Attending Dealer Week is a big commitment because it requires two valuable assets that are in short supply: time and money. We appreciate everyone who invests their time in the conference, and we truly believe that the benefits outweigh the costs. In fact, we believe it so much that if you come to Dealer Week and don’t learn anything of value, we’ll refund your registration.
Still, we understand that $400-$600 is a pretty big ticket price for most small and medium-sized businesses. In the spirit of transparency, here’s the reality behind that price tag.
We partner with companies that believe in our mission and use their sponsorship dollars to subsidize the cost as much as possible to keep registration prices low. However, there’s no getting around it – it’s expensive to host and feed more than 1,000 people for three days. Believe it or not, we are charged $74 per gallon of coffee by the convention center (before tax and service!) and that's just one example of how expensive it is to host events of our size. (You probably already know this if you've had large events or open houses in your dealership.)
Not only that, we pride ourselves on bringing in top trainers from inside and outside the marine industry. These trainers are professionals whose time is valuable. The great thing about Dealer Week, though, is that you can get tips from a dozen top experts all in one location.
Rest assured that we don't put on this event to make money. The MRAA is a non-profit. After we pay the convention center to keep everyone caffeinated, the rest gets invested back into supporting marine dealers and working to grow the industry.
And for the money you invest to attend the conference, you get quite a lot. Many dealers have told us they have recouped the cost of their attendance many times over by implementing ideas they picked up at the conference, whether from one of the speakers, a solution provider, or one of their fellow dealers.
Here’s what else Dealer Week 2019 has to offer:
Experienced industry trainers hosting every session
A keynote from Vince Poscente, best-selling author and former Olympic competitor
Topics that address your biggest pain points including seasonality, time management, F&I sales, digital marketing, tech shortages, and more
10 TED-style talks from industry leaders and inspiring and entertaining presenters
An optional guided field trip to the oldest restaurant in Florida and the home of the Tampa Bay Lightning to learn how to create a great customer experience
The largest exhibit hall packed with dealer solutions in MRAA conference history
Top engine and boat manufacturers
Live broadcast from the show floor by Soundings Trade Only
The MRAA Awards Luncheon
An all-industry celebration in Downtown Tampa
The largest education-focused dealer event in the industry!
Top engine and boat manufacturers
You won't be disappointed. For those who have attended our conference in the past, we've got some new improvements that we think will raise the bar. If you've never attended, we encourage you to commit to bettering yourself and the industry as a whole. If you do attend and see zero value, we'll make it right. That's our policy.
Come Experience for yourself!