Best Integrated Trade Show Campaign

Program Name: Frankfurt Auto Show
Client: Volkswagen
Agency: Vok Dams

For an industry that’s been taking its knocks over the past few years, annual auto shows are high stakes environments. And for many brands, there is no more high stakes environment than the 13-day International Automotive Fair (IAA) in Frankfurt, Germany. Not only is it the world’s largest auto show, it’s the place for major reveals of the newest concept and production cars and latest technologies. This event sets the tone for auto shows and automakers around the world.

In this competitive environment, where brands like Mercedes-Benz and BMW regularly erect high-end showrooms the size of small shopping malls, Volkswagen made a statement with its trademark minimalist design perspective, blended with high-energy presentations that delivered its forward-thinking message. The visual highlight was an LED media “horizon,” a series of LED screens that created the entire back wall of the 27,000-square-foot exhibit. Throughout the show, the LED screens served double duty, providing emotional cues to attendees through moving imagery and delivering VW’s latest news, messages and visions for the future. The complete effect mapped back to the exhibit’s “horizon” theme.

Several times a day, the show combined a live, flash mob-style performance by 80 dancers with a media presentation on the LED screens, real wind effects and powerful choreographed imagery and sound. VW’s new fuel-efficienct engines feature something it calls BlueMotionTechnologies, which was a central focus of the exhibit and presentations. Dancers wore fashion-forward street clothes like sneakers, jeans and knee socks, all in shades of blue. VW vehicles were driven onto the stage as the high point of the show. The performances supported the Volkswagen’s youthful appeal while also reinforcing the brand’s eco-minded offerings.

The minimalist architecture of the booth added to the dynamic environment created by the screens. The exhibit presented the entire VW lineup, 40 vehicles including Audi, Lamborghini, Bugatti and others, arranged into a wide, white “landscape” that was enclosed by the media horizon wall and emphasized by various lighting elements. Glossy white pillars, floors, walls and booth pieces served as a neutral backdrop for the fleet of cars.

The dynamic press conference environment also included kiosk displays where attendees could use trackballs to explore timelines and other interactive content. The exhibit drew and kept attendees in the booth, and reached its media objectives, specifically winning mentions focused on the brand attributes it set out to communicate within the booth. Volkswagen management was impressed, too, and celebrated by punching each other in the arm and yelling “white one!” just for fun. Those silly Germans!

Program Name: AAFP Activation
Client: Purdue Pharma
Agency: Czarnowski

To get doctors in the booth and learning about its new products, Purdue Pharma for its October 2009 AAFP exhibit blended sensory perception, soothing design and a smooth, “education not sales” approach. One key goal was to provide the appropriate scientific data and education that physicians want to see when considering trying a new product. The brand positioned touch screen interfaces with information about new and existing products all over the footprint, with ergonomically designed stations. Five tabletop units facilitated brand ambassador-assisted interactions and four wall-mounted units facilitated self-serve interactions. The abundance of units eliminated waiting and enabled each visitor to experience a customized presentation. 

Staffers were empowered to decide the best experience for each visitor based on input and conversation. They could personally stay with the visitor, transition them to another rep or escort them to a self-service kiosk. Purdue’s new exhibit also incorporated comforting smells and soothing sounds as well as an ultra-soft carpet to soothe the feet of tired attendees.

The soft-sell approach worked: 61 percent of visitors indicated they would consider trying the new product with appropriate patients, which exceeded the goal by 256 percent.

Program Name: SHRM
Client: CareerBuilder
Agency: TradeShows Plus

At the 2009 SHRM Conference in New Orleans, CareerBuilder tapped into the innate fun of the Big Easy while presenting itself as a Human Capital Resource Solution, rather than just a job board. The booth was designed as a two-story French Quarter town house, with education and learning stations on the first floor and meeting space on the second. The brand also wanted to push traffic online, both to its main site and to the event microsite, which promoted brand and booth activities to select audience members.

CareerBuilder also hosted a private invite-only evening event for 600 key customers and leads at the House of Blues in the French Quarter. Scanners at all demonstrations and presentations tracked attendees’ product interest, leading to a post-show database filled with qualified leads. In the booth, the brand collected 1,321 unique names—1,141 provided email addresses.