If you’ve moved into the Windows Vista world I thought I’d pass along an article I found at http://www.AudioForums.com that was written by the guys over at Sweetwater. I love these guys and trust them implicitly… Here are some great tips for Optimizing your Windows Vista PC for use as a DAW…

Introduction: Getting a PC

Welcome to the Windows Vista PC Optimization Guide. Here you will find a comprehensive guide to optimization of any Vista computer for use as a DAW (Digital Audio Workstation).

It is important that you read through this documentation as it covers several crucial optimization steps recommended when setting up your DAW. Because Vista is meant for an entire spectrum of users, by default, the user interface is designed to have a very nice GUI (Graphical User Interface), plenty of security, a pleasing set of sounds, and several other features. Some of these are not the ideal settings for dedicated DAW users, though. This guide is intended to step you through optimizing your machine in preparation for your new hardware and software to gain the most out of your system without experiencing the unnecessary heavy processor loads of poorly optimized machines.

Vista: Update or Fresh Install?

Generally speaking, a fresh install on a wiped (full-formatted or brand new) hard drive is the best insurance against potential problems; leftover registry items and other orphaned legacy files can lurk in your system for months, only to cause unanticipated conflicts with a newly-installed program or driver at a later date. A fresh install is recommended. However, as many programs still do not offer Vista compatibility yet, a dual-boot system may be called for. In this case, it is still better to install Vista on a newly formatted partition rather than as an overwrite or additional on an existing one.

Choosing an Edition

Windows Vista is not just one operating system. It is a collection of several editions, each designed for a specific function and user base. Complete side-by-side comparisons can be found on Microsoft’s website, but for our purposes, the editions and major differences relevant to a DAW user are as follows.

• Home Basic: 512 megabytes (MB) minimum required RAM; maximum 8 gigabytes (GB) RAM in 64-bit edition; Aero interface not supported.
• Home Premium: max. 16 GB RAM in 64-bit.
• Business: 128+ GB RAM support in 64-bit; Windows Complete PC Backup.
• Ultimate: 128+ GB RAM support in 64-bit; Windows Complete PC Backup; BitLocker drive encryption.
• Enterprise: 128+ GB RAM support in 64-bit; Windows Complete PC Backup; BitLocker drive encryption; simultaneous multi-language support.

While any of the editions will be sufficient for most DAW users, these difference may come into play when choosing an edition (especially the 64-bit editions). Keep in mind that DAW applications will be able to support all Vista editions, unless specifically stated otherwise in the system requirements.Vista DAW System Requirements

All software should display minimum system requirements to give you an idea of what the application will consume. It!s important to realize that the minimum is never the recommended configuration for a DAW. Here are Vista’s recommended requirements:

• 1 GHz processor (x64 if you are using a 64-bit edition of Vista)
• 1 GB RAM
• 40 GB hard drive with 15 GB free space
• Graphics card with support for DirectX 9, 32 bites/pixel, Pixel Shader 2.0, and a WDDM driver
• A DVD drive
• Internet access (for activation)
• Additional requirements for each edition of Vista can be found at www.microsoft.com/windows/products/ windowsvista/editions/systemrequirements.mspx
• Note that most DAW applications have minimum requirements that are higher than these.

Here’s what’s additionally recommended to ensure smooth operation of your DAW:

• 2 GHz multi-core processor **
• 2 GB RAM
• 80 GB of available system drive hard disk space, separate physical system and audio drives, with drive speeds of 7200 RPM. It!s common to see configurations with an 80GB system drive and additional 200-400GB audio drives for storing samples and session data.

** Note that some Intel Core series processors have slower clock speeds, but achieve higher performance than older, “faster” processors. Most any “newer” (read: Pentium 4, D, and Core series; AMD Athlon 64) processor should be sufficient. To get an idea of how yours performs, see this chart: http://www23.tomshardware.com/ cpu.html?modelx=33&model1=432&model2=439&chart=171

System Performance Tweaks – Stuff to Do After Installing

A few conventions are used in the following sections:

1. This guide assumes that you are working off a fresh install of Vista. Therefore, if you have modified the way your windows are displayed, or otherwise customized the OS, some of the instructions may be slightly different.
2. Classic View is used in the Control Panel. There is a link on the left-hand pane in the Control Panel window to engage Classic View.
3. When navigating Vista, the “>” symbol is used to show the next step. For example, instead of seeing “double-click on Computer, then double-click on C:, then double-click on Program Files,” you will see this: “Go to Computer > C: > Program Files.”
4. It is assumed you can access the The Device Manager. Here are a number of ways:

• Right-click on Computer > Manage > Device Manager.
• Start > type in “Device Manager” and press “Enter.”
• Start . Control Panel > Device Manager.

Performance

These adjustments are some of the more sweeping optimizations in this guide. They address the visual aspects, processor handling, and DEP for the Vista OS. One of the most highly-touted aspects of Vista has been the new visual effects, or “eye candy.” As impressive as they are, Aero effects do take a significant amount of system resources. These are valuable resources that can instead be devoted to your audio software. If you do have a powerful enough video card, then it will assume all video processing; in that case, it is more than OK to leave Aero enabled.

