Travel with Rick Steves: Public Radio Fundraiser
September 2008 Fundraiser (for use through September 2009)
Released September 11, 2008
Your station can add to its fundraising success by using this special fundraiser program to replace a regularly-scheduled Travel with Rick Steves show during your membership campaign.
Rick will also make an effort to be available once a year to each affiliate for live or recorded custom fundraiser appearances. Contact his scheduler Ashley Sytsma by phone at 425/608-4293 to see when Rick can honor your request.
The Rick Steves premium packages are available for your station with no minimum order requirements, and at a very reasonable wholesale cost. Telephone Angie Kirkwood at 425/771-8303, ext. 240 for ordering information. You can also email pledge@ricksteves.com to place orders for these premiums. Be sure to specify it is for radio.
Note: The premium package, and its corresponding audio files, was updated June 10, 2009.
- Instructions to Assemble Modules
- Description of Segments
- Program Option 1
- Program Option 2
- Fundraising Premiums
- Download Segments
Important Instructions on Assembling the Modules for Broadcast:
This fundraiser edition of Travel with Rick Steves consists of a set of modules from Rick's appearance as the special guest of the Seattle Men's Chorus. Their concert, "A Foreign Affaire," was performed in March 2008 at McCaw Hall in Seattle. Use it to replace a regular weekly program during your on-air fundraising campaign.
Some different rundown options are timed out for you, further below in this section, to help you construct a one-hour fundraiser from these modules. It allows you to plan for the start times of the segments and to localize it as your station prefers — with or without the standard newscast cutaway, and with or without offering the Rick Steves premium packages. There's also enough material to stretch the fundraiser beyond an hour, if you'd like additional time from Rick to attract contributors.
For starters, you should plan to use:
- The opening billboard
- Segment A
- Segment B
- Select from either segment C (which is upbeat in tone) or segment D (more sober in tone), to allow it all to time out to one hour.
Rick sets up the concert in the billboard and in the open to segment A. He pitches the value of contributing to your station in the end of segment A, in the end of segment B, in the open to segment C, in the close to segment C, and in the open to segment D.
There are also two versions of Rick pitching the Rick Steves fundraising premium packages (known as "Premium Pitch version A" and "version B"). Alternate them to follow the ends of the segments you run. Or you can use them in the middle of your local pitch breaks following each segment. Each premium pitch is provided with a music bed, or there is a vox-only version you can use.
Adding up Rick's generic pitching within the segments with his premium-specific pitches will provide you with nine minutes of Rick pitching for your station during the one hour running time for the Travel with Rick Steves fundraiser program.
By the way, to get the most mileage out of this, we highly recommend that your station offers the Rick Steves premium package during Travel with Rick Steves. Stations who do this have been very pleased with listener response to Rick's pitching and premium packages. One of our larger affiliates is even using Rick's premium pitches during the NPR news magazines, and getting record response from their listeners.
Remember, there is no required minimum order, and the station wholesale price is lower than you'd expect from other vendors. It's designed by Rick to make it as easy as possible for your station and staff to raise money from your listeners.
If you need additional fundraising segments, select from last years' modules at Travel with Rick Steves Funder 2007
Description of Segments:
1. FUNDER BILLBOARD (:59)
2. SEGMENT A: "Traveling Through the Back Door" — (12:34)
(includes Rick's intro, chorus song "Europe Thru the Back Door," Rick's comments, and closes with Rick's non-premium pitch)
outQ: "to provide the programming you expect and depend on."
Follow Segment A with Rick's Funder Pitch A if you are offering the Rick Steves premium packages:
2A. PREMIUM PITCH A - mixed with music = 2:05
2B. PREMIUM PITCH - vox only = 2:00
3. SEGMENT B: "Travel Tips; European Heaven and Hell" — (11:37)
(includes Rick's intro, Q&A session with the chorus, chorus song "Heaven and Hell," and Rick's non-premium pitch)
outQ: "and we know it's all right here on public radio."
