Case Study: Cirque du Soleil engages follower base

Cirque du Soleil uses Promoted Accounts and Promoted Tweets to build an engaged follower base and to drive ticket sales

The Challenge

Cirque du Soleil is internationally recognized for its dramatic mix of circus arts and street entertainment. Audiences are captivated by entertainers who execute breathtaking, superhuman feats amidst colorful backgrounds and live music.

Cirque du Soleil wanted to grow its audience by extending the excitement and emotion surrounding the on-stage experience for which it is famous. The company has successfully leveraged a mix of marketing channels including email, a loyalty club and an extensive website to spread that brand experience, however it wanted to create a more personal connection with customers.

The Solution

Cirque du Soleil used Twitter’s Promoted Accounts to grow its follower base and then engaged with them in real-time to answer questions about upcoming shows and to get feedback about past performances.

“Twitter allows us to emotionally connect with our audience by conversing with them in such an immediate and relevant way,” explains Lou D’Angeli Director of Marketing and PR, Cirque Du Soleil, Resident Show Division/North America. “Asking our Twitter followers about the show they have just seen brings back vivid memories for them. They not only love to talk about the amazing moments on stage but also how many performances they’ve seen. We retweet these comments to extend the reach and emotional resonance of our performances.”

After building an engaged based of followers with Promoted Accounts, Cirque du Soleil used Promoted Tweets to announce promotions and tour dates, normally conducted through traditional channels such as email marketing. For its Zarkana show in New York, Cirque du Soleil targeted a Promoted Tweet to its followers, announcing a three-day ticket promotion.

The Results

Cirque du Soleil gained on average, over 360 followers per day directly from Promoted Accounts. During the same time period, it also organically gained over 340 followers per day, nearly double the number of organic followers it gained on a daily basis before it ran Promoted Accounts.

“Promoted Accounts extended our reach and had a halo effect that also increased our organic follower base,” explains Andy Levey, Social Media Manager, Cirque du Soleil, Resident Show Division/North America.

Cirque du Soleil also had success with its Promoted Tweets campaign — its Zarkana promotion on Twitter experienced a higher return compared to some of the more traditional forms of marketing.

“Real-time engagement and feedback are huge on Twitter,” says D’Angeli. “Unlike email or other types of more traditional forms of marketing, we can use Twitter to be more relevant and responsive to our customers. This contributes to an engaged audience that is receptive to presales and sales events.”

Tagged Twitter; Social Media; Case Study