Processor scheduling determines which types of processing are given a higher priority by Vista. The default setting is to devote more to your programs. This seems good on the surface; however, audio drivers run in the background, and NOT as separate programs. In order to get the most performance from AUDIO gear, it is best to set your processor to handle background services first.

Data Execution Prevention (DEP) is a set of hardware and software technologies that perform additional checks on memory to help prevent malicious code from running on a system. This is a technology originally developed in Windows XP that is now a part of Vista. While great in theory, DEP can sometimes see audio applications as “malicious code.” Leaving it on to prevent attacks on essential Windows files is preferable.

To make these adjustments, right-click on Computer > Properties > Advanced System Settings > Performance > Settings, and select:

• Visual Effects > Adjust for best Performance (this disables all Aero effects).
• Advanced > Processor Scheduling > Background Services.
• Advanced > Data Execution Prevention > Turn on DEP for essential Windows programs and services only. Press OK when done. This will disable the Windows Aero™ theme. If you would like to enable it again, rightclick on the desktop and choose Personalize > Theme > Windows Vista. Resource usage from the Vista theme is negligible. See the section on Personalization for more details.

Power Options

Windows allows for custom configuration of its power settings. This is useful for conserving energy when the computer is not in use. It works by automatically powering down or ‘hibernating’ one or more components of the computer system when the computer has been idle for a predetermined amount of time. This can pose a major problem for users who record long sessions, as the computer may power itself down in the middle of recording!

To optimize you power settings for audio performance, go to Start > Control Panel > Power Options > choose “High Performance.” Click the “Change plan settings” button, and make sure both options are set to “Never.”

User Account Control

The new User Account Control in Vista is among the more controversial features. It is beneficial for preventing unwanted changes to the system, and especially for protecting against unauthorized installations and file executions. However, the constant prompts asking to allow or deny access can interfere with overall workflow; all activity is suspended while the prompt waits for a reply. Furthermore, the user account monitoring uses extra CPU cycles (in fact, almost a negligible amount), so disabling the feature improves performance ever so slightly. All in all, the impediments in a DAW seem to outweigh the added security, especially if the system is kept off the internet. To disable UAC, go to Start > Control Panel > User Accounts (your account) > “Turn User Control on or off” > Uncheck “Use UAC” > OK > Restart.

Keep in mind that some programs may require UAC to be enabled to complete the installation. If this is the case, then follow the instructions of the manufacturer.

Windows Security Center

Another enhancement in Vista is the increased efficiency and centralized configuration of the Security Center. It is great for keeping out intruders, spyware, viruses, etc., but does so at the cost of CPU cycles. If you are online, it is best to leave the Security Center alone and active. Otherwise, you risk losing data, the integrity of your system drive, and even your identity. If you are not online with your Vista DAW, then disabling the Security Center features will free up some extra resources for you. The following instructions are for the offline user.

To access the Security Center, go to Start > Control Panel > Security Center. There are several adjustments to be made from the Security Center window:

• Click on Windows Update on the left-hand pane > Change Settings > Never Check for Updates… > OK > close the update window.
• Click on Windows Firewall > Change settings > Off > OK > close the Firewall window.
• Click on Windows Defender > Tools > Options > uncheck “Automatically scan my computer” > Save> close the Defender window. You can manually scan at any time by pressing the “Scan” button from the main Defender window. Again, this is not an issue if you’re offline.
• Note that if you make these adjustments, Windows will continually remind you that your computer is at risk. To stop these reminders, go to “Change the way Security Center alerts me” > “Don’t notify me and don’t display the icon.”

Bear in mind that in this state, you are at risk if you should choose to go online. Before doing so, it is highly recommended that you re-enable everything in the Security center, and also connect immediately to Windows Update for the latest security updates from Microsoft.

Antivirus software is another subcategory of Windows security. While not included as part of the Security Center, antivirus software is another near-necessity for everyday computing. For the online DAW user, it is best to disable antivirus software before using an audio applications. Since you will not be actively online, Windows Firewall and Defender (provided they are up to date) will be enough to monitor the background. For the offline DAW user, it’s best to not install it in the first place.

In Vista Ultimate and Enterprise editions, another relevant security feature is BitLocker drive encryption. While it is a fantastic tool to prevent theft and piracy, the added encryption is not suitable for a high-performance DAW. It is best to leave BitLocker off on any drive that will actively be running DAW applications or streaming audio. However, for backup and non-DAW related drives, it id fine to leave it enabled. To adjust BitLocker on your drives, go to Start > Control Panel > Control Panel Home > Security > BitLocker Drive Encryption.

