Case Study: HARD Events achieves 30x return on advertising spend with Instagram

Hard Events - Customer Case Study

HARD Events, the live‑music promoter behind festivals such as HARD Summer, faced the challenge of scaling ticket sales after moving the festival to a larger venue. The company’s goal was to reach new, non‑ticket‑buying audiences and drive purchases for the two‑day HARD Summer Music Festival.

Partnering with Instagram partner CitizenNet, HARD ran a two‑phase, video‑focused campaign using geographic and interest targeting (ages 18–44 in California and nearby areas), Custom Audiences of past buyers and website/video engagers, and Lookalike Audiences to expand reach. The highly targeted effort reached nearly 40 million people, delivered a 30x return on ad spend and produced a substantially lower cost per action versus other channels.

Hard Events

Aaron Brisco

Director Of Marketing