Founded in 1980, IFEMA is the leading trade fair operator in Spain and one of the most important in Europe. IFEMA, with the support of the consulting firm Making Science, achieved a large number of conversions thanks to a programmatic-based digital strategy.

The objective

IFEMA had set an ambitious sales target of 30,000 tickets within a 4-month window for the magical performance of “el Mago Yunke”. This was underpinned by a multi-channel strategy, harnessing a digital, multi-platform approach.

The approach

Entrusted by IFEMA, Making Science devised a multi-faceted digital strategy for Hangar 52, a new magic show. The strategy’s core was programmatic advertising, which effectively generated conversions and improved the performance of other channels like SEM and YouTube.
Initially, we set up a prospecting strategy on Display & Video 360 (DV360) targeting relevant audiences, followed by remarketing via Floodlights on Campaign Manager. We used the Storytelling format for an impactful sequence of creative content.
Simultaneously, we occupied top positions on Google Ads with Brand campaigns using keywords like +magician +yunke, further supplemented with misspellings and competitor campaigns. Lastly, we utilized IFEMA’s high-quality video content on YouTube for both awareness and conversion goals.

The results

Only a month after the inaugural performance, ticket sales skyrocketed to 28,000, accounting for 80% of the available tickets – an achievement made a full month ahead of IFEMA’s target.
Given this overwhelming success, IFEMA expanded the number of performances by 25%, ultimately selling over 40,000 tickets, exceeding the set objective yet again. This led to the decision to host a second season of Hangar 52 in the fall of 2020.