Virtual Memory and ReadyBoost

Virtual memory (or paging files) is a technique that involves using a dedicated section of the hard drive as though it were additional RAM. The downside is that hard drive invariably process data slower than RAM, so using paging files does decrease performance. This can be beneficial for low-performance, high-data applications, where lots of material is loaded into RAM, but does not process extremely quickly. With audio applications, this is not a good idea. As they are very demanding on system resources, using a lower-speed hard drive is not a viable solution. However, some applications may require the use of a paging file, for one reason or another. If this is the case, then make sure to set all of your buffer sizes in your audio application as high as possible to compensate for the hard drive’s latency.

Right-click on “Computer” (either from desktop or Start button) > Properties > Advanced System Settings. This will bring you to the Advanced tab in the System Properties window. Under the Performance section, go to Settings tab and select Advanced, the press the “Change” button under Virtual memory. Uncheck “Automatically manage paging file size for all drives.” For each drive listed, click on “No paging file” and “Set.” You will be warned that a crash file may not be recorded if you have no paging file. Choose “Yes” to this message. Once all drives have been modified, choose “OK.” Restart your computer for the changes to take effect.

If you do need to enable a paging file, for whatever reason, it is usually best to use a multiple of 2 for the size. Examples would be 256 MB, 512 MB, 1024 MB, etc. There is no need to exceed the amount of physical RAM installed for a paging file. If you find yourself continually needing to increase the paging file size, it is probably time to upgrade your system RAM.

One alternative to paging files is a new Vista technology called ReadyBoost. It essentially uses a USB flash drive as a high-speed paging file. Not all flash drives will work, though. A device must have the following minimum specifications:

• The device must be at least 64 MB
• The device must be USB 2.0
• It has to be able to read at 3.5 MB/s
• It has to be able to write at 2.5 MB/s

To activate ReadyBoost on a USB flash drive, go to Computer > right-click on the drive > Properties > ReadyBoost > select “Use this Device” and choose the amount of space you wish to dedicate to ReadyBoost > “OK” when finished. As with paging files, it is best to stay with multiples of 2.

Hard Drive Performance

Vista has an option to boost the normal performance of ATA and SATA drives by enhancing write caching. One problem with this is that if power is interrupted to the hard drive, then the risk of data loss or corruption is greatly increased. However, if you use a battery backup or some other type of uninterruptible power, then you should not have anything to worry about. To speed up your dives, navigate to the Device Manager. Click on the “+” next to Disk Drives, then right-click on the drive you wish to change and choose Properties > Policies > check the box next to “Enable advanced performance.”

There are several different ways in which data on a hard disk can be accessed. DMA is one of them. This format is the best and fastest method available, so it is recommended for audio. To make sure DMA is enabled on your hard drives, go to the Device Manager > IDE ATA/ATAPI Controllers. You will see one or more ATA Channels. On each channel, right-click and choose Properties > Advanced Settings > make sure “Enable DMA” is checked > press “OK.” There is another type of device beyond the ATA Controllers. In some cases, changing this listing (which varies according to the motherboard) to “Standard Dual Channel PCI IDE Controller” has been known to increase performance. Note, however, that this is not a required step to optimize your system. It is an optional step that MAY increase performance. If you choose to do this, then right-click on it and choose “Update Driver Software…” > “Browse my Computer…” > “Let me pick…” > “Standard Dual Channel PCI IDE Controller” > Next > Close. You do have to restart your computer for this change to take effect.

There are also two other drive properties to consider. These can be accessed by going to Computer and rightclicking on the drive in question, and:

• Under the General tab, make sure “Compress this drive…” is unchecked.
• Under the Quota tab, you have “Do not limit disk usage” selected, but nothing else.

Indexing Options

Another feature in Vista is its ability to automatically index all the files in the Start Menu, user profile folders, and files setup for offline access. Too many files in these locations, especially when the files change often, causes the indexing service to add to the overall CPU load. While this change speed up your overall performance, it will also adversely affect your searching speed in those locations. However, with a good file management strategy, this will be irrelevant for the DAW user. To adjust your indexing options, go to Start > type in “indexing options” > press Enter > Modify. In the “Change selected locations” window, uncheck everything except for the Start menu, located in C: > ProgramData > Microsoft > Windows.

On-Board Devices

An on-board device is any device built in to the computer. Examples include built-in wireless adapters, audio cards, web-cams, etc. Most of these are fairly benign, but some have the potential to interfere with digital audio software and hardware. Historically speaking, the most problematic devices are wireless internet cards and audio cards; we typically recommend disabling these, at least while using your software. On-board wireless internet cards periodically send and receive information when activated (even without an internet browser open), and these bursts of data transfer take CPU cycles, to the point of causing audible pops and clicks in DAW applications. On-board audio cards can cause driver conflict problems, and are not as high in quality as professional interfaces. Additionally, they are often selected as the default driver in most DAW applications, forcing you to manually select your primary interface instead.

In the Device Manager, you can right-click on any device and choose “Disable.” This will essentially turn that device off, releasing its drivers and stopping any resources from being used to run it. Internet and other wireless cards are typically found under the “Network Adapters” category. On-board audio cards and webcams will be found under “Sound, video and game controllers.”

