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The energy on the floor of this year's Credit Congress Expo was palpable, and translated into a massive boon for vendors, credit professionals and networking enthusiasts alike.
FCIB also had a spot in the NACM booth which gave exporters the chance to meet with FCIB staff face-to-face to discuss their options for international education opportunities and learn about the FCIB Certified International Credit Professional (CICP) designation. CFDD too used its presence in the booth to let visitors know what the group was about and how they could take advantage of CFDD's ample network of experienced credit professionals. But the most common question heard from visitors to the NACM booth was "Where can I find out more about that new national credit report thing?" NACM proudly unveiled the National Trade Credit Report, featuring credit scores and "days beyond terms" statistics among tools designed to provide specific trade payment data drawn from a database of more than seven million trade lines, during Credit Congress' packed Super Session. Though already available, it was the first major public announcement of the evolved product. What followed was a steady stream of credit professionals looking for a demonstration and to ask questions about it. "We're bringing this report out emphasizing the trade. When you get to talk about trade groups, you're talking about pure industry trade, how they're paying in their own industry," said Bill Meeker, president of NACM Tampa. "While it's important to see other trades, the first need is ‘I want to see how they're paying in my industry.'" To learn more about the industry credit reports, or to find an NACM Affiliate in your area that provides the reports, click here. Also look for more information in the June issue of Business Credit magazine .
Expo visitors were also treated to the Grand Opening Reception on the first night of the conference and Monday evening's always popular Beer & Browse, both of which included light fare and drinks. Monday's Beer & Browse, for the third year, included the NACM Scholarship Foundation's Silent Auction that buzzed all evening with competitors for electronics, fashion, jewelry items and more. Need the contact information for that vendor you spoke to? Click here for the list of vendors and a description of their services. Don't remember who you spoke to, but remember their whereabouts on the Expo floor? Check out the floor plan here. |
At NACM's booth, representatives from national and affiliate offices were available to answer questions about NACM's many educational offerings, filling in attendees on 
The Expo Hall also hosted dozens of other vendors offering a wide range in products and services from credit insurance to rating services to software solutions and collection. Reviews from the floor were positive, as vendors noted that while earlier years found credit professionals eager to hear more but reluctant to spend money on any new technologies, this year's vendors found that creditors and their companies were much more willing to put their money where their mouth was in order to put their credit department at the vanguard of commercial credit management.