Bayliner reaffirms brand strength at dealer meeting

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Bayliner’s “Rendezvous on the River” brought together Bayliner dealers from around the world to Bayliner headquarters in Knoxville to celebrate another year of excellence for the brand. North American dealers from the U.S. and Canada, as well as international dealers representing Bayliner’s global network, got a glimpse of Bayliner’s new products and heard from Bayliner on the state of one of the most popular boating brands on the water.

“It was one of the best dealer meetings Bayliner has had the benefit of hosting,” Bayliner President Keith Yunger said. “From dealer participation to brand direction, ‘Rendezvous on the River’ has added momentum to an already stellar year with dealer sales and marketing performance.”

Bayliner’s product boasted exemplary results across a wide range of performance measurements, demonstrating the brand’s superior quality and longevity. Bayliner is unrivaled among its competitors with models in its portfolio averaging at just two years old, representing Bayliner’s continuous innovation of product. In addition, Bayliner’s warranty claims as a percentage of sales are among the lowest in the industry and demonstrates world class performance when compared to global brands such as Apple® and Harley Davidson® (see chart below for illustration).

Bayliner also announced achievements in customer satisfaction and brand affinity. At this year’s dealer meeting the brand announced its seventh consecutive CSI Award for 2014, which recognizes achievement in customer satisfaction from owners. Perhaps the greatest indicator of the brand’s achievement is that Bayliner has been honored by the NMMA more than any other brand in its value category.

With boats that owners swear by, it’s no surprise Bayliner had positive sales to report. Vice President of Sales Andrew Mahadevan recapped Bayliner’s continued investment in the company’s dealer partners with successful retail promotions, such as Bayliner’s Big Deal and the Scorching Summer sales events. “The investments in retail promotions, along with more robust training, and open communication and strategy discussions between Bayliner and our dealers have allowed us to mutually grow market share in segments we are targeting,” Mahadevan said. “Marine dealers have recognized this, which has also allowed for strong growth of our dealer base.”

As of September 2014, globally 34 dealers have already jumped onboard the Bayliner brand. Many dealers representing the Bayliner brand at this year’s “Rendezvous on theRiver” were also named on Boating Industry’s Top 100 Dealers list. In fact, Bayliner has more top 100 dealers than any other brand in the value segment.

As he emphasized successful marketing approaches Bayliner has implemented, Brand Manager Michael Yobe announced another win for the Bayliner network: based on consumer research, Brand awareness is at an all-time high.

“Because we’ve embraced technology pervasively in our marketing efforts, we’ve been able to reach a considerably larger audience more quickly,” Yobe said to those in attendance. “As a result, our boats are in the purchase consideration set in one out of two consumers. That means we’re driving more potential buyers through your doors than ever before.”

This year’s “Rendezvous on the River” put dealer participation, new products and marketing strategies on display. Add an expert dealer network poised to take on the coming year, and Bayliner has affirmed the strength of its brand. Built on a foundation of accessible design, affordability and quality construction, Bayliner continues to lead the pleasure-boating market into 2015.