Racing Booth
Client: MST Seamless Tube & Pipe (MST)
MST asked us to come up with a creative and engaging idea for their annual booth at POWERGEN International®, a networking and business hub for power generation professionals and solution providers. In particular, they wanted a better way to interact with potential customers and leave the conference with more leads than their competitor. In order to do this, I wanted the end product to be fun, easy-to-use, highlight their innovative products and foster some friendly competition.
MST is known for pipe products that perform under pressure so we demonstrated how their pipes work for every application by designing a toy car racing experience with tubes in place of tracks. We built a custom track, stadium booth back-drop, and ordered MST branded toy race cars. We even had a staircase built to keep potential customers there longer and generate more excitement from passersby. The booth was a hit, and had people lining up to race each other, some more than once and MST left with more leads than any years prior.
Second Gear Pop Up
Client: GM Certified Pre-Owned (CPO)
Following the launch of GM CPO's web redesign, the client looked to us to build brand awareness and direct more people to the site. I proposed an experiential brand activation that would challenge the stigma around buying used and attract younger audiences in need of more affordable car buying options. With the exponential rise in recommerce in the fashion world, we asked why couldn't the same apply to buying a car? Plus, with extra money in their pocket, customers could have the lifestyle they want and produce less waste in the world.
Introducing “Second Gear,” a pop-up for open-air markets that would simulate a real thrift shop experience. They'd feature local vendors and CPO shops adorned with retro GM clothes and knickknacks available for purchase. There would also be a “Second Gear" dressing room with a CPO vehicle to “try on,” creating a very “grammable” moment. Prominent CPO signage and QR codes would direct people to a landing page where they could find CPO vehicles near them. This experience would be filmed, used to educate the public, and generate buzz about CPO vehicles. The content would then be featured in social, email, video, and ads would be bought where online thrift shoppers interact.
The Ghost Dealership
Client: GM
In late 2019 GM leadership came to us with a problem: customers dread the dealership experience, leading more and more of them to switch over to brands like Carvana. Customers felt the dealerships had all the control and that the scheduling times for test drives were inconvenient.
As a result, we created a pilot, The Ghost Dealership, that would make test drives available on customer terms, while still protecting the dealership from liability and theft. Through a digital form and in-vehicle OnStar technology, dealers were able to confirm customer information (ID, insurance, etc.) and facilitate on-lot remote test drives before and after normal dealership hours. And through VR, customers had the opportunity to take a virtual tour of vehicles available on the lot before requesting a test drive.
We planned a limited scale pilot, starting with Cadillac, in 3 markets, Detroit, LA and Dallas with 2-3 dealers per market. The program would then be promoted to loyal or returning lessees/customers in the 3 markets with targeted messaging to Cadillac owners, lessees and considerers.
We did extensive research, user testing, prototyping and were actively building a scheduling tool with OSS API to integrate into dealer’s software when the pandemic ultimately put this project on pause. In the end though, we received a lot of excitement around this project and were told it will likely show up in another iteration in the future.
