Allison Mayberry Interview

Allison Mayberry
Listener Engagement Director
WPER
Fredericksburg, VA

Career Capsule: I wore many hats before the Lord brought me to WPER. I was a Director for Mary Kay Cosmetics for 2 years, and no, I did not drive a pink Cadillac. I was a photographer for SEARS Portrait Studio for 8 years and photographed 100’s of screaming children! (Little angels) I worked as a Publicity Director for a National Christian Youth Theater group for many years and then was blessed to spend a few months at home with my 4 children as they are growing up too fast. I am a people person. I love to build relationships with people which led me to my position with WPER. I am a baby in the radio field, as I just joined the team in October of 2019, but I have been part of the listening family since 2003.  WPER has been a rock in my life and a place of encouragement and hope for me and my family, so it is an honor to be part of this incredible team.  

Allison, What’s new at WPER, & new with you etc…? 

WPER is continuing to grow and be a vital part of the community even under our current circumstances. Before the quarantine was put in place, we had 5 events in the first 8 days of March! I was in Richmond, Fredericksburg, Charlottesville and Winchester. It is so much fun meeting our listeners, worshiping with them, hearing their testimonies and praying with them. Events bring people together, but it is the interaction with them that builds a relationship that lasts a lifetime. I know, because I was a listener for 16 years!!! I want to help WPER impact as many lives for Christ as possible.

Being a mom of 4 young adults keeps me busy! My 2nd oldest daughter came home from Coastal Carolina University for her spring break and never went back because of this pandemic. My heart breaks for her and the rest of the 2020 senior class. She was really looking forward to graduating. (All my kids have been homeschooled, so she was excited to walk across the stage!)

How has your job changed or shifted during the corona crisis?

LOTS OF ZOOM MEETINGS! I miss being at work seeing my WPER family, laughing with them and being able to have that in person connection. It is nice to work in my pjs though. My day begins with a daily devotion with some other ladies within PAR and breakfast with my kids. Then, the zoom meetings begin. We have a daily zoom meeting with our PAR team, our WPER team, some days with the social media team and one on ones with other team members.  Our Executive Vice President, Brian Sanders, leads our PAR zoom call with prayer, station updates, and inspirational words. Although we are not meeting daily with partners, local churches or listeners in person, our team is reaching out to see how we can pray for them, see how they are doing, and to thank them for supporting us. I am spending a lot of time creating encouraging messages on social media and scheduling lots of Facebook lives so we can keep the engagement going through the social media platform. We have had Mike Weaver, Micah Tyler, Rachel Zello, Chelsea Locklear, Leanna Crawford, Darren Mulligan and speakers Gail Cooper and Heidi St. John join us so far! This virus may keep us home, but it is not going to stop us from creating meaningful moments together online!

What are the 3 main ingredients to make a promotion successful?

1.Remember the mission.

2.Have a passion for what you are doing.

3.God. Without God, nothing is possible!

What is the best promotion advice you’ve been given? The worst?

The best promotion advice… To be myself, and always keep Christ as the main focus. Never forget that God placed me where I am because I belong here.  Have confidence in what I am doing.

The worst… get the job done no matter what it takes. That has to be the worst advice ever. Although we all have deadlines and bottom lines to hit, we are dealing with people’s lives and those people have feelings. 

What is the one thing YOU must have to do your job every day?

My colored pens and my notebook. I am a paper and pen girl! If you see me at an event I will probably have a binder too! It is a MUST-HAVE.

In your opinion what makes the ideal station promotion?

Our mission statement…Inspiring people to live passionately for Jesus. We do that by bringing someone closer to God. I have big dreams….  Packed stadiums. The top artists making amazing music, speakers that make your jaw drop, and great encounters with listeners Then I am reminded that it is in the most intimate moments that we meet Jesus.  I think of prison cells being turned into worship sessions. Homeless shelters becoming the platform for inspirational speakers. 

Local business partners mentoring the next generation. People encouraging the lost and giving hope to the broken people. 

Regarding social networking and promotion, what have you had the most success with?

Having a platform on Facebook and Instagram keeps us connected with our listeners, business partners and our community. I am constantly online looking for us to be a part of community social media groups so I can connect with people that have never heard of WPER. I also love to attend local business networking meetings, business bible studies, and support local community events, whether they are big or small. Social media gives me the opportunity to connect with listeners online from all over the world and allows the listener to take the radio station outside of the car by listening online or with our app! 

How do you measure the success of a great promotion?

There are so many different ways to answer this question, but I am going to say by impacting lives. Supporters of WPER know that we are real. We care about the listener. We care about the business that is sponsoring us. It is not just a business deal for us, but a relationship. Our feet are firmly planted in the community. We are here to pray for the listeners. We celebrate with them. We mourn with them. We do life with them. They see our logo and hopefully smile. Then they think about family, trust, encouragement and hope.