Sea Tow expands Sea Care offerings to boost boater retention
To address industry-wide challenges around boater acquisition and retention, Sea Tow has launched a new six-month program as part of Sea Care, its B2B offering that provides participants the option to include on-water assistance membership with the purchase of a boat, trailer, or engine.
This new program provides participating boat dealers and manufacturers with six months of an annual Sea Tow Gold Card membership for each boat sold at no cost to the participant, in exchange for active marketing and promotion of the Sea Care program.
Designed to ensure premium on-water assistance after the sale, the goal of the program is to keep boaters comfortable (and confident) on the water, which ideally leads to longevity in their boating lifespan. According to RBFF, “almost half of first-time boat buyers dropped out of boating after five years,” and while reasons for leaving vary, “less than positive first impressions” were a leading cause.
The Sea Tow Gold Card membership directly addresses a barrier to purchase for many boat buyers, which is a lack of confidence on the water and uncertainty about how to resolve common issues should they occur. Arming new and seasoned boaters with a 24/7 direct connection to Coast Guard Licensed Sea Tow Captains provides the peace of mind they need.
“We are proud to launch this six-month program through Sea Care,” said Kristen Frohnhoefer, president of Sea Tow. “A Sea Tow membership clearly demonstrates a brand’s care for their customers’ experience after the sale and away from the dock. For over forty years, Sea Tow’s mission has been that in all things we do, we help people enjoy boating. We are thrilled to see manufacturers and dealers sharing that same mission, because together the goal is to provide a better boating experience and improve boater retention for the industry as a whole.”
Manufacturers and dealers also have the option to include a full year of Sea Tow membership with a new boat or engine purchase. Gold Card membership benefits include:
- 24/7 priority service nationwide
- Unlimited towing with no distance or dollar limits in the member’s home area
- Service for every boat a member owns, rents, or bareboat charters
- Unmatched offshore coverage
- Scheduled tow to a repair facility or haul-out ramp from the vessel’s home port on all covered vessels
- Fuel and oil/parts delivery, jump starts, disentanglements, covered ungroundings, and more
- Local knowledge, navigation and referrals, troubleshooting, tides, and weather
- Member-only savings on boating products and services through the Sea Tow Savings Club
