The Independent Broadcasters Foundation (IBA) is celebrating its 4th anniversary with new enhancements and policies for its members. The group has implemented a cap of 300 company members (no limit on number of stations under a company) to more effectively focus on members' needs. The national cash contests will now include text-to-win capability. It is worth noting that the deadline for stations and groups to register for the September National Cash Contest is July 31, and only IBA member stations can participate.
 

IBA President and Executive Director Ron Stone explained, "These enhancements and improvements allow the IBA to grow into the best possible organization representing independent radio stations. Beginning today, a maximum of 300 companies with no limit on number of stations will be allowed to join so that the IBA can hyper focus on members' needs, provide members with more tools that can level the playing field, and allow for new opportunities in networking that will be announced soon. Future members will also have market exclusivity to the IBA membership. All currently members that share a market will be grandfathered in and not affected by this change. A group is considered one company."
 

He added, "The IBA is nearing that 300 mark and stations are urged to become members before July 31 to be able to participate in the upcoming Fall National Cash Contest. Once we reach that 300-mark, membership will be closed. New members will only be received if the number of member companies drops below 300. A waiting list will be maintained on a first come first served basis, but it would be a shame to be left out of the upcoming Cash Contest, which is expected to be our largest ever. Participating member stations have experienced as much as 30X ROI from our National Cash Contests."
 

The newly designed IBA web site also debuted Tuesday, keeping its original web address, www.iba.media. "Members will find the new site much easier to navigate," promised Stone. The new site was designed by Jackie Parks' team at Envisionwise, Radio Digital Solutions. Envisionwise specializes in radio station websites and provides the following services: StudioTexter, Alexa Skills, Event Delay, Radio Apps, Member Tools and more.
 

The one thing the immensely popular national cash contests did not allow for -- and members wanted -- was text-to-win capabilities. Beginning with the Fall Cash Contest, listeners will be able to register to win by text. Envisionwise is also the text-to-win provider for the IBA National Cash Contests and can provide individual stations with more text-to-win opportunities. Jackie Parks of Envisionwise said "All of us at Envisionwise are thrilled to provide the text to win option for an already very successful contest. We are looking forward to working with the IBA and members to help further develop their digital assets."

Another improvement to the National Cash Contests is that participating members will now have immediate access to the database of listeners that registered with their station or group. The Fall contest starts is expected to be the largest one to date.

An IBA member may be a single station or a group of stations, as long as the company is not traded on a public market. To join, go to www.iba.media and click "Join Now."