Windows Sidebar

Windows Sidebar’s gadgets provide some very useful information. They also take up some very useful CPU cycles. For the serious DAW user, it’s best to have Sidebar disabled, at least while working on audio. This will not only allow for extra CPU power, it will also clear the desktop to make room for applications to be seen. If Sidebar is active, double-click on the icon in the system tray and uncheck “Start Sidebar when Windows starts.” Click “OK.” It will be disabled the next time you reboot.

Personalization

Like all previous version of Windows, Vista allows for a high level of customization, allowing users to configure the OS to look and sound almost any way they want. Unfortunately, some of the popular settings can interfere with DAW workflow. Under the Personalize window (which can be accessed by right-clicking on the desktop), here are some settings to look out for:

• Screen Saver. When screen savers become active, DAW users lose all sense of what is happening in their system (for example, visually monitoring recording levels). For this reason, it is better to set your screen saver to “none.”
• Sounds. As certain events happen, Vista notifies you by playing a sound. This can be problematic while recording, since the sound may cause a driver problem by trying to access the driver currently in use. For this reason, it is usually best to set your sound scheme to “No sounds.”
• Using the Aero™ theme usually does not cause any problems. Since Vista outsources visual processing to your video card, it will not take up any additional resources. If your video card is robust enough for Aero’s™ effects, then leaving the theme enabled will not cause any problems. If you do not have a dedicated video card, or have one that is underpowered, then it may be better to use the Windows Classic theme instead, but switching to the Vista theme should not use any more resources.

Startup Service and Applications

By default, recent versions of Windows pre-load applications and services from installed programs and deposits icons in the system tray. The goal is to both decrease load times and provide easy access to a variety of programs. While very helpful in theory, these partially launched applications are a major CPU drain. Disabling them helps Windows allocate more resources to running applications. Vista will also load faster, since it is not bogged down by pre-loading every application during startup. To disable these applications from loading on startup, do the following.

CAUTION: Make absolutely sure you follow the directions EXACTLY as printed below. Startup configuration is powerful stuff, and if used carelessly, can cause problems. Follow the directions, DO NOT treat this section lightly, and you will be fine:

Start > in the search box, type in “msconfig” > press “Enter.”

• In the Startup tab, choose “Disable All.”
• In the Service tab, check the box near the bottom of the screen to “Hide all Microsoft services.” Then choose “Disable All.”
• Click “OK,” then “Restart.” Check the “OK” box on reboot.

When your PC boots back up, you will see a message on the screen regarding your use of the System Configuration utility. read through it, and decide if you would like to be reminded every time the PC boots. Check the box and press “OK” if you don’t.

In case you accidentally disable something that you need to have enabled, don’t worry; msconfig is always reversible. Simply check the items that you need in either section, or to fully reverse the process, choose the “Enable All” option in each tab.

Audio Streamlining and File Management - Things to Do to Keep Your Computer Running Smoothly

Now your computer is ready for the intense demands of audio processing. There are still a few things to remember so your system stays in optimal condition. These steps will allow you to work efficiently without having to reconfigure your computer.

Defrag Often

Defragmenting your hard drives is recommended in all Windows OS!s, and particularly in systems running and editing large audio and multimedia files. As data begins to be physically written to the disk, it is placed by the drive on the first available empty location. Eventually, the file will run out of space by approaching the next file on the disk. At this point, the file is split, and the remainder of it is written elsewhere on the disk. Large files on often-used drives can end up with hundreds of these fragments. Defragmenting your disks places the data for files next to each other (rather than fragmented throughout the disk), which speeds up reading from and writing to the disk, and increases system stability. In Vista, you can defragment a disk by going to Start > Computer > right-click on the drive to defragment > Properties > Tools > Defragment now. Vista offers the option to automatically schedule a defrag. Think of this as a regularly scheduled oil change. It is preferable to schedule these automatic defrags for times when you know the PC will not be in use. Early in the morning or very late at night are preferable times. Defragmenting should be done about every 80-100 hours of studio use (or more, if you constantly record and delete new files).

Driver Modes

Windows essentially utilizes three driver modes: WDM, and ASIO, and WaveRT. WDM is the oldest of the three, provides the widest range of compatibility (especially with consumer-level, built-in audio cards), and operates with the slowest response. ASIO is a third-party standard developed by Steinberg, and is more than adequate for a DAW user. WaveRT is a new driver mode developed specifically for Vista that provides a kernel-level data transfer, allowing for the most stability and least latency (delay) of the three. Some interfaces may not have WaveRT support, so in this case, ASIO is a necessity. This is fine, as ASIO has been the preferred standard for years for DAW use, and is still very widely used. However, if WaveRT is available, it is the preferred driver mode due to its speed and OS integration.

