Standout
The event and the challenge
XNRG runs some of the UK's most characterful endurance events, including the Druid's Challenge, a three-day adventure along Britain's oldest trail, and the Pilgrim Challenge, a tough winter run built on camaraderie.
Both had genuine quality and a loyal following, but their marketing leaned on static posts that showed the race without telling the story of why to enter, and websites that didn't convert. Reach to new ultra runners was limited. Growth needed both more demand and better conversion, not just more visibility.
What we did and what happened
We treated each event as its own brand rather than another ultra, building a real story around what makes it special so distance was no longer the only reason to enter.
A video-first content engine replaced occasional posts with storytelling made to travel: Facebook views up 140% to 2.1 million, Instagram up 385%. Paid media reached over 671,000 new ultra runners and returned around 8.5x on ad spend, leading with video to build interest and retargeting to convert. Upgraded websites and structured email flows, with urgency around price rises and deadlines, turned that interest into entries. And we built community: an automated referral system through the Race Space platform, now bringing in 14% of entrants, and a Strava club 350+ members strong, giving both events an owned channel beyond social and email. The Druid's Challenge grew 39%, selling to capacity, and the Pilgrim Challenge grew 13%.
In their words
“The marketing you've been doing is exactly what we've been looking for. The website, socials and emails are all fantastic. They're making a big difference and performing well.” — Neil, Race Director, XNRG
