The A.R Wilfley Tradeshow Experience

Digital Marketing Agency Insights

A. R. Wilfley & Sons, Inc. has provided innovative centrifugal pump solutions since 1919. Wilfley’s robust pumps can be found in a number of different industries including mining, food & beverage and chemical processing. Their pumps are sold and supported by local reps globally. They provide the most proactive centrifugal pump solutions in the world.

A.R.Wilfley attended the MINexpo in Las Vegas, NV in September 2012. MINexpo is the biggest tradeshow in the mining industry. Wilfley tasked Webolutions with designing a booth experience to stand out in a crowded field and create a memorable experience for show attendees.

Specific Project Goals & Challenges

• Raise awareness of the Wilfley name among the mining industry
• Announce the 2013 introduction Wilfley’ s new line of EMW™ pumps to the industry
• Generate a list of qualified contacts to expand the Wilfley sales pipeline

Solutions Provided by Webolutions

To maximize the ROI of the investment Wilfley made in exhibiting at this event and to create an amazing experience consistent with their brand, the following solutions were implemented:

• Webolutions worked with the leadership of Wilfley to more clearly define their overall brand.  We clearly defined statements pinpointing the following areas:
  • A 5-7 word statement defining their product or service offering
  • A 5-7 work statement defining their primary core value
  • A 5-7 word statement defining the overall experience hopes to have through all interactions with their clients, reps, team members and yes even visitors to their tradeshow booth
• Of the six basic emotions that people are able to have (love, joy, surprise, anger, sadness and fear), we worked with Wilfley to identify the related feelings they want people to have when they interact with their brand.  The results were:
  • Amazement
  • Relief
  • Optimism
  • Contentment
  • Pride

We completed a strategic experience planning exercise to address key factors about the event. You can see some of the items in this checklist at our recent blog post Creating a Client Experience Checklist . Then, using this information, together we created a unique experience for this event:

•  Wilfley engineers created a see-through demonstration pump to allow visitors to see and experience the company’s unique dynamic seal technology. This is one factor which helps to differentiate Wilfley pumps in the marketplace.
• The design of the booth was deliberately very clean and modern to allow visitors to focus on the company’s offerings.  Most booths are very cluttered.
• The graphics in the booth focused on Wilfley’s  local presence and support on an international level for the clients they serve.
• A custom-printed insert was created to allow visitors to better understand the company’s values and the experience that their clients have in doing business with them. This greatly expanded their messaging depth to reflect their complete brand and not just that they have great products.
• A “Take The Wilfley Challenge” submission contest was designed to encourage visitors to actively engage with Wilfley sales representatives. Participants in the Wilfley Challenge were invited to outline their most difficult problem and challenge Wilfley to solve their unmet need. If the Wilfley team was unable to design a solution for participants, they would treat the challenger and 10 people in their office to lunch. Visitors could complete this form at the booth or via a specially designed landing page which was assessible via the scan of a QR code.
• Pre-event emails were sent out to Wilfley’s contacts inviting them to stop by their booth. This not only created a more engaged brand for the company with those attending this major event, but it also conveyed this message to everyone on their contact list who was not planning on attending.
• Each day, qualified leads were identified at the show, contact information and notes were entered into a database, and that night each person received a personalized follow-up email from the director of sales & marketing.

Going forward they will continue to engage the contacts made at this event and develop tools to ensure that they become active members of our community.

How to Use This Information
If you have an upcoming event (tradeshow or other important interactive opportunity) and you would like to create a more dynamic overall experience that conveys your brand with impact and increases your results, please feel free to contact Webolutions at 303-300-2640 for a complimentary initial consultation.