Plug-in Resources

Plug-ins can take the form of inserts (reverb, compression, etc.) and virtual instruments (synths, rewire applications, etc.). Both types can consume large amounts of CPU resources when instantiated. It is a good idea to use as few instances of each plug-in as possible. Reverbs and hardware emulators, typically the most hungry kind of plugins, can be inserted to auxiliary tracks, and audio can be bussed to these tracks from multiple sources. Similarly, multiple MIDI tracks can send to a single virtual instrument. Both methods conserve resources by loading the plug-in, and thus the CPU load, only once. Additionally, analog emulation plugins can take up a large amount of CPU resources. Rather then inserting a modeled compressor on, say, 7 drum tracks, create a group channel for your drums and only insert it once. With this method, you still get the sound you want on the drums, but you save your CPU six instantiations of a plugin. Limiting the amount of active plug-ins has the added benefit of keeping your session smaller and more streamlined. To monitor how your computer is utilizing it’s resources, right-click in an empty space on the task bar (somewhere between the Start button and the clock). Select Task Manager. The Performance tab will give you a fairly accurate idea of the average load put on your CPU. This meter takes into account everything that is running. Keep in mind that it can be a little jerky; what you are looking for is an average measurement over several seconds. Try to keep the processor (there will be more than 1 processor window on a multi-core CPU) at an upper limit of 70-75%. Higher loads than this are known to cause stuttering, dropouts, freezes, and crashes. If the load is too high, you can remove plugins or applications. If this still doesn’t help, then the solution very well could be to increase the amount of RAM installed in your computer.

Saving and File Management

The preferred setup for all audio computers makes use of at least two hard drives. One drive, the system or C: drive, will only have the OS and all applications installed on it. All data will be saved to other drives. This prevents the C: drive from becoming too full and/or fragmented, and allows for faster transfer rates for your audio files, thus increasing track counts. Full system drives run much slower than their clean counterparts because there is more data to search through when trying to find system or application files, and fewer open spaces to write files. It is strongly advised to save everything (sessions, downloads, documents, EVERYTHING) to a second (or third, fourth, etc.) hard drive. The general principle is that things you INSTALL go to the C: drive, while things you SAVE go to a different drive. External hard drives are becoming very popular because the data can be easily transported to a different computer. Whichever type of hard drive you opt for, make sure that it has a minimum speed of 7,200 RPM (revolutions per minute). Drives running at 10,000 RPM are ideal, especially when running large sessions (over 24 tracks). Slower drives may not be able to keep up with the demands of recording and streaming audio.

A word on saving: Often, when creating a new session, it is easy to choose the default name and location provided. Be careful NOT to do this! The default settings are usually to name the session “Untitled” and save it somewhere in the C: drive. You will soon get a full C: drive and too many “Untitled” sessions to tell which is which! Use the same amount of care with file management that you do when recording.

Archiving

Even when taking care to save to multiple hard drives, you can still run short on space. This is especially true if there are many sessions (complete with audio files) and sample libraries on the same drive. A good idea is to archive these sessions. Archiving in this sense means either burning to a removable disk (CD or DVD), or transferring to a backup drive. DVD’s are the preferred method of removable storage because they can hold over 5 times more data: 4.7 Gigabytes on a DVD versus 800 Megabytes on a CD. If you archive to a backup hard drive, make sure to access the drive frequently (every 6 months to ensure smooth operation). Also, keeping a hard drive in a freezer tends to extend hard drive life. Make sure to thaw it out prior to firing it up!

Another reason to archive is to prevent data loss. An entire drive full of sessions can be lost at any time due to a hard drive crash. Having all of your sessions backed up on removable media will allow you to maintain a copy that can then be copied back onto a new drive, if necessary. Removable media has the added bonus of being relatively impervious to data loss; unless you physically lose or damage the disk, your data will not be lost (translated = CD’s and DVD’s don’t crash).

The Manual is Your Friend

All audio applications are complicated; it’s the nature of the beast. However, they all include extensive help files, and in many cases, thorough tutorials. The vast majority of operational questions can be answered from the manual. We strongly advise that you read at least the introductory sections, if not the entire manual, before you attempt to use your software. This will allow you to understand where key tools and menus are, give you insights into what you can and can’t do, walk you through HOW to do various tasks, and ultimately will increase efficiency and reduce stress when making music. If there’s a section you don’t understand, read it several times. Walk through the procedure step by step as you read it. Repeat this as many times as you need. Use the index and table of contents to find areas in which you need to brush. Never assume that will know every feature in any piece of hardware/software. Always read your manual.

Ready…Set…Record!

Now that your system is optimized and you have the tools to keep it that way, there is nothing preventing you from getting the most out of your gear. If you do get stuck, do not hesitate to use all available support channels to get back up and running.

We hope this guide has been helpful.

- The Sweetwater PC Team

Sources:
http://www.microsoft.com
http://www.vistaultimate.com/tips.htm
http://www.tweakvista.com
http://www23.tomshardware.com/cpu.html?modelx=33&model1=432&model2=439&chart=171

Spice up Your Spouse

Invite listeners to write or fax your station in 50 words or less why their spouse needs a makeover. Winners could receive things like a pedicure, manicure, hair cut and style, new glasses or contacts and new clothes. Read some of the most creative letters on the air.

