Yes, we are real people, and we can prove it

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 »

Introduction to social media marketing

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 »

Shifting from selling the fun to selling the deal

By Bob McCann, Director of Client Education, ARI Network Services & Channel Blade — When we started Channel Blade years ago, most of the marine dealer Web sites we designed were focused on the lifestyle of boating. Back then, many conversations with dealers often led to a familiar phrase: “We don’t just sell boats … We sell Fun!”  Over the last year and a half or so, we have seen more and more dealers shifting their focus from selling “the fun” to selling “the deal” because of huge inventories of aged units in these tough economic conditions. Read more >>

Hidden Profits In Online Advertising: Don’t Miss The Boat

By Erin Skinner, Senior Pay Per Click Analyst, ROI Revolution, Inc — As the years move on, it becomes more and more apparent how big of a part the Internet is going to play in the success of small businesses. In the current economic downturn that we’re all struggling to get through, using the Internet to market your marine business is not only a good idea, it’s a necessity. Read more >>

News you can use

There’s a dinner tomorrow night for the Sea Ray Owners Club at a restaurant on a lake near Austin, Texas. No RSVP is necessary. Members just need to show up and a seat will be waiting for them, courtesy of Sail & Ski Center – a dealership based in Austin – and each table of Sea Ray owners will receive a free appetizer platter. I’m not one to pass up free chicken wings, but I’m also not a Sea Ray owner (and I live in Minnesota) so I won’t be able to make it. But thanks to an e-mailed newsletter I received from Sail & Ski on the last day of April, I now know about the dinner; a boating lifestyle expo the dealership is hosting this weekend; a maintenance seminar on Saturday; and every other event the business has planned for the month of May. Read more >>

Transforming challenge into opportunity

A month and a half ago, when I spoke at the Marine Trades Association of New Jersey annual conference, I touched on the growing number of marine businesses participating in social networking, as did the person who followed me, Sam Natello of Dot Com Design Studio. This is a subject that holds particular interest for me as our team has been developing a social networking strategy for Boating Industry in recent weeks. In the question and answer period after the presentations, a member of the audience shared his concern that launching a page on Facebook or another social networking site would give any customers with a bone to pick with his dealership the chance to ruin its reputation. Read more >>