Discover Boating Provides Serious Dealer Benefits
From the very beginning, we’ve stressed the importance and value of the Grow Boating Initiative to the marine industry as a whole. The effort is designed to increase awareness of and participation in boating across the board, to the benefit of all industry segments. One of these segments that stands to benefit tremendously are marine retailers. Through the Discover Boating Dealer Program, dealers across the country can take advantage of the many perks Discover Boating has to offer, including marketing materials, leads generated and listings on DiscoverBoating.com, the consumer hub for the campaign.
Here’s how it all works. Marine dealers who sell boats built by manufacturers actively paying the Grow Boating Engine Assessment are invited to sign up for the Discover Boating Dealer Program at GrowBoating.org. Registered dealers then become eligible for a number of benefits. For starters, they will receive a free listing on the DiscoverBoating.com Dealer Finder, a means by which consumers search the Web site for a marine retailer in their area. Additionally, dealers are sent a Discover Boating “point-of-sale starter kit.” The kit includes Discover Boating posters, of which there are four different versions, window clings, bumper stickers and brochures. Retailers can proudly display these items within their dealerships and capitalize on the multi-million dollar Discover Boating consumer marketing campaign currently running through various national media outlets.
The Dealer Program’s most unique feature, however, is access to the Discover Boating Lead Generation System. Consumer visits to DiscoverBoating.com are tracked, and their information is made available to participating manufacturers. Manufacturers then share these valuable consumer leads with their dealers, who can, in turn, follow up with these prospective boat owners.
In the near future, marine retailers will also have access to an ad builder Web site allowing them to customize advertisements using Discover Boating graphic images as well as their own graphics. A direct mail builder will also be instituted, enabling dealers to send postcards to potential and current customers, reinforcing the Discover Boating brand message along with their own local flavor. And finally, several billboard designs that can be customized with dealer identification have been created and are accessible through GrowBoating.org.
Marine retailers are key players in helping the industry grow boating. They are an integral part of the Grow Boating Initiative. As such, dealers who haven’t done so already should log onto GrowBoating.org today and register themselves in order to take advantage of these exciting opportunities!
Carl Blackwell is vice president of marketing & communications for the National Marine Manufacturers Association.
