Pre-Conference Workshops Return to 2014 MDCE
Wednesday, June 4, 2014
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Posted by: Lindsey Johnson
After
a successful launch in 2013, organizers of the Marine Dealer Conference &
Expo will bring back its Pre-Conference Workshops for the 2014 event, scheduled
for Nov. 16-19 in Orlando, Fla. The workshops give marine retailers access to
hands-on training with leading experts in areas that have the biggest impact on
their future success.
The 2014 MDCE will feature seven Pre-Conference
Workshops, scheduled for the morning of Monday, Nov. 17. Attendees have the
option to take in either a single, three-hour workshop or up to two,
one-and-a-half-hour workshops.
"Attendance at last year’s workshops exceeded our
expectations,” says Liz Walz, director of education for the Marine Retailers
Association of the Americas, which produces the annual event in partnership
with Boating Industry. "Many rooms were chock full of
attendees, and we expect some will sell out this year. The Pre-Conference
Workshops offer value MDCE attendees won’t find in the individual educational
track sessions. Attendees are led down the path of building new
processes, plans and strategies that translate into real results when they are
implemented back at the dealership.”
In 2014, workshop topics will include leadership,
sales, marketing, social media, succession planning, video production and
editing, and the service department. Each workshop will feature takeaways (job
descriptions, workbooks/guidebooks, report cards, tip sheets, etc.) to help
attendees implement what they learned in the pre-conference sessions without
delay upon returning to their respective dealerships.
"The Pre-Conference Workshops are unique in that
these are small-group sessions, designed to encourage maximum participation
between attendees and speakers in a hands-on, classroom-type setting,” says Boating Industry editor-in-chief
Jonathan Sweet. "Because attendees leave each workshop with tangible worksheets
and the like, it’s easy for them to incorporate what they learned into the
fabric of their daily operations. The Pre-Conference Workshops are an excellent
value for anyone looking to make the most out of his or her MDCE experience.”
Pre-Conference Workshop seating is limited and is
available on a first come, first serve basis. A separate registration and
additional fee is required to attend these workshops. MRAA members may attend
each three-hour session for $135; the non-MRAA member price is $175.
One-and-a-half-hour sessions are $99 for MRAA members and $129 for non-MRAA
members.
The 2014 MDCE will offer 30 core educational
sessions in all, the most the event has ever offered, including the workshops. The conference has traditionally
included three educational tracks, but in 2014 the educational programming has
expanded for a total of four tracks: Leadership, Sales, Marketing and Service
Plus. A Closing Keynote address also has been added for the first time this
year.
The MDCE is scheduled for Nov. 16-19 at the Orange
County Convention Center in Orlando, Fla. It has attracted an increasing number
of dealers every year since 2007. In 2013, MDCE featured double-digit growth in
dealer attendance, and MRAA’s goal is to grow the event to more than 1,000
dealer attendees.
To
learn more about the upcoming MDCE or to register for the event , visit MRAA.com/MDCE.
About the Marine Dealer Conference
& Expo
The Marine Dealer Conference & Expo is the Marine Retailers
Association of the Americas’ annual conference and member meeting. As the
marine industry’s only dealer-specific educational conference, the MDCE offers
an in-depth lineup of educational topics, a full-featured expo hall and a
series of fixed networking opportunities, all of which are designed to help
marine dealers connect with and learn from others who can foster their success.
The MDCE is co-produced by MRAA and Boating
Industry, and it features pre-conference workshops, opening and closing
keynote presentations, four tracks of educational content and 30 sessions in
all. It will be held Nov. 16-19 at the Orange County Convention Center and
Rosen Centre Hotel in Orlando, Fla. For more information, visit MRAA.com/MDCE.
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