The Challenge
In stark contrast with competing casino’s in the Coachella Valley, Augustine Casino has been known as the locals’ casino, now going on 18 years. Our integrated marketing efforts have maintained a strong focus on attracting residents throughout the Coachella Valley, with targeted communications in both English and Spanish via television, radio, digital, out-of-home and print.
The Solution
In 2018, Augustine Casino set new monthly records for profits in 10 of the 12 months, delivering their best year to date. Our efforts helped produce a significant increase in website traffic that year: there was an increase in users by 16.26%, sessions by 19.78% and page views by 11.84%, year over year. Email engagement also significantly outperformed the industry average for gambling with a 30.08% open rate (9.1% industry average) and 20.07% click-through rate (1.1% industry average). Our social media advertising campaigns generated a cost-per-result less than half the platform standard of $0.20 with a CPR of $0.08. The casino also experienced higher than average new membership registrations, as well as an increase in restaurant diners.
In 2019, we shifted a large percentage of the advertising budget away from traditional and into digital media because of the precision in targetability and analytical data we were able to extract from those campaigns. Our aggressive approach included Search Engine Marketing (SEM), Programmatic and Remarketing Display Advertising, Pre-Roll Video, Social Media Advertising, OTT/CTV, Digital Addressable, and Variable Content Email Marketing. The objective was to achieve a level of saturation that would move Augustine Casino to top of mind for gaming and dining among locals, and visitors from our drive markets.
SCOPE OF WORK
- Strategic Development
- Creative Concept/Design
- Media Buying & Strategy
- Photo & Video Development
- Research & Content Development
- Public/Community Relations
- Social Media Strategy & Management
WEBSITE
That same year, we completely revamped the Casino’s website with a new design and interface which put a primary focus on mobile usage. The goal was to drive traffic to a fresh, dynamic website with prioritized content most sought after by guests.
The Results
Despite a slight overall decrease in 2019’s marketing budget from the previous year and a slow summer, the heavier investment in digital strategies ignited additional growth and one of the best 4th Quarters and second-best year on record for Augustine Casino.
Our digital strategies propelled an increase in website traffic of 19.30%, sessions by 17.94% and page views by 8.38%, year over year. Email engagement also significantly outperformed the industry average for gambling with a 27.68% open rate (9% industry average) and 17.14% click-through rate (0.80% industry average). The social media advertising campaigns generated a cost-per-result less than half the platform standard of $0.20 with a CPR of $0.10.
Once the new website launched, between September 1, 2019 – February 29, 2020, users increased by 16.20%, sessions by 13.73%, and pageviews by 4.59% (despite having fewer pages) compared to the same period the previous years. We were also able to make the website easier for the client to update and manage, with our Agency providing ongoing daily support and maintenance of the website.