EGIA Contractor University Conference San Diego Wrap-Up

Last week, the home services industry’s most acclaimed educators and companies, along with contractors committed to improving their businesses, all descended upon San Diego for the first EGIA Contractor University conference of the year. A follow-up to last year’s popular contractor conference series, the 2017 EGIA Contractor University Conference Tour kicked off at the historic Hotel del Coronado on February 9th and 10th, with four subsequent stops – in New Orleans, St. Louis, Philadelphia and Phoenix, respectively – slated for the upcoming months.

On Wednesday evening, early-arriving contractors were treated to food, drinks and unforgettable networking opportunities at a welcome reception on the hotel’s beautiful outdoor sun deck overlooking the beach.

First thing Thursday morning, everyone got right down to business. Following breakfast, EGIA CEO Bruce Matulich took the stage to introduce one of two keynote speakers: the compelling and always entertaining Mark Matteson. A contracting industry veteran, bestselling author and acclaimed speaker, Mark’s wide-ranging presentation focused on navigating the rapids of change, emphasizing the value of building good leadership and successful philosophies for communicating with the customer.

After Mark finished – to deafening applause – the inimitable Weldon Long took the stage to talk EGIA Contractor University and the prosperity mindset. A short break and networking opportunity then gave way to one of the conference’s most celebrated units: the breakout sessions.

Six industry experts led small classroom sessions on topics that offer opportunities for contracting businesses: Gary Elekes (“Making More and KEEPING More of Your Hard Earned Money”), Elaina Burdick (“Marketing Schmarketing”), Drew Cameron (“Home Automation: Grab Your Customers Before Google Does”), JC Shore (“Finding & Retaining Your Most Important Investment – Your People”), Mark Matteson (“How to Enjoy a 75% Close Ratio; Sales Success Strategies”), and Ellen Rohr (“How to Be a Profit-Making, Cash-Flowing Financial Superstar”). Following the complimentary lunch, networking and exhibiting hour, those breakout sessions were repeated – offering contractors the opportunity to see as many topics as reasonably possible – leading into a presentation by Mark Vitner, senior economist for Wells Fargo, who offered a US and global economic outlook and tied it to expectations for the home improvement industry. Finally, the busy day ended with an evening reception at 4:30p featuring drinks, hors d’oeuvres and another opportunity to network and check out the vendor exhibition booths, allowing attendants an evening to themselves to visit with colleagues or simply enjoy Coronado Island.

Friday started off with a bang, going right from breakfast to Ellen Rohr’s energetic presentation on how to “Un-Complicate” your business and beef up your financial acumen. Her presentation truly offered the potential to develop a completely new business strategy — and leave the room powerfully inspired — in just 90 minutes. A break for networking and visiting vendor booths again precipitated the return of the previous day’s breakout sessions, ensuring visitors had a chance to see three full topics and speakers of their choice. A box lunch then bookended the conference, releasing attendants in time to enjoy San Diego for most of Friday and the weekend or get home and start applying the wisdom they’d picked up.

While it’s not quite the same as attending a contractor conference – as Mark explains in one of the below videos – scroll down to view plenty of photos and videos that take you behind the scenes of the San Diego #EGIAtour17 event.

And don’t forget: the EGIA Contractor University Conference in New Orleans is just a month away, and it’s not too late to register for the event and get access to discounted hotel accommodations: Click here to learn more and get started. In the meantime, click here for the San Diego photo album.