Karnes City Founders Day
Turning Founders Day into a Major Success: How TSE Entertainment Boosted Attendance by 80%
Event Overview
Founders Day is Karnes City’s biggest annual event, traditionally held on the second Saturday in December at Karnes City Park. The celebration is a full-day, family-friendly, free-admission festival featuring a color run, vendors and food trucks, kid’s activities, live music, an illuminated night parade, and a fireworks show.
The Challenge
The City of Karnes City, Texas, reached out to TSE to grow attendance and engagement for its annual Founders Day celebration. While the 2023 event attracted a respectable 2,476 attendees, there was an opportunity to expand its reach, draw in more visitors, and enhance the overall community participation. The city needed a data-driven marketing approach to maximize visibility and attendance for the 2024 event.
Our Role, Strategy, & Execution
TSE Entertainment partnered with Karnes City to plan, execute, and optimize a data-driven event marketing program centered on Meta (Facebook/Instagram). The campaign combined precision audience targeting, compelling creative, and real-time engagement to maximize attendance and community participation.
- Precision Audience Targeting: Geo-fenced radius around Karnes City with expansion to nearby communities, layered with demographic, interest, and behavior targeting for families, live-music fans, holiday shoppers, and local event goers.
- Compelling, Timely Creatives: Eye-catching ads and posts featuring free admission, strong calls to action, and clear schedule milestones—from the Color Run and Santa photos to the Parade, Fireworks, and Concert finale.
- Optimized Delivery & Sequencing: Strategic ad placement and timing to match the event’s natural flow—morning family focus, afternoon activities, and a powerful push into the evening celebration.
- Engagement-Driven Content: Interactive posts, vendor spotlights, countdowns, and behind-the-scenes teasers to build anticipation and drive organic sharing in the weeks leading up to the event.
- Headliner Promotion: Showcased SOUTHALL and Ricky Naranjo y Los Gamblers in targeted creatives to broaden appeal across rock/country and Tejano audiences.
- Smart Retargeting: Re-engaged past engagers and event-page visitors with timely reminders and “what’s next” prompts to convert interest into attendance.
- Responsive Community Management: Actively addressed questions and comments on social media in real time, reducing uncertainty and boosting last-minute turnout.
Results
- Attendance increased from 2,476 (2023) to 4,473 (2024). That’s an 80.7% year‑over‑year lift.
- Expanded on‑site experience: 14 food vendors, 34 shopping vendors, and 50+ parade entries supported longer dwell time and higher spend with local businesses.
- Peak‑evening surge aligned with Parade of Lights, fireworks and headliner show, indicating strong conversion from awareness to attendance.
- Beyond the numbers, the event strengthened civic pride and positioned Karnes City as a vibrant small‑city destination for December traditions.
- Higher Community Engagement: Our campaign generated a significant increase in event interactions across social media platforms.
- Enhanced Visibility for Karnes City: The event’s success not only benefited attendees but also strengthened the city’s reputation as a thriving community hub for annual celebrations.
What Made the Difference
- Message‑to‑Moment Fit: Aligning creatives with the day’s rhythm kept the event top‑of‑mind from morning to night.
- Clear Calls‑to‑Action: ‘Join us today’ and ‘Free admission’ removed hesitancy and improved conversion from interest to attendance.
- Community Echo: Vendors and parade entrants became micro‑influencers, amplifying reach across networks TSE ads couldn’t efficiently touch alone.
Partner Spotlight — TSE Entertainment
As the city’s event‑marketing ally, TSE translated civic goals into measurable outcomes by pairing audience strategy with practical, on‑the‑ground amplification. The result: fuller crowds, smoother day‑of operations, and a memorable close to the year for thousands of residents and visitors.
This case study exemplifies how data-driven, targeted event marketing can dramatically increase attendance and engagement.
