Right after she returned home after the Olympics, the Puerto Rico Tourism Company convinced Puig to record an unusual video offering Kerber her gold. Not her gold medal, of course, but the true gold of her homeland: our bright sun and our warm beaches. Puig ended the video extending an invitation to Kerber, and by association all Germans, to come visit Puerto Rico.

Right after the Olympics ended, Puig hopped on a plane to Puerto Rico to attend a big celebratory parade. The day after, she was recording the Tourism Company’s video. So it all happened right in the middle of the media frenzy caused by her unexpected milestone. In a matter of hours the video was uploaded to the Tourism Company’s and to Mónica Puig’s social media platforms, quickly prompting a positive response from Angelique Kerber and from the media.

The video received millions of worldwide views and significant press coverage. Kerber herself accepted the invitation, causing the story to be picked up by numerous German media, sharing the video’s beautiful shots of the island’s beaches with millions of potential German tourists. Puerto Rico became the #1 topic searched in Germany during that month as reported by Google Trends. Overall, the effort generated over $1 million in earned media with an investment of only $25,000. Mónica Puig’s victory brought the eyes of Germany to the island. The Tourism Company just made sure it looked as warm and golden as ever.