The Marine Retailers Association of America and Dominion Marine Media have partnered to create Marine Retail University, a series of one-day, regional, educational conferences designed to extend professional development opportunities to dealers across North America.
Working through regional marine trades associations and other dealer groups, the MRAA and Dominion Marine Media will plan a handful of events as a satellite series to the MDCE, and the events will launch in 2012.
“We’re thrilled to be able to offer dealers another avenue for professional development,” says Matt Gruhn, president of the MRAA. “These events will highlight areas of opportunities for dealers to pursue and will give them the knowledge and the tools to capitalize on those opportunities.”
The one-day conferences will include four to five educational sessions focused on regional data and information, dealer principal roundtables and keynote presentations that share best practices, trends and timely strategies.
Attendance at the one-day conferences will be free for MRAA dealer members, and non-members can register at a reduced rate. All dealer attendance will be supplemented by Dominion Marine Media.
“It’s our goal to deliver opportunities for long-term success to our customers,” says Courtney Chalmers, director of marketing for Dominion Marine Media. “Marine Retail University is another example of how we do that, and we’re excited to be partnering with the MRAA to extend educational opportunities to dealers across the country.”
Two industry suppliers have already signed on to support Marine Retail University. Boating Industry, which partners with the MRAA to produce the annual Marine Dealer Conference & Expo, has signed on to be the exclusive media sponsor of MRU. Boating Industry will use its marketing expertise and reach to help MRU drive dealer attendance and will play a role in content creation, as well. Statistical Surveys has also signed on to support MRU by providing regionalized data, trends and insight into the specific markets MRU will reach. A number of MTAs have already expressed interest in hosting the series.
“The early support we’ve received for Marine Retail University has been phenomenal,” Gruhn says. “Our members have told us that the education provided at the MDCE national event is among the top benefits they receive from their membership. And there’s an obvious need for a satellite series like MRU to reach into the far corners of the industry and educate dealers. At the same time, MRU will work to complement opportunities at MDCE and work to promote additional dealer attendance there.”
MTAs or other dealer groups that are interested in bringing Marine Retail University to their meetings should contact Matt Gruhn at 763-315-8043 or matt@mraa.com.
About Marine Retailers Association of America
The Marine Retailers Association of America is the only national association dedicated to furthering the interests of boat and engine dealers and other marine-related retailers. Under the umbrella of MRAA Rewards, the MRAA offers a host of cost-saving and revenue-generating benefits exclusively for its members. For more information, visit www.MRAA.com.
About Dominion Marine Media
Dominion Marine Media is the recreational marine industry division of Dominion Enterprises – a leading marketing services company serving the automotive, marine, enthusiast and commercial vehicle, real estate, apartment rental, travel, and employment industries. Dominion Enterprises’ businesses provide a comprehensive suite of technology-based marketing solutions including Internet advertising, lead generation, CRM, website design and hosting, and data management services. The company has more than 60 market-leading websites reaching more than 20.9 million unique visitors monthly. Headquartered in Norfolk, Va., the company has 3,300 employees in more than 186 offices nationwide.
About Dominion Enterprises
Dominion Enterprises is a leading marketing services and publishing company serving the automotive, recreational and commercial vehicle, real estate, apartment rental, employment, parenting, travel, and daily deals industries. The company’s businesses provide a comprehensive suite of technology-based marketing solutions including Internet advertising, lead generation, CRM, website design and hosting, and data management services. The company has more than 60 market-leading websites reaching more than 20.9 million unique visitors monthly, and more than 280 magazines with a weekly circulation of 2.4 million. Headquartered in Norfolk, Va., the company has 3,300 employees in more than 186 offices in the United States, Canada, England and Italy. For more information visit www.DominionEnterprises.com.
