Case Study: Vancouver Aquarium achieves 100% newsletter opt-in and strong local fan engagement with Strutta

Vancouver Aquarium's Strutta contest helps to engage, amaze and inspire local fans

Vancouver Aquarium partnered with Strutta (using its Contest-Designer contest platform) to address the challenge of growing its email database, raising local awareness of a new penguin colony, and deepening online relationships in a way that aligned with the brand promise: Engage. Amaze. Inspire. The campaign focused on local fans and required a simple entry mechanism to collect audience data while staying true to the Aquarium’s community-driven voice.

Using Strutta’s Contest-Designer, the Aquarium ran a Facebook-based contest that accepted photo, video and text submissions, customized the entry form to capture email addresses and postal codes, and controlled the contest look and feel while running targeted Facebook ads. Strutta’s analytics showed a 100% newsletter opt‑in rate, over 80% of contest visitors were from the Greater Vancouver area, and 383 of 389 entrants chose photo or text submissions over video — driving measurable local engagement and an expanded, relevant email list.

Vancouver Aquarium