Charity Auctions

If your station receives lots of autographed holiday cards from famous performers, here’s a great way to put them to good use: hold an auction at a local restaurant with all money raised going to a local charity or food bank. If you don’t want to sell them, cards can be given away on the air to the Xth caller, or for answering a trivia question correctly. This idea isn’t limited to cards…you can auction off any autographed items your station has.

Mall Remotes

Tie in remotes with a local mall. Develop themes such as lawn and garden, home improvement or gourmet cooking and get sponsorships from merchants in the mall. If the theme is lawn and garden, get sponsorships from florists, lawnmower shops and gardening stores; if it’s home improvement get sponsorships from hardware and lumber stores; gourmet cooking sponsorships could come from kitchen shops or gourmet food stores in the mall.

Oh Yes It’s Ladies’ Night

If you’re a station that targets women, hold a “Ladies Night Out” drawing once a month. Ask female listeners to fax or call in the “song of the day” which is played at 8 AM to enter them in the drawing for a night on the town with five of their friends. This could include manicures, dinner and a movie for the group. Local restaurants, theaters and clubs would make great sponsors for this event.

The Ultimate Redneck Night

Have listeners submit their names for a drawing to be part of the Ultimate Redneck Night. Pick up the winning listener and their date in a 4-wheel-drive truck, take them bowling, have dinner at a local deli or hamburger spot and for dessert take them to Wal-Mart for Twizzlers. You could also have large belt buckles made with your station’s logo on them which the winners have to wear. What’s in a Song?

Progressive Trivia

Set a specified time each weekday morning when a trivia question is asked. Award small prizes to winners Monday through Thursday, telling your listeners to write down the answers to questions from those four days. On Friday, award a grand prize to the listener who can answer Friday’s trivia question, plus give the answers to questions from the four previous days.

A Strip-”Tease”

Have your female listeners call in to register for a night with a stripper for themself and three of their friends. Hold a drawing from the names and send the winner and friends out for a night of wild and crazy fun…with a paint stripper from a local paint store or remodeling company (this could make a great April Fool’s promotion).

Bad Impression

Have a “Bad Impression Weekend” where listeners call in and give the on-air jock their worst impression of a well-known person (this could be a local or national celebrity). If the jock can guess who the caller is impersonating, the caller wins a prize.

WXXX Pays For A’s

Encourage students to get good grades with a “WXXX Pays for A’s” promotion that can continue through the school year. Students who get A’s on their report cards can mail or fax them to your station. Draw names from the report cards and award prizes to students whose grades improved.

Midterm Madness

If your station is located in a college town, contact the local school(s) to find out when midterms (or finals) are scheduled. Team up with local sponsors and put together midterm survival kits to give away to students on the air. Contents could include coffee and a station mug, study snacks, pens, pencils and paper, vitamins, or a gift certificate to a local hot spot for celebrating the end of midterms.

Let’s Do Lunch

Hold a contest for your younger listeners…ask elementary school students to write, in 50 words or less, why their class deserves “Lunch on WXXX.” Read the most creative entries on the air. The winning entry’s class wins lunch from a local restaurant.

You’re Cookin’ Now

Put together a “WXXX Cookbook.” Have listeners submit their favorite recipes in exchange for a copy of the cookbook. Sell additional copies at a local bookstore or at station remotes, with all proceeds going to charity. Make the last few pages of the cookbook tear-outs with coupons from the sponsors of this project.

Rainy Day Pool Party

Host a “Rainy Day Pool Party.” Team up with a local Boys & Girls Club or YMCA so that when the forecast calls for rain they’ll open up their pool tables for the kids. Have someone from your station present to give away hats, bumper stickers and other station paraphernalia.

Fans For Fans

Give away fans with “I’m a WXXX Fan” printed on them. Aside from outdoor events such as fairs and concerts, these work particularly well at nightclubs where it’s hot inside. It gets your call letters all over the place, even if you don’t “own” the event.

Charity Of The Month

Choose a “Charity Of The Month,” sponsored by your station. During that month, sell your station T-shirts with all proceeds going to a local charity. This is a good promotion for stations that can’t justify spending lots of money on shirts just to give away.

Open Air Movie Night

Invite your listeners to an “Open Air Movie Night,” showing films on the side of a building (or hang a large canvas sheet off a building and project onto it). During the next day’s morning show, ask trivia questions based on things that happened during “Movie Night,” and award prizes to listeners who call in with the correct answers.

A Picture is Worth 1,000 Listeners

Here’s an oldie but a goodie! Gather photographs of nice looking men, women and/or families who fit into your target demo. Place their picture in the control room and in front of the microphone so whenever the on-air personalities open up the mike, they can visualize speaking directly to an individual listener. Alternate photos to retain freshness.

