RBC Heritage

Each year, the main goal of the RBC Heritage marketing campaign is to drive ticket sales. Thanks to the tournament’s growing popularity, the foundation has set its sights beyond selling out the event, but rather selling out as soon as possible. In a world where last-minute ticket sales reign supreme and more post-pandemic live events are vying for attention, the foundation was determined to drive urgency while showcasing the nostalgia and island vibes only an event like this can embody.

With a target sell-out date set for April 15, the DS+CO team went to work creating an integrated marketing plan that promoted ticket sales, communicated the urgency of buying tickets before it was too late and reimagined the post-ticket purchase experience. But the work extended well beyond the green, reaching into people’s homes to elevate their experience on social media during tournament week—with the hopes of building an audience of future ticket buyers.

When developing the concept, our team knew that nostalgia would be a big motivator in getting people to attend, especially on the heels of the pandemic. With that in mind, we focused on two truths: the tournament itself is steeped in tradition and it has a reputation for being one of the most fun stops on the PGA Tour.

This thinking pushed the creative strategy toward “Time to Play,” which reinforced our message across all tactics, including email, paid search, paid social media, pre-roll spots, digital banner ads and organic social media. And when the tournament was officially recognized as a PGA Tour designated event in the middle of the campaign, the strategy and execution proved flexible enough to embrace the exciting news without needing to re-concept or overhaul our tactical approach.

April 15 was our goal date to sell out tickets. Instead, we hit that milestone on March 9. From that point on, we zeroed in on capturing the RBC Heritage experience on social media—reinforcing our attendees’ decision to join and giving plenty of motivation for everyone else to not miss out next year. As for the social experience, the results say it all.

Key OUTCOMES
• Exceeded ticket sales goal by 24%
• Sold out tickets one month early

Key OUTPUTS
• Email revenue up 11%
• Paid search revenue up 12.4%
• Social stats:
­ • 1 million social media views—up 55% over previous year
­ • 7.45 million impressions
­ • 5,548 new followers during tournament week alone
­ • 1,217 total social posts