Goodwood Festival of Speed 11-14th July 2013

For the past couple of months WDA have been busy working alongside MER Auto Shine Technologie, gearing up for their first official public outing since the re-brand at Goodwood’s prestigious Festival of Speed.

50% More visitors

Weʼre pleased to say the event was a massive success, with 50% more visitors to the MER stand than in 2012, which resulted in more exposure to the new brand, its range of new products and of course, more sales too.

When we first began the project, WDAʼs task was to create an exhibition stand, which not only displayed the MER products but also created a buzz about the brand. We needed something, which got people excited and talking about MER. We already had the fantastic GT3 Porsche to be polished and cleaned, but since this year was the 50th Anniversary of the Porsche we knew Goodwood would be swamped with them, we needed something more, something fun and interactive.

A Race to the Perfect Finish!

So we came up with The MER Scalextric Challenge. The idea was to have a custom built Scalextric track on the stand so that our visitors could compete with one another and win some great prizes courtesy of both Scalextric and MER. Based on our ‘perfect finishʼ advertising campaign slogan we invited show goers to ‘Race to the Perfect Finish’. We created a Top Gear style ʻLeader Boardʼ and even a winners podium, so participants could pose in front of the MER backdrop and share their success by publishing their photographs on Facebook, Twitter and other social media channels – getting a great viral effect and further promoting the brand.

As predicted, Scalextric proved ever popular with all ages (in fact the competitive dads were even more enthusiastic than the kids!) On the first day the stand was busy  8 oʼclock in the morning. On the remaining three days as word got around the crowds were even more eager as a hive of activity was starting to form from 7am going right through until 6.30pm. We’re pleased to report that despite this severe hammering in 30 degree+ heat, the track and (most) of the cars survived despite only a very brief break when we powered down on day 3 as the Red Arrows flew over!

The Scalextric challenge proved a great way for the MER staff to get chatting to festival goers about their products and give away some free samples but thatʼs not to underestimate the other components of the stand. The black and orange Porsche GT3 attracted a huge amount of interest and was a great way to demonstrate the cleaning power of the new MER range; whilst the exhibition stand provided a great backdrop for the brand, to remind the public that the product, which used to be in the blue-bottle is now in a slick black bottle, with a shiny gold top!

£1200.00 raised for DMUK

The stand also had a charitable element to it as well, we asked anyone wishing to participate in the Scalextric Challenge to make a small donation to the Disabled Motorists UK. MERʼs promise was to match that pound for pound; and in total we raised nearly £1200.00, which was a great gesture for a well-deserving charity who campaign for better rights for disabled motorists and their families and carers. Overall it was a fantastic event, which provided great PR for the MER brand and most importantly achieved exactly what we set out to do – to attract record visitors to our stand, engage them with the new brand – and drive sales!

WDA would like to say a huge thank you to all MER staff who worked hard to keep the stand running smoothly throughout the festival, Tony at Corporate Layouts who built up the Scalextric track and Marta from Disabled Motorist UK, who also joined us to promote the charity.

To see more shots from the day, click here

A great year for the Automotive sector with 5 of the top 50’s auto brands enjoying positive brand value changes. The sector as a whole outperforming all others in terms of brand value, ahead of both the financial and FMCG sectors. Whilst Coca-Cola remains in top spot, it is impossible to ignore Apple’s 129% increase ahead of both Google and Microsoft in the technology sector. Chart positions aside, the increasing fiscal values placed on these brands show just how much economic benefit is derived by their respective owners from ‘brand value’ – largely an intangible asset which is increasingly often worth more than a company’s tangible ones. WDA have delivered branding and brand strategy consultation for clients ranging from global multi billion revenue companies, to SME’s and start up businesses, and everything in between. Regardless of size or market standing, the strength and relevance of your brand will almost always factor heavily in your customers decisions when faced with options to buy from you or a competitor. If you would like a chat to explore further how WDA might help your brand move up the charts,  then get in touch.

*Source Interbrand report 2012

ARMR moto New brand build, positioning, visual identity and trade campaign creation for extreme apparel range

Renntec : now ready for anything Full re-brand and positioning for Britains favourite motorcycle accessory range

Tri-Motive brand distribution New brand build, positioning, visual identity, trade campaign creation and web platform

CPI Scooters Full re-brand and positioning plus campaign creation both on and offline for trade and consumer media.

The recent NEC motorcycle Trade Expo show was WDA’s first involvement with the knowledge shop, and proved a resounding success with many business owners taking advantage of 3 days of free marketing and branding consultation.

WDA also revealed Brand Builder for the first time – A unique process developed by WDA and used to create some of the automotive industries best performing brands.

For those unsure about the return on investment in building or properly leveraging their brand through effective advertising and marketing campaigns; WDA were able to discuss the commercial benefits and reference several recent ‘case study’ businesses exhibiting in the same hall so that delegates could speak directly with brand owners who WDA had recently helped including CPI, ARMR moto, Renntec and Trimotive brand distribution.

Delegates we spoke to ranged from SME’s to marketing managers of large global corporations, and we were able to successfully reference examples of clients we have helped to drive business at both ends of this spectrum.

Having live case studies on hand was a great way to demonstrate the net result of investing in branding, without necessarily having to discuss the sometimes complicated strategic processes which underpin everything we create.

In simple terms, our objective is usually to make clients products or services more desirable to the consumer. All things being equal, a consumer will ‘tip’ towards the brand they favour most. WDA do this by creating a differentiated and ownable positioning at the very core of the offering – at that point where the market opportunity meets the most desirable things about a clients business.

Getting the core positioning right is essential before spending money on expensive media to communicate a message which might not engage, excite or motivate your target audience.

Leveraging your proposition through the wrong media channels is even worse if the idea is right, but nobody is listening. This is why WDA remain ‘media neutral’ and focus on delivering our core value – devising marketing and brand strategy, communication platforms and design solutions; unlike the usual model of recovering fee by margining production or media.

We believe we make the kind of decisions traditional agencies just aren’t able to recommend. For example, it’s s no coincidence that if you brief an ad agency then the solution will involve advertising; likewise a web development company’s solution will be to relaunch the website; and a printer will propose a solution involving print.

With WDA, our media advice is always in the best interests of the brand, not self serving to cover our own costs. It also means we are more flexible and can access a whole range of media channels; and react quickly as the media landscape changes (increasingly faster in the case of digital media).

If you missed us at the show and would like to discuss how WDA could help drive your business forward through more effective brand marketing, please email here or call +44 (0) 1332 372 728. An initial consultation is offered free of charge.

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