Follow Segment B with Rick's Funder Pitch B if you are offering the Rick Steves premium packages:
3A. PREMIUM PITCH B - mixed with music = 2:22
3B. PREMIUM PITCH - vox only = 2:00
To time out to one hour, select EITHER Segment C or Segment D.
There's even a shorter version of Segment C, without a song from the Chorus, in case you want more local pitching time.
4-1. SEGMENT C, version 1 (longer, includes song) : "Vive le difference" and "Cheese for Peace" (13:33)
(includes Rick's intro, comments, chorus song 'Carmina Ricotta," and Rick's non-premium pitch)
outQ: "the radio you rely on all year long."
— OR —
4-2. SEGMENT C, version 2 (shorter, without song) : "Vive le difference" — (6:56)
(includes Rick's intro, comments, and his non-premium pitch)
outQ: "the radio you rely on all year long."
— OR —
5-1. SEGMENT D: "Travel as a force for peace / Dona Nobis Pacem / Europe Through the Back Door reprise" (9:34)
(opens with Rick's final generic pitch, Rick's comments in the concert about travel as a force for peace, singing from the chorus and audience, applause, and an upbeat reprise of the opening song from the chorus, and the final audience applause.)
note: there is a short silence at the end of the Dona Nobis Pacem chorus before the audience applauds, which then leads into the closing reprise of "Europe Through the Back Door" by the chorus, with sustained "stage bow" applause at the end.
outQ: (sustained applause, fade)
— OR —
5-2. SEGMENT D, version 2: "Travel as a force for peace / Dona Nobis Pacem" (7:45) (shorter, without song reprise, ends with regular applause fade)
note: there is a short silence at the end of the Dona Nobis Pacem chorus before the ending applause.
outQ: (applause fade)
6. CHORUS REPRISE: A reprise of the song "Europe Through the Back Door" is also provided as a stand-alone audio file that you can use to close your fundraiser. You can use this if you use segment C but not if you air segment D-1, since the Reprise is already included at the end of segment D, version 1.
outQ: (the Reprise ends with sustained applause, which fades to 1:54.)
If you need additional fundraising segments, select from 2007's modules.
Travel with Rick Steves — Fall 2008 Fundraiser
Funder — Program Option 1
Rundown Option 1
- Times out to one hour
- Includes full 5 minute newscast cutaway
- Uses segments A, B, and D
- Provides up to 17:48 for local pitching, plus 9:00 of Rick's generic and premium-specific pitches
- If you don't offer the Rick Steves premiums, move the start time for your local pitch break up to the time designated for the Premium Pitches to start.
| Start Time | Item | (Length) |
|---|---|---|
00:00 |
BILLBOARD |
(1:00) |
01:00 |
NPR Newscast I (& local pitch) |
(3:00 + 2:00) |
06:00 |
Funder Segment A outQ: "to provide the programming you expect and depend on." |
(12:34) |
18:34 |
Rick's Premium Pitch A outQ: (music fades) |
(2:05) |
20:39 |
LOCAL PITCH BREAK |
(5:21) |
26:00 |
Funder Segment B outQ: "and we know it's all right here on public radio." |
(11:37) |
37:37 |
Rick's Premium Pitch B outQ: (music fades) |
(2:04) |
39:41 |
LOCAL PITCH BREAK |
(5:19) |
45:00 |
Funder Segment D, version 1 outQ: (sustained applause, fade) |
(9:34) |
54:30 |
LOCAL PITCH BREAK & I.D. (begin pitching over segment D applause fade) (insert Rick's Premium Pitch in the middle of local pitch break) |
(5:30) |
Funder — Program Option 2
Rundown Option 2
- Times out to one hour
- No newscast cutaway
- Uses segments A, B, and C
- Provides up to 17:00 for local pitching, plus 9:00 of Rick's generic and premium-specific pitches
- Provides up to 23:00 for local pitching if you use the shorter version of segment C
- If you don't offer the Rick Steves premiums, move the start time for your local pitch break up to the time designated for the Premium Pitches to start.
