Raven Industries

Background

Raven Industries is a leader in agricultural technology, and trade shows are a critical part of how they connect with farmers and demonstrate their products. The challenge was a practical one: trade show environments — open fields, temporary tents, rural fairgrounds — are not known for reliable internet access. Raven needed an interactive display application that could showcase their line of automated farming technology, guide attendees through product discovery, and capture leads, all without depending on a connection that might not be there.

Solution

Blend built the application on Umbraco Heartcore, the headless version of Umbraco, which gave Raven's editorial team full control over content — adding products, updating spec sheets, adjusting the experience between shows — without requiring developer involvement. That familiar, editor-friendly interface was one of the key reasons Umbraco Heartcore was the right fit: the team could work in a proper CMS rather than a locked-down app.

The front-end was built as a React-based progressive web app using Gatsby, with all content bundled and delivered through Electron — a framework that provides its own local web server and embeds everything the app needs to run. The result was an application where content updates became app updates: before each trade show, the latest content from Umbraco Heartcore was packaged and loaded onto the tablets, ready to run whether or not a wireless signal was available.

The app itself walked attendees through a multi-step questionnaire to surface the right Raven products and solutions for their operation, with access to product videos, spec sheets, and sign-up forms built in. Customer data collected during the show was stored locally and synced to Raven's CRM once the team was back online. The project also included a Phase II update that simplified and redesigned the survey experience, along with additional interfaces tailored for different companies, and a Salesforce integration to streamline lead submission.

Impact

Raven walked away from trade shows with qualified leads, clean data, and an app that never missed a beat — regardless of what the Wi-Fi situation looked like under the tent. The solution was built to grow: the content model and design were structured from the start to accommodate new products and expand into the hands of sales representatives beyond the trade show booth.

You can also read Blend’s Raven Industries Umbraco Heartcore case study for more on the offline trade show app, headless CMS setup, and lead capture experience.