Big Stakes, Bigger Results: How Immersive Travel Experiences Drove Membership Growth for AMCN

The Solution 

Zeta delivered with two high-impact campaigns powered by the same core strategy: membership activations built around irresistible experiences. 

The first campaign, centered on the thrill of NASCAR^®, offered fans a chance to win a supercharged VIP experience. No purchase was necessary to enter, but contestants could earn bonus entries with a new AMCN and/or Fly-U-Home membership. From visiting the NASCAR Hall of Fame™, to VIP access at a race of their choice, the prize tapped into sports passion and used AMCN’s membership infrastructure as a powerful conversion lever. Campaign creative ran across email, digital, social, direct mail and on NASCAR.com’s homepage with a takeover skin to match the look and feel of our campaign — all tied together by unified data capture and conversion tracking. 

The second campaign took a different turn with an aspirational destination: Hawaii. This activation promised a dream escape filled with sun-drenched beaches and majestic scenery or $25K cash. This once-in-a-lifetime incentive was matched by a precise digital media strategy, with vibrant creative assets deployed across social, programmatic display, multi-touch email, and landing pages. As with the NASCAR campaign, entry required no purchase, but it did provide an exciting way to capture prospective enrollment, turning a one-time chance into long-term customer value. 

Both campaigns were rooted in the same playbook: drive demand through emotional incentives, engage audiences through seamless omnichannel experiences, and convert interest into durable membership growth. The results backed the strategy. The NASCAR 360 Experience generated 13,592 entries and 561 membership conversions, contributing to the highest application and renewal rates in six months, nearly double the average of the prior five months. Email open rates hit 31% for prospects and 43% for current members, while social delivered nearly 3 million impressions.  

The Aloha Paradise campaign proved even stronger. It captured 25,799 new prospect emails, drove a 22% boost in site traffic, and lifted new users by 20%. Compared to the previous spring campaign, unique registrants rose by 47%, the conversion rate increased by 28%, and revenue soared by 81%.

These campaigns prove that when smartly executed and rooted in data, sweepstakes can deliver more than leads. They can increase our prospect and retargeting pools, build long-term customer relationships, drive measurable business outcomes, and generate award-winning creative along the way.