| Start Time | Item | (Length) |
|---|---|---|
00:00 |
BILLBOARD |
(1:00) |
01:00 |
local mini-pitch |
(1:00) |
02:00 |
Funder Segment A outQ: "to provide the programming you expect and depend on." |
(12:34) |
14:34 |
Rick's Premium Pitch A outQ: (music fades) |
(2:05) |
16:39 |
LOCAL PITCH BREAK |
(5:21) |
22:00 |
Funder Segment B outQ: "and we know it's all right here on public radio." |
(11:37) |
33:37 |
Rick's Premium Pitch B outQ: (music fades) |
(2:04) |
35:42 |
LOCAL PITCH BREAK |
(5:18) |
41:00 |
Funder Segment C-1 outQ: "the radio you rely on all year long." |
(13:31) |
47:56 |
LOCAL PITCH BREAK & I.D (insert Rick's Premium Pitch in the middle of local pitch break and use the 1:54 music Reprise near the end of your pitch break) |
(12:04) |
Download Public Radio Fundraiser Segments
| .MP2 files | .MP3 files | |
|---|---|---|
Billboards (:59) |
||
Segment A (12:34) |
||
Segment B (11:37) |
||
Segment C-1 (13:33) |
||
Segment C-2 (6:56) |
||
Segment D-1 (9:34) |
||
Segment D-2 (7:45) |
||
Premium Pitch A (2:05) |
||
Premium Pitch Vox (2:00) |
||
Premium Pitch B (2:04) |
||
Reprise (1:54) |
To Schedule a Custom Rick Steves Fundraising Appearance for your Station:
Rick will also make an effort to be available once a year for each affiliate of Travel with Rick Steves for a live or recorded custom fundraiser appearance. Contact his scheduler Ashley Sytsma by phone at 425/608-4293 during P.S.T. zone business hours to see when Rick can honor your request.
If you'd like Rick to record a custom promo or two for your fundraiser, email your request and copy for him to read to his producer, Tim Tattan at tim@ricksteves.com.
Fundraising Premiums
The Travel with Rick Steves fundraising thank-you gifts are a proven success in generating listener response and revenue for your station. The three packages consist of program-related material written by Rick. In addition, our All 80 Shows DVD Anthology of Rick's public television program "Rick Steves' Europe" is included in the two higher-priced packages.
You can order whatever quantity of each package you need by sending an email to pledge@ricksteves.com.
If you have questions or need to make payment arrangements, contact Angie Kirkwood during P.S.T. business hours at 425/771-8303, extension 240, or by email at angie@ricksteves.com.
Photos and descriptions of the three Rick Steves premium packages are free to use for promotion of your fundraiser on your website.
If your station would like to offer any of the CDs or DVDs the Seattle Men's Chorus has produced as fundraising premiums, contact:
Frank Stilwagner
Marketing Director
Flying House Productions
Tel: 206/388-1408; email: franks@flyinghouse.org
www.flyinghouse.org
Music Credits:
This fundraising edition of Travel with Rick Steves includes three songs composed for the concert. "Europe Through the Back Door" (in segment A and the reprise) was written by Scott Warrender and is used here with permission.
The songs "Heaven and Hell" (in segment B) and "Carmina Ricotta" (in segment C) were written by Eric Lane Barnes, and are likewise used with his permission.
The closing version of "Dona Nobis Pacem" was written by Giulio Caccini, arranged by Alan Berrington and Tim Seelig.
The Rick Steves theme music is composed by Jerry Frank, an independent music producer based in Seattle.
Instrumental beds under the funder pitches are:
- (Pitch A): Jean-Luc Ponty, "Elephants in Love," Fables / Atlantic
- (Pitch B): Ry Cooder and Manuel Galban, "Patricia," Mambo Sinuendo / Nonesuch
Potentially dated reference:
- Segment D opens with Rick's comment that "today, our nation is at war."
