Turn F&I objections into opportunities at MDCE 2014

MINNEAPOLIS — Providing dealership customers with finance and insurance options when they buy a new or pre-owned boat can be a big boost to your business’ bottom line. But when buyers opt for outside F&I products, dealers lose out on a major profit center; additionally, customers miss a golden opportunity to secure excellent, marine-specific coverage and protection for their new investment.

At the 2014 Marine Dealer Conference & Expo, taking place Nov. 16-19 in Orlando, Fla., F&I expert and longtime F&I 20 Group facilitator Jan Kelly will help attendees work through their most challenging, complicated F&I rejections and find ways to turn those arguments on their head, transforming turn-downs into success stories.

In her MDCE session, “Turning F&I Objections Into Opportunity,” Kelly helps dealers gain incredible insight into how to overcome even the most staunch customer objections and convert them into real opportunity. Bring your toughest finance and insurance objections to the table and challenge Kelly — along with your fellow session attendees — with ways to overcome these obstacles.

Attendees will walk away from Kelly’s session with strategies for transforming objections into sales and increasing F&I profitability. The session takes place Wednesday, Nov. 19 from 10:30 to 11:45 a.m. ET as part of MDCE’s Sales Track.

“This is one of the more interactive educational track sessions we host at MDCE,” explains Liz Walz, director of education for the Marine Retailers Association of the Americas, which produces the annual event in partnership with Boating Industry. “Attendees submit their F&I objections to Jan, and she provides dealers with her best strategies for overcoming them on the spot. She’s an engaging, entertaining and high-energy presenter who does a yeoman’s job of transforming “no” into an opportunity instead of a roadblock. If you haven’t experienced one of Jan’s sessions before, you’ll definitely want to attend this one.”

Each of the 2014 MDCE educational tracks — Sales, Marketing, Leadership and Service Plus — features five sessions. The Sales Track includes sessions covering everything from Kelly’s techniques, to strategies for reaching women in the boat-buying process, maximizing profitability on trade-ins, new insight into customers’ buying decisions, and ways of appealing to Millennial and Gen X buyers, among others.

“Jan has presented at MDCE in the past, and we are excited to bring her back for yet another year to share her F&I insights with MDCE attendees,” says Boating Industry editor-in-chief Jonathan Sweet. “She’s sure to grab dealers’ attention on this all-important topic, which can significantly impact a dealership’s bottom line.”

The 2014 MDCE will offer 30 educational sessions in all, the most the event has ever offered, including seven Pre-Conference Workshops. The conference has traditionally included three educational tracks, but in 2014, it has expanded to four tracks: Leadership, Sales, Marketing and Service Plus. A Closing Keynote address also has been added 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, for a total of 615 marine retail professionals. MRAA’s goal is to grow the event to more than 1,000 dealer attendees. To learn more, visit MRAA.com/MDCE.