Case Study

Rollin Bagels turns runners into brand storytellers

How a cult-favorite bagel truck transformed their “Left for Crumbs 5K” into a content creation engine, capturing authentic UGC and building lasting connections.

Food & BeverageEvent MarketingUGC

Rollin Bagels 5K participants taking selfies

“MAGNETIQ helped bring our IRL event into the digital world — fully tracked, full of rewards and most importantly, so many new connections formed. If done right, going digital doesn't disconnect or distance — this time it brought more people under a brand activation devoted to its community.”

Jesslyn Gunter

CMO

45%

Runner opt-in activation rate

40+

Pieces of organic UGC captured

High

Participant satisfaction with rewards & merch

About Rollin Bagels

Rollin Bagels is a cult-favorite bagel truck based in Long Island City, NY, known for its fresh hand-rolled bagels, bold flavor combos, and community-driven approach to food. Together with WellWell Studio, they host pop-ups and events that bring people together over good food and shared experiences.

When they launched their “Left for Crumbs 5K,” they saw an opportunity to make it more than just a race — they wanted to turn it into a moment of connection and storytelling that would live beyond the event day.

Business Challenge

Community events are powerful but fleeting. Rollin Bagels and WellWell Studio wanted to capture the energy of their 5K and transform runners into co-creators of the story. Their goals were to:

Encourage real, authentic user-generated content (photos, selfies, videos)
Make participation and content sharing frictionless
Reward runners immediately so their efforts felt valued
Avoid the post-event chaos of tracking down content and permissions

Without a system to streamline this process, it would mean scattered Google Drive folders, manual follow-ups, and lost opportunities to tell the story at scale.

Why MAGNETIQ

Rollin Bagels turned to MAGNETIQ's Co-Lab UGC tool to build an activation that was simple, fun, and measurable. Together, they designed a seamless experience:

Built-In Incentives

• Selfie at the food truck → free coffee
• Photo from the run → free bagel
• Race video → exclusive event merch

Frictionless Participation

Runners scanned QR codes, entered their email, and uploaded content right from their phones.

Instant Rewards

Digital vouchers were automatically issued, redeemable onsite for an immediate experience boost.

Centralized Dashboard

The marketing team could view, approve, and download all content in one place — no manual chasing, no messy permissions.

Results

Strong Participation

45% of runners opted in and shared content, resulting in over 40 pieces of usable, organic UGC.

Content That Lives Beyond the Event

The assets were authentic, on-brand, and ready to use across Rollin Bagels' social media, marketing campaigns, and future promotions — with all permissions secured.

Happy Participants

Runners left the event with full bellies, fresh merch, and a memorable brand experience that they were proud to share.

Operational Efficiency

By using MAGNETIQ, the team avoided manual data collection and storage headaches. Everything lived in a single, tidy dashboard — making follow-up and reuse fast and easy.