The 60 Second Survey

Here is an idea for getting great quantitative and qualitative research information without spending a fortune. Talk to the manager of your local mall and obtain permission to conduct a 60 second survey consisting of seven multiple choice and open-ended questions printed on a small index card. Register those people who’ve completed the survey for a weekend getaway. Have your sales manager work a deal with one of the department stores or cosmetic companies to give away samples of their products as well. Try to coordinate this on a weekend when the mall is having family events or crafts shows, which tend to raise attendance.

Clip Here

Many stations agree that coupon books are a valuable way to promote themselves and their sponsors. Allow an advertiser a coupon or two in your book when they purchase time on the station. Make the books available at participating sponsors and convenient locations in town. To give books extra value, number them and broadcast one daily for a bonus prize. Don’t forget expiration dates and be sure to promote your station, special programming and air personalities on alternating pages.

Co-Operation

If you have an under-performing AM, turn unsold weekend inventory into money with creative block programming! Set up a cooperative arrangement with a local business and allow them to do their own talk show. For example, a local nursery would air a gardening show and pay a flat rate for the entire time slot(s). In turn, you sell time to their vendors as sponsorships (such as plant food companies and lawn care product manufacturers). Vendors who buy time on the nursery show will get better shelf placement in the store. It can be a win-win-win situation.

Friday Flicks

Work out a trade with a local theater and give away pairs of movie tickets every Friday whenever you play songs from movies. Listeners will be thinking about weekend entertainment and they’ll stay tuned to your station to try and win. Give away as many tickets as you like, but limit the number of winners by giving away the tickets to the Xth caller.

Would You Like Fries With That?

Here’s a promotion if your station has a stunt person or wacky air personality. Have the stunt person go to a local drive-thru restaurant, but don’t let your listeners know the location. Invite your audience to stop by drive-thrus and say something silly like “Sam the Stunt Guy is my breakfast buddy.” The first person to stop by the correct drive thru and say the magic words wins a prize. You can invite listeners who stopped by the wrong drive-thrus to call in and tell about the reactions they got from people taking their orders too.

Personal Invitation

A few days before a remote, send a letter signed by the talent scheduled to appear to the zip codes in your database near the location. For example, “I’m going to be in your neighborhood this Saturday at noon.” This personal invite is a great way to increase traffic on remote day. Looking for a different grand prize for a concert giveaway? Award a telephone answering machine with a personalized greeting from the star of the show.

Parties On Pavement

If there’s a big concert or event coming to town, find parking lots near the event and buy the spaces in advance. Then, offer free parking to listeners who display your bumper sticker on their vehicle. The parking lots also make great locations for station-sponsored tailgate parties.

Pulverized Beyond Recognition

Find a local car dealer who takes in competitors’ models as trade ins. Ask him or her to donate a used vehicle to be smashed into a junkyard square. Find a towing company willing to haul the smashed square to remotes for several weekends. Invite your listeners to come to the remotes and guess what make, model and year the vehicle is, and award a grand prize to the best guess. If necessary, use the mileage on the vehicle as a tie breaker. Sell two remotes each weekend for eight weeks to generate revenue.

Stop The Violence

Stopping violent crime has become a priority with both federal and local government. Start a “Stop The Violence” campaign on your station. Work with local businesses and police departments to publicize the campaign and come up with incentives to get people to turn in their hand guns. You can come up with lots of incentives with help from concerned local businesses. Have the guns melted down and create a memorial to victims.

Day By Day

Offer to publish the annual business calendar for the local Chamber of Commerce or business association. List all the key retail sales dates, special town events, holidays, and — of course — your station promotions. Distribute the calendar to every business in your area so it can be posted to provide year- round promotion for your station.

The Beast and The Beauty

Find an old car from a junk yard and invite listeners to come and see “The Beast.” Then, over the course of six weeks, sell remote packages to body shops, auto painters, detail shops, auto parts stores, car dealers, auto repair facilities, service stations and car washes. Have each of these sponsors add a feature or fix something on the car, and remind listeners to come watch the metamorphosis. Invite them to register and listen for their name to be called to win what is becoming “The Beauty.”

A Sweet Promotion

Place candy jars emblazoned with your station’s logo and call letters in businesses throughout the community. Have your salespeople carry candy refills with them as they make their sales rounds. It’s a great way to have people notice the station’s call letters, and a perfect reason for the salesperson to make regular stops at each advertiser.

The World’s Biggest Newspaper Drive

Many charities rely on annual newspaper drives to raise funds. Make plans to set the Guinness Book of World Records mark for the biggest newspaper drive ever. This can be a sales and programming project. Plan a weekend-long broadcast from a client location, and find a moving company willing to donate a semi-truck or two. Find a local charity to provide some manpower and be the beneficiary of money raised. Alert local newspapers and television stations to your plan…perhaps the local newspaper would give you a donation of unsold issues to kick off the drive. Give this event as much pre-promotion as possible so people can stockpile their papers. You might want to have pony rides for the kids, a live band or some other activity to encourage people to stop by. Collect newspapers all weekend long The more excitement you can generate on-air, the more people will want to come and donate. Plan promotional pictures with your key air talent buried in newspaper. You’ll be doing something great for the environment and your community!

