Jayco conducted its in-person Masters Dealer training over the weeks of Dec. 5 and 12, and the company said nearly 500 RV dealer partners from across North America attended, along with 86 Jayco personnel conducting the training and handling logistics. The annual training event took place on the Jayco campus in Middlebury, Indiana, and was the first in-person training event since 2019 due to the pandemic. Prior to the two-year hiatus, Jayco has consistently held annual dealer training for more than 40 years, with the last 20 years being in the current Masters format.
“Masters Training is an annual highlight on the Jayco event calendar, and this year was special since we hadn’t been able to host a live, in-person Masters event on campus since 2019,” said Brad Whitehead, general manager of towables. “It was definitely exciting to be able to get back at it, and we could tell that everyone in attendance felt the very same way! ‘Live’ and ‘In Person’ is critical because Masters is a high-impact, interactive training event, and we do everything we can during the training days to put our front-line sales people in the best position possible to win and succeed in the coming year. We certainly feel like we accomplished that again this year.”
The dealer personnel, which included sales, PDI, service, warranty, management and principals, were hosted at the Embassy Suites, overlooking the Notre Dame campus in South Bend, Indiana. They were transported each morning via motor coaches to the Jayco campus and were served refreshments at the new PDI facility, before attending training on product, marketing resources, materials, processes, tools, and more. The training included line tours for both motorized and towable products where regional sales managers and product directors explained the distinct advantages to Jayco units and the construction differences.
The purpose of Masters, which is an acronym for Marketing and Skills Training for Excellence in RV Sales, is to equip Jayco dealers with the full complement of knowledge on the company, selling resources, and the products as they go into shows and then into the yearly selling season, the company said.
For those who are unable to physically attend from the dealerships, Jayco has established an online learning management system that offers all the elements of Masters virtually. In 2021, more than 2,500 dealer partners completed the online Masters curriculum, which considerably outpaced the attendance from the year prior.
At the end of each week, a graduation ceremony took place at the Embassy Suites ballroom. The evenings began with speeches from Jayco leadership, followed by a dinner and concluded with the presentation of framed certificates of completion and branded Jayco apparel to each attendee.
“Masters is a great opportunity to connect with our dealer partners every year to ensure they are fully prepared for the spring show season and beyond,” stated Ken Walters – Jayco president and CEO. “While there are elements of product feature, benefit training throughout the program, the real focus is on the Jayco culture and the people behind it. These two weeks offer an in-person opportunity to experience the true Jayco difference.”
