father’s Day / The People Meter tells us that more men listen to AC radio then we thought.  Versus being 70% female and 30% male, the real world number is like 55% female and 45% male.  Give dad something he can use like a gift certificate to a hardware store, or men’s clothing store.
  
• Independence Day - Canada Day / Giveaway a completely catered backyard BBQ. 
  
• Labor Day / This holiday is not only the wrap up to Summer, but if you are targeting women, which Adult Contemporary stations do, it’s time to get the kids ready to go back to school.  Our friends in Australia/New Zealand would be the only ones looking at it as their Winter and as such don’t start a new school season until mid-January.
  
• Sweetest Day / Treat this like Valentine’s Day on an AC.  Yes, I know it’s one of those holidays that was made up by a card company, but just try missing Sweetest Day and see what your sweetie has to say.  It’s the Valentine’s Day of the Fall.
  
• Halloween / This one is great for the kids.  Give away disposable camera’s so moms and dads can snap pictures of their little gremlins & goblins.  Tie in a mall for “Safe Street.”  If you have a popular candy supplier in your neighborhood target them.  Ocala, Florida is famous for those little yellow peeps that are popular at Easter time.  You can find little white ghosts (peeps) for Halloween.
  
• Veteran’s Day (USA) /Remembrance Day (Canada/UK) / This is time to share your patriotism and tie in with a sponsor who will give away flags.  Some individuals in the USA continue to fly the red/white & blue in support of the troops during the war in Iraq.  Present The Flag Exchange where listeners stop by particular sponsors and swap their flag for a new flag at no cost.
  
• Thanksgiving / October holiday in Canada /November holiday in the USA.  This is a great family holiday and it’s always appropriate for AC stations to bring families home for the holidays and send other families to their home for the holidays.  It’s also time for many stations in the USA launch their Christmas programming.  Most Canadian stations wait until December 1 for the 24/7 Christmas tactic.
  
• December 25 / Christmas in the Christian world.  This holiday is big for non-Christian families as well.  It’s become a retail holiday for most and is an opportunity for AC stations to play non-stop holiday music from mid-November to December 25.  Some stations will continue to play “Winter-themed music to December 25.”