A Little Pick-up For Your Station

Stage a promotion to show listeners that your station cares about the environment…and get them involved too! Arrange a “Community Clean-up Day” where station personalities join with your listeners in a litter pick-up effort. Choose a location near a highway, park or beach where littering is a problem. Hand out station T-shirts to everyone who shows up at the event with trash bag in hand (you can pre-print litter bags with your logo/call letters on them, then distribute them free at sponsor locations); broadcast live at the location, and encourage everyone listening to come down and join in the fun. Prizes can be awarded for the most unique article of trash or for the biggest bag of litter. Be sure to separate recyclable items from the rest of the trash.

Foiled Again!

Have a competition among community or school groups to gather aluminum foil for six weeks and roll it into one big ball. At the deadline, have groups bring their foil balls to a station event at a recycling center to see which group has rolled up the winning entry. The winning group gets their aluminum weight matched in dollars by the station or a co-sponsor.

Talkin’ Trash

Have a contest to see who can come up with the most interesting use for a common household item, or the best use for something hard to recycle. Invite school art or science classes to get involved too, and let newspapers and TV stations know about the contest…entries could make great pictures for the five- o’clock news!

Environment on Wheels

Have your promotions person find local businesses and organizations that are active with environmental concerns. Work with them to create a traveling Environmental Fair to take to local schools. Have each group provide a speaker and materials, and ask the school to assign each group to a different classroom. Students go from room to room, learning about each topic. You can also use the school’s gym to set up areas for each topic. Train some of your personnel to work with the organizations so your station is represented at the fair. Give schools flyers to send home with students inviting parents to participate. Use your public service time to promote the fair, and let listeners know where you’ll be. Run promos containing positive comments from students, teachers and parents.

Yes You Can

Hold a fun afternoon event where your listeners compete to build towers or castles out of empty pop cans at a shopping mall, a roped-off section of a retail store’s parking, or a park. Award sponsor-donated prizes for winning structures in categories like biggest, tallest and most creative. Encourage teams or clubs to collect cans from all their friends and neighbors prior to the event. Weigh or count the cans as competitors register and find a soft drink company willing to buy back the cans with all proceeds going to a local charity or food bank. To comply with lottery laws (”no purchase necessary”), be sure to have extra cans available at the site — the soft drink company can supply them or you can arrange for a bin at the retail site during the pre-promotion period encouraging can donations. Recycle the cans at the end of the competition.

Welcome Developments

Each format has core artists that represent its music. When one of these artists comes to town for a concert and the promoter won’t affiliate any one station with the show, your station should still “welcome” the artist. Produce promos and liners that make you sound as official as possible. Follow up with tangible things like contests to win tickets, on-site giveaways and pre-concert parties at appropriate clubs.

The Secret Contest

Look for events in your community that are going to attract the demo your station is targeting. Print flyers to place on windshields of vehicles at those events inviting potential listeners to try your station. Say something like: “The staff and management of WXXX would like to invite you to try our radio station, and we’ll pay you to do it!! Tune in WXXX (plus dial position) and listen for (song). When you hear that song, call (station phone number) and be the Xth caller, and we’ll give you (dollar amount) just for trying our station. This contest will not be announced on the air. It is exclusively for recipients of this flyer. Thanks for trying WXXX!”

Cleaning the Prize Closet

If you’ve got a closet full of “nearly good prizes” left over from past contests, here’s a good way to get rid of them: create a “Station Janitor” character who’s charged by the boss with cleaning out the prize closet. You can have him come in (taped) to show off his latest find and give it away on air.

The Good, The Bad and The Ugly

Invite a car dealer to co-sponsor a Good, Bad, and Ugly Car Show and Contest. Choose a panel of judges from your station and the sponsor’s staff. Prizes can be simple or extravagant but should relate to the categories:

The Good: The cleanest, nicest-looking cars.
The Bad: The best customized car or hot rod, judged on quality of workmanship.
The Ugly: For old, dirty, smashed, trashed or just plain tacky cars.
Turn this into a weekend remote at the dealer’s location; have free hot dogs and pop for everyone who stops by.

You Auto Do a Coupon Book

Since couponing continues to be very popular with both radio and print retailers, present a package of radio ads and coupon books for car care products and services. Give away the coupon books at sponsor locations to increase retailers’ foot traffic.

Baby, Can We Drive Your Car?

Find a local car dealer willing to supply a vehicle to be driven by each station personality for a week. After all your personalities have had their turn, invite listeners to guess how many miles the jocks put on the car during the contest. The closest guesser wins the lease of the car for anywhere from three months to a year (it’s up to your dealer). Note: check with your insurance carrier for coverage before you start this promotion.

Sticker-Spotting

If you have station bumper stickers, try a license plate spotter contest. Several times a day announce a license number of a car spotted with your station’s sticker on it. Give the owner of the vehicle a set amount of time to call the station and claim their prize. Sticker-spotters can be station employees on their way to work; you don’t necessarily need a spotter on the road all the time.