1) Celebrated our 15 Year Anniversary

March 2021 marked a celebratory 15 years for WORD Rock Drills! To mark the occasion we held an office quinceanera and shared our favorite stories from over the years. One fun fact you might not have known about WORD, we built our first drill in a garage. We have since expanded to a larger shop facility down the road but that detached garage is currently where our office staff report for work each day.

2) Remodeled our Offices

The office team at WORD powered through during months of remodeling construction to expand our existing office space to better accommodate our growing team. Featuring a new open concept working area, designated break room, conference space, and shipping/receiving area, the updated space has brought a new level of efficiency to our office team!

3) Became a WOSB (Women-Owned Small Business)

Did you know that WORD Rock Drills is a Women-Owned Small Business? That’s rights, in 2021 WORD made it official! With our new status as WOSB we are hopeful to connect with customers in new areas of the construction industry. In addition, we are excited to engage in this new platform and spread awareness not only for WOSB organizations but also for the Women in Construction movement.

4) IFCEE 2021: Our Biggest Trade Show YET!

2021 was an exciting year for trade shows after many events took a hiatus for 2020 but IFCEE took the cake! Our biggest trade show yet, we displayed a variety of equipment and even had a mechanical bull in our booth space to bring a little Texas spirit. Connecting a wide range of drilling industry professionals, IFCEE was a great show to start up conversations with both current and new customers.

5) Hosted our First Hollow Bar School

In partnership with our friends at Intech Anchoring Systems, we took on the challenge of hosting our very own Hollow Bar school. Featuring an educational presentation on Intech hollow bar systems, Chemgrout mixers, and WORD drilling units in addition to outdoor training, this school was a big success. If you and your team would like updates on our 2022 school, be sure to register for our WORD Wednesday Newsletter for updates!

6) Grew Our Team

Our team grew tremendously during 2021 and we couldn’t be happier! From 15 in 2020 to now 19 at the end of 2021 we have added 4 new team members to our growing organization!

7) Increased Our Ministry Focus

We were blessed with many opportunities in 2021 to serve various ministries as a team. One of the most popular service projects was a day spent in Charlotte, NC volunteering at the Operation Christmas Child packing facility. Not only were we able to donate 200 shoeboxes as a team, but we were also able to help move those boxes towards their final destination by sorting and packing the larger shipments directly!

8) Improved Team Health

The WORD Rock Drills team kicked off 2021 with a new healthy lifestyle initiative that has made a huge impact throughout the company. Knowing that a healthy lifestyle can look different for each individual, WORD made a push to provide a variety of tools to our team to help them achieve the healthy lifestyle they desire. These tools included a new on-site gym, more robust healthcare coverage, a company weight loss program, and new standing desks for our offices. With the help of these tools and the support throughout our team, we have seen tremendous success in improving team health, collectively losing 270lbs between all participating members. It has been amazing to see our team bond through routine visits to the gym, challenging one another to stand at their new desks and drink 100oz of water daily, and motivating each other to think differently about food.

9) Celebrated our Team with WORD Weekend 2021

As 2021 came to a close, we took a long weekend trip to Tennessee as a team to celebrate a great year! Our team and their families joined in for a fun day at Dollywood along with a couple of site visits to locations in the area where our customers had worked. We are so grateful to our team and glad that we were able to provide this fun opportunity after a year of hard work!

10) Shipped a Record-Breaking Number of Drills

Totalling 73 units by the end of the year, our team of 19 shipped a record-breaking number of drills in 2021. To celebrate, we sent out our 3rd annual “Rock Tour” end-of-year t-shirt boxes to each of our drill customers. These annual boxes feature a different rock band-themed t-shirt each year with a rock drilling twist.

The excitement for ConExpo is something that builds for months. There are ads in every construction magazine for “Big Reveals” and exciting activities that keep the event buzzing. Leading up to the 2020 ConExpo was no different, everyone was excited, ready to show off new products and booths. Things played out a little different than usual, but this may not have been a bad thing.

“ConExpo 2020 was something none of us expected.”

ConExpo 2020 was something none of us expected. Between the rain, coronavirus*, and a shortened show; this years ConExpo was not lacking in drama. With worries about potential exposure and looming travel restrictions, attendees and exhibitors were jumping ship left and right. Oddly enough, this smaller number of attendees and exhibitors may have been the best thing to happen to the smaller businesses in the construction industry exhibiting at ConExpo this year.

Having attended ConExpo for 5 years as a small company out of North Carolina, this show has always been a great opportunity for WORD Rock Drills to generate leads across the U.S. and internationally that we may not have otherwise made contact with. However, as a small business at this type of show we are often bombarded with vendors trying to push their own products and unrelated attendees who only visit our booth hoping to leave with free stuff. These categories of attendees can take away from the time our team can spend answering real questions and clog up our lead tracking system making it difficult to pursue follow-ups.

“The quality of leads we received at this ConExpo was beyond what we expected!”

The quality of leads we received at this ConExpo was beyond what we expected! Of course there could be a number of reasons for this: a better booth location, an enhanced booth setup, or the increase in pre-show marketing. Or … it could have been because of the attendees that DID show up! Attendees at this ConExpo had to be dedicated and determined in order to face the potential risk and show up regardless. These attendees were serious about their product research and truly looking for quality products. The smaller crowd made their mission easier and gave us more quality time to spend with these attendees answering their questions.

Overall, the drama surrounding ConExpo 2020 turned out to be a blessing for us as a small business. We are so thankful for the attendees that made the choice to show up and we feel like we were truly able to serve them amidst the circumstances. The results of this ConExpo is a testament to the small ways that God is looking out for small businesses during periods of uncertainty. Returning to the office we are energized and ready to serve our customers through the coming weeks and beyond.

*This article is not intended to diminish the seriousness of COVID-19 or the current pandemic. Please refer to the CDC and local governing officials for facts and current legislation surrounding COVID-19.

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