Based on the success of the inaugural event, the second Auto Rental Summit (ARS) will be held Nov. 4-5, 2013 in Hollywood, Fla.

Auto Rental Summit is a groundbreaking training and education conference designed to improve customer service and enhance revenue of car rental operations. Auto rental managers, executives and employees from corporate, franchised and independent companies from North America and overseas are invited to attend.

We’ve Moved!

Auto Rental Summit announces a new venue, the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Hollywood, Fla., less than seven miles from the Ft. Lauderdale International Airport.

One of the famed Hard Rock properties, this 86-acre resort features a 130,000-square-foot casino, a lagoon tropical pool area and an entertainment district with more than 22 retail shops, 17 restaurants and 11 bars and lounges, including a legendary Hard Rock Café.

Satisfaction, Live

This year, Auto Rental Summit will be announcing the results of the J.D. Power and Associates 2013 North America Rental Car Satisfaction Study live at the event. Now in its 18th year, the J.D. Power and Associates study measures overall customer satisfaction with renting cars at airport locations.

“The Rental Car Satisfaction Study is an essential industry benchmark, and the live announcement fits in perfectly with the mission of Auto Rental Summit to improve customer service,” says Chris Brown, executive editor of Auto Rental News.

The Awards Are Back

Once again, Auto Rental Summit will be held in conjunction with the announcement of the winners of the Auto Rental News Professional of the Year Awards, sponsored by American Express.

The Professional of the Year Awards honor three associates, one each from a corporate, independent and franchise location worldwide, who demonstrate and promote outstanding customer satisfaction within the car rental process. (You can read about the 2012 winners here.)

Nominations for the 2013 award will open May 1. For more information, visit www.autorentalsummit.com/awards.

New for 2013, ARS will present an award in partnership with CarRentalExpress.com, a booking engine for independent car rental agencies. CarRentalExpress.com will collate customer data from its online Renter Rated customer feedback program to present the Renter Rated Award to an independent car rental agency.

What to Expect

Last year’s ARS featured an innovative “Idea Lab” roundtable session, a cocktail reception and networking breaks with exhibitors, a full day of seminars and an awards ceremony luncheon.

Seminar topics included the results of a survey of more than 500 local market customers, methods to educate the customer about insurance card coverage at the front counter and a deep dive into J.D. Power and Associates’ powerful metrics-based analyses on customer satisfaction.

For 2013, the speakers, seminar topics, roundtables and networking events will be announced in the coming months.

Get Involved

For sponsorship inquiries for the show, contact Joni Owens at joni.owens@bobit.com.

For seminar and agenda inquiries, contact Chris Brown at chris.brown@bobit.com. You can also get updates at www.autorentalsummit.com.

Read more features here from Auto Rental News' March/April issue.