Three years ago, our team here at Boating Industry had an identity crisis. We had assembled a collection of editors, sales people, a publisher and a production team that sought to revitalize a brand that had, for the most part, lost its way. Read more >>
Tags: MDCE, Solutions, trade show
Walt Disney World jokingly, I think, refers to Space Mountain – one of the signature rides at its Magic Kingdom theme park – as the largest “mountain” in Florida. The 180-foot high, indoor roller coaster, built in 1975, is meant to evoke thoughts of space travel as riders are plunged, largely in the dark, through an obstacle course of twists and turns.
A good number of the 700 marine industry professionals that will begin gathering over the next few days in the shadow of Space Mountain for the Marine Dealer Conference & Expo – which starts Monday in Orlando – must feel as though they’ve been on that ride for the last many months. Read more »
By Mike Davin, Online Editor, Boating Industry — A year ago, had you ever tweeted? Boating Industry hadn’t, though now it’s a big part of how we share breaking news.
We hadn’t launched this blog yet either (that happened in March) or our Facebook page (April) or our LinkedIn group (April again). Actually, it’s been a pretty big year for us and our online social circle, and we hope the expanded offerings have made it easier for you to communicate with us and your fellow marine industry members. Read more »
There’s no more effective method of education than learning from your peers. You can read about an idea, be taught a strategy in a classroom or take a course online, but it’s not the same as learning about it from the person who thought it up and put it to work in their business. Read more >>
When we ask dealers to write about their employee relations strategies in Boating Industry’s Top 100 Dealer Application, many talk about the “family” atmosphere they try to create. Of course, a good percentage of dealerships are literally family-run operations, so that’s no surprise. But the “family” philosophy has also been adopted by lots of companies without a single blood relative in the bunch. Read more >>
I’ve only spoken to Bing Fishman once. It was January 2003, and I was at the New York Boat Show, interviewing show organizers and exhibitors about the event. While I knew what to do and how to do it by that point in my career, it still gave me butterflies to walk up to an exhibitor I had never met before and start a conversation. Read more >>
By Nancy Mac, Spark Gap Marketing — Hey Neighbor!
I’m all agog at the social media mindset in the marketing world. Did you know there are people offering certification in Social Media Marketing? This makes me laugh. A lot. Uproariously, in fact.
Marketing geeks in the business world are yammering back and forth. The tweets rip. The blogs are on fire. Analyzing the trends. The numbers. The percentages doing what and how. What utility? Say this! NO! Say that! Be Authentic. Be Transparent. Yada yada yada. It’s amazing how complex people want to make things. The technology and getting used to the environment are the hard part. Twitter and Facebook had me scratching my head just trying to figure out what went where and how it did what it did so I could do what I do. Read more »
Tags: Internet
