• by Mark Walsh  @markfwal, August 9, 2011

Clear Channel Radio has tapped Vitrue to power management of social media operations across its 850 radio stations. Clear Channel will use Vitrue's social-marketing platform to manage its radio stations' social presence and run individual campaigns on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and other social sites through a single system.

The aim is to present consistent branding and messaging across each of the radio station pages and allow Clear Channel to launch social campaigns on the national, regional and local level. With Vitrue's SRM software, the radio giant can publish content and promote programs on station and radio personality pages, including the current push behind its iHeartRadio Music Festival in September.

In addition to such national promotions, the Vitrue platform allows advertising and sweepstakes to be tailored to specific markets and locations. In Clear Channel's case, its 850 stations are spread over 150 cities nationwide. It syndicates content to another 4,000 stations in 100 cities.

"The priority at Clear Channel Radio is to provide our fans with the best possible content and promotions and satisfy their love of music and entertainment through multiple channels," said Larry Linietsky, senior vice president, product and operations for Clear Channel Radio. He added that the company, a unit of CC Media Holdings, is expanding its social strategy to boost interaction with listeners through everything from informational posts to ticket contests to audience polls.

The Clear Channel partnership is one of the biggest to date for Vitrue, which says its SRM system is now used to handle relations for more than 900 million fans across 3,000 Facebook and Twitter accounts in 47 countries.

Among other major clients are McDonald's, Amway, American Express, P&G brands, and Ford. McDonald's regional advertising co-ops, for instance, use Vitrue's "social segmentation" tools to provide information about events, coupons, and specials tailored to local areas.

Vitrue has received some $33 million in venture funding so far from investors including General Catalyst Partners and Scale Venture Partners.