Record Attendance at Expo Workshops
© 2002 Door & Access Systems
Publish Date: Summer 2002
Author: Tom Wadsworth
Page 40
Record Attendance at Expo Workshops
Expo 2002 broke the record for the highest recorded Expo workshop attendance, attracting 2,406 attendees for all 2002 workshops.
Workshop attendance in Nashville jumped 43 percent over the 2001 attendance of 1,679 in Atlantic City. The previous record was 2,189 attendees in Las Vegas at Expo 2000.
Jeff Blackman’s workshop on Effective Selling Techniques attracted 193 attendees, the most of any Expo workshop. Ranked #2 at Expo 2001, Blackman returned this year with a similar workshop and an advanced version. Both workshops placed in the top ten at Expo 2002.
Management and sales topics continue to be popular, as many of the most popular seminars fell into those categories. A new seminar on Open Book Management by author/speaker Linda Francis attracted 180 people, the second highest attendance.
Top Ten Expo Workshops
Workshop – Speaker - Attendance
- Effective Selling Techniques II - Jeff Blackman - 193
- Open Book Management - Linda Francis - 180
- Wanna Be Number One! - Harrison, Weber, Moore - 165
- Rolling Steel Fire Doors in the 21st Century - Hahn, Polchin - 152
- Internet Technology - Overbay, Kompar - 142
- The Things You Do That Will Get You Sued - Jones, Fitzgerald, Angel - 140
- Reducing Callbacks - Lett, Cimmino, Walker - 135
- Common Mistakes in Family Owned Businesses - Roger Warrum - 130
- Effective Selling Techniques I - Jeff Blackman - 124
- IDEA: Training Programs and Professionalism - Thomas, Pettiette, Hermanns - 115
Workshop Attendance
2000: 2,189
2001: 1,679
2002: 2,406
IDEA Programs Attracting More Dealers
38 Installers Certified in Nashville
Thanks to IDEA’s (Institute of Door Dealer Education and Accreditation) new Residential Installer Training and Certification program, 38 installers now proudly display their official certification.
Prior to Expo 2002, the 38 installers were trained by IDEA-sanctioned trainers. In Nashville, those 38 installers took a 200-question exam to complete the process and receive their certification. Todd Thomas, IDEA managing director, said all 38 installers passed the test, but not necessarily on the first try.
More Accredited Dealers
In addition to the new certified installers, 33 more dealers took a total of 126 exams on their way to becoming IDEA-accredited dealers. Of the 33, 13 completed all accreditation requirements in Nashville.
IDEA received another boost by attracting 115 attendees to their workshop on IDEA Training Programs and Professionalism. "Dealers want to be better business managers," said Thomas, who led the workshop. "They want to be more professional."
Thomas expects an excellent attendance in San Antonio for Expo 2003. "We’re going to have the biggest training session for installers than we’ve ever had."
Barbara Kelkhoff of Chamberlain, the new IDEA president, reported that the IDEA booth was busy handling several dealer inquiries about IDEA programs. "Since we now offer a larger package of training, education, accreditation, and certification, I think we’re seeing more dealers being attracted to IDEA," she said.
Kelkhoff said the next big step for IDEA will be introducing a certification program for installing and testing rolling doors and fire doors. She hopes IDEA will roll out the program by 2004.