Discover Boating efforts heat up

As the month of June rolled to a close, so, too, did a majority of the national television, print and online advertising associated with Discover Boating. But by no means did that indicate national coverage of the campaign showed any signs of slowing. In fact, coverage of all things Discover Boating heated up quickly over the summer, on the heels of some impressive and exciting marketing efforts.

Discover Boating and FOX Sports Net partnered for an exciting program this summer in McCovey Cove-the portion of San Francisco Bay located just beyond the right field wall at AT&T Park – home of the San Francisco Giants. One lucky FOX Sports Net viewer (who registered on DiscoverBoating.com) will win the “Ultimate Baseball Boat,” provided by Cope & McPhetres and Kal Kustom/Reinell, when a Giants player hits a home run into the Cove. Nearly 3,000 entries had been received as of June 28 and to date, the “Ultimate Baseball Boat” promotion has generated more than 14 million consumer media impressions.

In late June, Grow Boating director Steve Tadd appeared on the national cable morning show Fox & Friends on behalf of Discover Boating to talk about getting started in boating, the fun to be had on the water and promote the Web site, DiscoverBoating.com. Taped live in New York City, Fox & Friends has a national audience of more than 1.1 million viewers. A clip of Tadd’s Fox & Friends appearance is available for viewing on GrowBoating.org.

Aside from these successes, United Press International ran a wire story highlighting the latest technology available on boats today and Reuters news service recently published a story on the Discover Boating marketing campaign, featuring an interview with yours truly.

To date, Discover Boating media impressions tally 110 million, some 40 million shy of its 150 million goal. In the coming weeks, as we push into the end of summer, we anticipate this number will not only be met, but exceeded. Discover Boating doesn’t stop with the slowdown of national advertising; it is alive and kicking through ongoing marketing and media outreach efforts at the national, regional and local levels.

Carl Blackwell is vice president of marketing & communications for the NMMA.