Driving the Fastest Sell-Out Ever – More Efficiently

Armed with key learnings from the 2024 campaign and a proven media strategy, the brief evolved. The objective was no longer simply to drive attendance – it was to drive the same attendance, more efficiently. Our approach centred strategic refinement and measured growth. 

On the surface, our high-performing multi-channel strategy bore similarities to the prior year, but it was by no means a direct replication.

Core conversion-driving channels remained consistent across Meta and Google, operating in tandem with effective mid- and upper-funnel environments to generate demand and drive qualified traffic to site. A carefully calibrated combination of precisely targeted digital activity and contextually relevant above-the-line placement was the key to unlocking success. 

The critical areas of strategic refinement: 

• Phasing: With more ambitious targets to accelerate the sales curve, we scrutinised year-on-year performance for any inefficiencies. Leveraging historical data, we identified periods of oversaturation, where purchase propensity was lower, and reallocated investment toward historically higher-converting windows that had previously been underserved. 

• Audience: We identified critical growth opportunities within adjacent and relevant audience segments, underpinned by audience planning tools and PREM Rugby’s own data. Audience refinement was not purely a growth exercise; it was equally about maximising the value of audiences we already knew. These known groups represented the most significant opportunity to drive earlier sales volume, and did not necessarily require paid media support. Improved de-duplication of existing audiences, many of whom would convert through owned channels, delivered a more accurate and efficient cost per result. By exhausting known audiences earlier through a coordinated paid and owned approach, we unlocked greater headroom to reach genuinely incremental audiences with remaining budget. 

• Context: In a landscape of hyper saturated digital channels, we returned to foundational media principles, ensuring optimal ad exposure through frequency management and sequential storytelling across touchpoints. When reaching new audiences, we took the view that placement context delivers richer, more meaningful experiences. Engaging consumers in active consumption environments yielded improved performance and provided the strategic confidence to extend investment from digital into out-of-home channels.