Grow your boating business
Liz Walz, Editor-in-Chief
May 1, 2012
During the past six months, a group of recreational marine stakeholders assembled by the National Marine Manufacturers Association has been developing a plan to grow boating. Out of this process have emerged six high-priority action areas: marketing message/campaign, youth initiative, recreational boating... Read more »
At the Helm: Fueling improvement
Liz Walz, Editor-in-Chief
May 1, 2012
Reading through the results of the Marine Dealer Conference & Expo Call for Presentations, one of the proposed titles jumped out at me: The Improvement Engine. As business executives, we all want to find ways to fuel the pursuit of continuous improvement within our companies. But it’s difficult... Read more »
Designed to Sell
Brent Renneke, Associate Editor
April 1, 2012
Boat builders are adapting their boat designs to the changing needs of today’s customer. The power of “new” is no longer enough to push boats out the door. No one needs a new boat, especially today when many consumers’ pocketbooks are light and their confidence, while improving, leaves much to... Read more »
Service: The advanced course
Mike Davin, Senior Editor
April 1, 2012
14 strategies to take your service department to the next level and increase your bottom line. If you’ve survived this recession, you probably have a decent service department. You measure technician efficiency. You market your offerings here and there. Maybe you even do some menu selling. You track... Read more »
Online reviews: Don’t miss the boat
Carl Schellbach
April 1, 2012
Editor’s Note: If you’re one of the mass of consumers that researches purchases online, you know the power of online reviews. However, most marine businesses have yet to embrace this new reality. Whether your company launches its own campaign to encourage customers to post reviews on sites like BoaterRated.com,... Read more »
At the Helm: Reinventing the Top 100
Liz Walz, Editor-in-Chief
April 1, 2012
In the first year of the Top 100 Dealers Program, Boating Industry’s editors took a one-week retreat to evaluate and rank the applications it received. And what a week – and an education – it was! Seven years later, it takes an entire week just to name the Top 10. From that, we can only conclude... Read more »
A slow return to hiring
Brent Renneke, Associate Editor
April 1, 2012
Following a successful boat show season, some companies are considering the addition of new employees for the first time in years. While the U.S. economy has gradually begun to recover, most consumers have yet to rush out to buy a boat. Consequently, most marine businesses are taking a similar approach... Read more »
Q&A: GE executive looks ahead
April 1, 2012
Kicking off the 2012 Miami International Boat Show, the GE Capital & NMMA Industry Leadership Conference featured an economic outlook by Rob Podorefsky, managing director of GE Capital Interest Rate Management Group. Podorefsky detailed what is ahead for the economy and what to watch for in 2012,... Read more »
Dealers: Consumer finance improving
Liz Walz, Senior Editor
April 1, 2012
After several years of rowing against the current, boat dealers are reporting that consumer financing is getting easier. Dealers’ ability to get prospective customers’ boats financed has been improving during the past year and is expected to get a boost in 2012. That was the sentiment of the... Read more »
