The fugitive is back on the streets of Johannesburg thanks to Gold Reef City and 94.7 Highveld Stereo. He's to be let loose on 1 August 2005 and it's up to the public to use the clues he gives on air to track him down and claim cash bounty prizes.
Claudia Crooney, marketing manager at Gold Reef City Casino, says: "Last year's promotion really got Joburg talking. While we were expecting the concept to be popular, we didn't expect it to become the phenomenon that it did.
"Effectively the competition creates a bridge between the radio community, the city streets and Gold Reef City. The interactivity of the competition allows it to take on a life of its own. We do know that we can't afford to be complacent, so we will be surprising and amusing the public with a few new ideas that we have up our sleeves this time."
Gold Reef City has two objectives for the promotion: drawing more visitors into its entertainment complex and generating top of mind awareness of its brand among Joburg's residents. For 94.7 the prize is increased listenership and listener interaction with the station, as well as brand vitality.
Sponsors say last year's campaign was a success: calls to the Fugitive hotline, emails sent to the Fugitive (ranging from wistful poems to frustrated hatemail), tip-offs at the FBI (Fugitive Bureau of Investigation) at Gold Reef City Casino and impressions on the web site all showed huge public interest. An average of 14 000 people streamed to Gold Reef City on draw nights, topping the complex's budgeted footfall by close on 20%.
Every weekday between 7am and 5pm, 94.7 Highveld Stereo will be offering listeners clues about The Fugitive's whereabouts every hour. The first person to collar The Fugitive with the question, 'Are you The Fugitive?' will win a bounty of R1 000 for every hour that he has been at large. Once The Fugitive has been identified, he will move to a new location and the hunt will begin afresh.
Crooney says The Fugitive concept takes radio competitions to a new level through its interactivity and its blend of on-air, on-street and in-complex activities: "Gold Reef City offers clues and information on the initiative at its theme park and casino, while the online Fugitive Headquarters and The Fugitive Hotline hosted by 94.7 gets listeners interacting with the radio station."
Members of the public visiting Gold Reef City can pass leads about The Fugitive's whereabouts to the FBI. When he is found, those entrants who have submitted solid leads will be entered into a lucky draw for cash bounty prizes. The promotion runs from 1 August to 2 September.
