Lake Union Boat Show shifts marketing strategy

SEATTLE – The “Seaing is Believing!” advertising campaign for the 2006 Lake Union Boats Afloat Show began today in the Seattle market and marks a shift by the Northwest Yacht Brokers Association in its marketing approach, NYBA said in a release.

Created by Seattle’s remerinc, the campaign will focus not on promoting a boat show but to building the brand of the boating lifestyle.

“At any one given moment a few people are going to buy a boat or yacht – but many thousands will consider it,” said Dave Remer, president of remerinc, which developed the regional campaign to help connect the public with the sentiments and ideals of boating. “Our vision was not just about driving a buying decision today but growing boating as a part of our lives – taking time to build reliable traffic over time rather than just weekend traffic.

“The most difficult challenge was to incorporate all of the elements of boating and the show while avoiding the pat, tactical – cliché approach to driving an event.”

In the early 1980’s, Remer helped bring brand advertising to the local automobile industry with a campaign for a car dealership.

“We believed that people would respond to boating on a different level – that boating is a notion, not an event,” said Remer. “The innocence of a child holding a toy, the concept that boating is a part of his future is fantasmic.”

Among targeted media is a presence among Seattle’s four television network affiliates, five major Puget Sound region daily newspapers, AM and FM radio and the most prominent regional trade publications in the recreational boating industry.

The three-week campaign targets males 35 to 64 and includes television for the first time in the show’s 18-year history. “The addition of television will help us increase our reach and communicate the rich, visual appeal of the show,” said Carol Ann O’Keefe, president of The Media Place, which handled the media buy for the 2006 Lake Union Boats Afloat Show.

The 2006 Lake Union Boats Afloat Show is one of two principal boat shows in Seattle and takes place Sept. 13 – 17 at Chandler’s Cove on South Lake Union in Seattle.

The Lake Union Boats Afloat PR and community strategy includes giving back to organizations that make a difference in the Northwest, connecting new populations with boating and reinforcing the importance of children’s water safety among people who spend time on the water, but may not necessarily own a boat.

In addition to its ongoing partnership with Sail Sand Point, a non-profit group that provides sailing scholarships to Seattle youth, the Northwest Yacht Brokers Association enlisted the help of Seattle-based McQuaid & Co. Strategic Communications to develop new community relationships for the 2006 show.

The result included a water safety program that engages the expertise of Children’s Hospital and Regional Medical Center, the United States Coast Guard and other local marine groups to promote water safety to children and their parents attending the 2006 show.

The Northwest Yacht Brokers also made in-kind contributions to the Auction of Washington Wines, one of the largest wine auctions in America, which in part benefits uncompensated care at Children’s Hospital.

“Over the years the Northwest community has been very generous to the boating industry,” said Jonathan Ives, executive director of the Northwest Yacht Brokers Association. “This is an opportunity for the Northwest Yacht Brokers to give back by helping others enjoy the water and reinforcing the importance of safety.”

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