Case Study: Cirque du Soleil ECHO

Case Study
Written By Karen Rude

Suspended delicately in the air, the Fireflies movement is a dance between chaos and calm. Through their glowing flight, they remind us that even in moments of imbalance, beauty is born from unity, and that joy, like light, always finds its way back.

Cirque du Soleil ECHO

Client: Cirque du Soleil
Campaigns: ECHO
Agency: WE INC. Marketing
Date: January 2026

Project Lead: Kara Whittington
Project Manager: Karen Rude
Media Coordinator: Sarah Owens

Cirque du Soleil’s newest big top tent show, ECHO, came to San Francisco November 20, 2025 through January 18, 2026. WE INC. Marketing spearheaded a grassroots marketing campaign aimed to generate community excitement, drive ticket sales, and establish local engagement by leveraging strategic partnerships, community outreach, and trade media support in collaboration with the local media buyer to maximize paid media exposure.

Strategic Objectives

Identify key local media and community outlets (digital, print, broadcast) whose audiences align with Cirque target demographics, trading tickets for advertising placements.

Collaborate with third party community partners to facilitate trade for show tickets in exchange for visibility through organization channels including on site location and/or digital channels across email, social, and web.

Partner with local businesses (hotels, restaurants, bars) to create ECHO-themed promotions, such as specialty cocktails or ticket + dining packages.

Results


Exceeded Revenue and Ticket Sales Goals

3rd Party Partner Outreach

  • Partnerships: 44

  • Postering, out of home media, events, restaurants, non-profit silent auctions, dance/aerial/gymnastics studios

Ticket Giveaways

  • Partnerships: 15

  • Tickets Awarded: 124

  • Total Entries: 2,800+

  • Total Impressions: 8.8M+ via Social, Emails, OOH, Media, Print

Community Outreach

WE INC. Marketing coordinated a panel discussion surrounding the topic of professional development and engagement for students at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music to hear from Cirque du Soleil touring musicians who also perform with classical music groups in the Bay, including New Century Chamber Orchestra (which also is a WE INC. Marketing client!) Cirque du Soleil’s Press team leveraged the opportunity and topic, as well as other partnership connections, which resulted in six articles: 

"[WE INC. Marketing] Crushed it!”

—Megan Ebeck, Marketing Manager, Touring Shows Division: North America, Cirque du Soleil

Creative Snapshot

Recommendations & Future Opportunities

Increase lead time across major potential partners
Prioritize outreach for larger brands and transit partners a minimum of 6 months in advance of desired launch to maximize exposure.

Continue social collaborations
Having insight to the overall Cirque social media calendar would help streamline the collaboration post schedule to maximize content for both Cirque and 3rd party collaborators.

Additional Recommendations
Shared directly with Cirque du Soleil.

 

This case study provides a snapshot of how WE INC. Marketing can help maximize partnership marketing opportunities to increase reach and engagement on owned and earned channels, even without a budget for paid media. Reach out today to see how WE can support your partnership marketing efforts!

 
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Karen Rude
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