Columbus Crew Ticket Sales
How a paid media restructure and creative overhaul drove 84% more tickets sold, 133% more ticket revenue, and a 53% improvement in ROAS — while spending less
Results & Impact
Summary
The Columbus Crew needed to move beyond a campaign structure that was working against itself — short bursts that sacrificed continuity, reset the platform's learning, and relied on a narrow set of date/opponent/time creative assets that had limited appeal and staying power. By transitioning to an evergreen Meta framework, overhauling the creative suite, and keeping media live throughout the season, we built a more durable engine. The results speak for themselves: 84% more tickets sold, 133% more ticket revenue, and a 53% improvement in ROAS — all while spending $1,000 less than the prior year.
The Crew needed a smarter paid media engine to drive ticket sales more efficiently across the season. Previous efforts were more flighted and burst-based, which limited continuity, learning, and creative staying power — requiring the team to rebuild momentum from scratch each time a new campaign launched.
We redesigned the Meta strategy around evergreen campaigns with rolling creative updates:
- •Shifted from short-burst flighting to an always-on campaign structure, keeping media live and building momentum throughout the season
- •Overhauled the creative suite — moved away from a single set of date/opponent/time assets to a broader library including theme nights, generic tickets-on-sale creative, and fan experience content, giving the algorithm more variety to learn and optimize against
- •Tied creative refreshes to match schedules, fan experience moments, and seasonal storylines — keeping messaging fresh without rebuilding the underlying structure each time
- •Gave the Meta platform more runway to learn and optimize, reducing the inefficiency of repeated campaign restarts
- •Built a structure that is easier to scale and optimize in real time as the season unfolds
Activated On
Key Outcomes
- ✓Transitioned from short-burst campaign flighting to a durable evergreen framework — reducing restarts and maintaining continuity in market throughout the season
- ✓Overhauled the creative approach — expanded from a single set of date/opponent/time assets to a broader suite including theme nights, generic tickets-on-sale creative, and fan experience content, increasing variety and giving the platform more signal to work with
- ✓Refreshed creative tied to match schedules, fan experience moments, and seasonal storylines — keeping messaging current without overhauling the underlying structure
- ✓Gave the Meta platform more time in-market to learn and optimize, compounding efficiency gains over time rather than resetting with each new push
- ✓Established a scalable foundation that is easier to build on, adjust in real time, and carry forward into future seasons
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