Education more focused
Almost everyone in our industry now recognises the current depressed level of boat sales is going to be the standard for the foreseeable future.
Those who thought that simply cutting expenditure to the bare minimum would allow them to survive until the market recovered are having to think again.
Businesses are putting a lot more thought and effort into what they can do differently not only to survive but to win market share. As a result education has become much more important and focused.
Traditionally, trade education primarily took place on a national level on a one size fits all basis; take IBEX/MAATS and their educational components for example. Today’s market conditions together with changes in buyer’s needs and habits have made regional education an imperative.
In recognition of this, the boat dealer umbrella organisation, Marine Retailers Association of America (MRAA) in association with Dominion Marine Media, has introduced the Marine Retail University, a series of regional educational dealer conferences to be held around North America.
The data and statistics presented will be pulled from the specific geographic area the event is held in plus dealers in attendance will receive insight into best practices and strategies on how to capitalise on that information.
The Marketing in the Digital Age presentation to boat dealers in Texas by BoatTrader.com is an example of how focused this education has become. It featured an overview of the online audience plus where and how these people spend their time online.
It gave new ways to use this knowledge to create effective advertising that would help drive business to their dealership. It provided tips and suggestions as to how the dealer could determine a Facebook strategy and structure their Facebook page.
The presentation was specific enough to drill down to how effective QR codes (square barcodes) were and how simple they are to create and use.
Jim Nolan runs US marketing specialist company James Nolan Associates
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