NACM's 116th Annual Credit Congress was recently held in Dallas, TX. The conference was well organized and there were a number of great speakers with a lot of good information and instruction. We realize that many of you wanted to attend but your company was not in a position to pay. To help improve your chances of attending next year, here is a list of ideas and responses to objections:

Objection No. 1: There's not enough money in the budget.

Answers:

   A. Accounts Receivable are usually the second largest asset of a company. Doesn't it make sense to educate the person managing it?

   B. Education is insurance not an expense, and it's the best insurance for A/R 

   C. The cost of attending the conference versus the cost of bad debt due to poor credit decisions or lack of collections could be considerably less.

Objection No. 2: The Company doesn't see any benefit in having you attend the conference.

Answers:

   A. See response to Objection #1

   B. At the conference you will meet other people in your industry and be able to use them as resources.

Objection No. 3: If we send you to a conference you'll just play.

Answer
   A. You and your boss can sit down together and select the classes that you are going to attend, and you will have NACM provide you with an attendance sheet to show that you went to all of the classes.

   B. Upon returning to your job, write a composite of classes attended, what was learned, and how it will contribute to the company's bottom line. Go over this with your boss and include a nice "thank you" card.

Objection No. 4: Conferences are only for professionals.

Answer:

Does your owner want a professional handling Accounts Receivable or does he/she want an amateur handling Accounts Receivable? Suggest to your boss to let you go to the conferences and obtain your designations thereby having a professional overseeing Receivables which will result in reduced losses, reduced interest expense to the company on its lines of credit and other borrowing expenses.

Here are some preparation tips for meeting with your boss to get him/her to pay for Credit Congress (we got this from a website called Usereffect, Getting Your Boss to Pay for Conferences):

1. If you want a clear answer, ask a clear question. It's a lot harder to say "no" to a specific proposal, so make sure you're armed with all of the facts. If you're interested in attending a conference, make sure you know the location, date, and cost (including travel, meals and hotel, if needed), and can summarize what you'll learn. Better yet, bring your boss a printout with all of the relevant details, giving him/her the option to review it later. This also shows that you've thought your plan through, and that you care enough to put time into it.

2. Explain exactly what you want to get out of the conference you're proposing and, more importantly, how that will benefit your work and your company.

3. Getting permission to attend a conference is only half the battle. Ideally, you want that conference to pave the way for future conferences. A few tips:

Don't go crazy on the company dime

Don't do anything to make your boss/company look bad

Make sure you actually attend the educational sessions

Make good on your promises

4. When you approach your boss, think of it as a bit of a sales pitch. Keep it short but professional, and come armed with the facts, including a few bullet points about the benefits. Your boss isn't always going to say "yes," but if you know what you want, are sincere, and can demonstrate why attending a conference is valuable to the company, you'll dramatically improve your odds.