Sandbox VR

The objective

Leveraging TikTok Search Ads to attract local customers

Sandbox VR is the world's premier destination for premium, location-based virtual reality games. The company has created the world’s most immersive full-body VR platform and boasts exclusive games, including original and branded experiences, such as Squid Game Virtuals and Stranger Things Catalyst created in collaboration with Netflix. Recently surpassing over 5 million tickets sold, Sandbox VR is rapidly growing its global footprint with thriving corporate-owned locations and a robust franchising program.

The authentic video experience of TikTok is the ideal way to showcase guests’ thrills, excitement and reactions as they freely roam the VR space together, exploring exclusive virtual worlds and relying on each other to succeed. Survive a zombie apocalypse, enter the upside down, battle a mighty dragon, compete in heart-pumping Squid Games, battle aliens, hunt for lost treasure, and more when you choose from 10 unforgettable experiences.

With the goal of introducing more people to the Immersive VR experience, Sandbox VR has partnered with GrowMojo, its agency on record and TikTok Marketing Partner, to manage daily campaign optimizations and ensure the campaign delivered on its customer acquisition cost goals. Sandbox VR has over 60 locations and GrowMojo was the first U.S. agency to use TikTok Zip Code targeting when it was released.

Sandbox VR and GrowMojo have been pioneers in using TikTok Search Ads in combination with local targeting to acquire customers that are using TikTok Search as inspiration for things to do. They have leveraged TikTok Search Ads to present Sandbox VR Experiences as an exciting and fun opportunity when TikTok users are looking for ideas for date nights, birthday parties, family outings and corporate events. TikTok Search ad campaigns delivered a 50% lower CPA intent customers compared to interest-targeted ads.

The campaign objective was to drive conversions (booking VR sessions) for Sandbox VR, a leading brand in immersive location-based virtual reality experiences. The TikTok campaign tested the performance of Search vs. Non-Search formats, focusing on the end goal—ticket sales—while also evaluating key top funnel metrics to assess user engagement efficiency.

The solution

TikTok Search as a performance channel

Squid Game Search Campaign

Sandbox VR and GrowMojo launched the inaugural TikTok Search campaign, focused on the release of the highly anticipated second season of Squid Game to introduce potential local customers to the Squid Game Experience at Sandbox VR . The goal was to target users actively searching on the TikTok network for terms such as “Squid Game 2 release” and “Squid Game 2 reviews,” with the goal of promoting the Squid Game Virtual Experience available at Sandbox VR locations. The TikTok Search campaign delivered performance metrics comparable to those of the Non-Search placements. 

The TikTok Search campaign for Sandbox VR delivered outstanding early-funnel results:

• CTR (Click-Through Rate): 2.36% in the Search campaign—over 4x higher than the Non-Search campaign. This reflects strong ad relevance when users actively express intent through search.

• CPC (Cost per Click): The Search campaign achieved a significantly lower CPC that was 3.5x lower compared to the Non-Search format, enabling more cost-effective user engagement.

Date Night and Things to Do Search Campaign

The second TikTok Search campaign, titled “Date Night,” was launched ahead of Valentine’s Day to reach couples looking for a fun Valentine’s Day activity. The customer acquisition results were 57% better than the Non-Search benchmarks and have continued to outperform.

Based on the success of the Valentine’s Day TikTok Search campaign a local “Things To Do,” campaign was launched shortly after. This campaign targeted high-intent search queries such as “activities to do in San Francisco” and “places to visit in Chicago,” aiming to reach users looking for the most fun and memorable ways to spend their time in a city.

Much like the Date Night campaign, “Things To Do” delivered consistently strong results to date, clearly outperforming Non-Search placements with a 55% lower CPA and a 96% higher ROAS.

The “Things To Do” campaign further reinforces the value of TikTok Search as a conversion-efficient channel. It demonstrates that users actively searching for location based entertainment in specific cities are significantly more likely to engage and convert, especially when presented with immersive experiences like those offered by Sandbox VR.

Birthdays & Corporate Events Search Campaigns

The next TikTok Search campaigns to be launched focused on “Birthdays” and “Corporate Events” at Sandbox VR. The objective was to reach users actively searching for how to celebrate birthdays or plan engaging group events with colleagues.

Unlike previous campaigns, these were lead-generation focused, encouraging users to fill out a short contact form and schedule sessions for groups of 6 or more. This introduced a new performance metric: Cost Per Lead (CPL). The TikTok Search campaigns generated a 61% lower CPL with Birthdays & Corporate Events TikTok Search Campaigns than Non-Search placements.

The results

Proving the power of intent-driven discovery on TikTok

Sandbox VR’s use of TikTok Search Ads showed how intent-driven discovery can deliver meaningful business impact. Across campaigns tied to entertainment releases, seasonal moments, and local activity searches, TikTok Search consistently outperformed Non-Search placements on efficiency, engagement, and conversion quality.

By reaching users who were actively searching for things to do, date-night ideas, birthday activities, or group events, Sandbox VR saw measurable improvements in key performance metrics. These included higher click-through rates, lower cost per click, stronger customer acquisition efficiency, and lower cost per lead for group bookings. The results illustrate how TikTok Search can function as a high-impact performance channel for businesses that rely on local demand and experiential discovery.

For companies in entertainment, hospitality, leisure, and other location-based service industries, the Sandbox VR case demonstrates a clear opportunity. Reaching people at the exact moment they are searching for inspiration leads to more qualified engagement and more efficient conversions.

Tips and takeaways

• Reach users at moments of real intent: Showing up when people search for things to do leads to higher quality engagement and more efficient conversions.

• Use search queries to match user needs: Targeting activity, occasion, and location-based searches helps capture audiences who are already close to making a decision.

• Pair Search Ads with local targeting: Combining intent signals with precise location targeting strengthens relevance and drives stronger performance for experience-based businesses.