Presidents Club was a CRAZY busy day and a half, but we all learned so much in the short amount of time we were there!

From Jared's beginning keynote speech, to an afternoon full of workshops and learning, to a fantastic closing address by David Mead, the entire thing was a great opportunity for learning and growth.

So I've compiled some of my key takeaways from the event, and my conversations with dealers and vendors alike about the industry.

• Innovation Is Happening Now. If you're not willing to adapt with the market, to learn and grow today, you're already behind. Jared and many of the workshop presenters talked all about innovations coming to the auto industry, as well as the innovations that are already upon us. There's a huge value in being willing to progress!
• Change Doesn't Have To Be Intimidating. Many of the workshop presenters spoke about small things that you can start doing right now to get your dealership on the path towards upward progression. From re-evaluating your used vehicle strategy, to timing your process, to asking your vendors if they can analyze SEO and digital marketing more in-depth, there are a dozen things that you can start doing to make positive changes.
• Millennials Aren't The Only Ones. We talked a lot about how to market and get millennials involved in the dealership, but we also talked about the reality being that EVERYONE has the technology and resources to research and understand the process. This means that we have to change up our customer experience to be able to connect with everyone.
• Get Back To Basics. While Presidents Club talked all about the innovations coming in the future, there was also a huge emphasis on the importance of using these innovations to help us get back to the most basic and important elements. Customer service, the sales process, transparency, and more were all discussed as basic principles that we can work to improve on.
• Culture Is Key. David Mead spoke extensively about culture and making sure employees are taken care of first. Dealerships can be rough places to work, but there is such a value in helping people love coming to work, in them feeling safe and confident in their abilities and the people they work with. If we learn to take care of our employees, they in turn will take care of the customers! 

A crazy 48 hours in New York with great food, and great company, really opened my eyes about what the auto industry is becoming. It introduced me to so many people who are leading the charge for the automotive future. And I frankly, couldn't be more excited with where we are headed!