What closes the deal on buying boats? Dealers, Internet and Shows

by Media Services on 6 Nov 2010 Dealership experience, the Internet and Boat Shows are the top three influencers on the purchase decision for new boats, according to a US survey conducted by Foresight Research for the National Marine Manufacturers Association.

Foresight Research specialises in the measurement of marketing communications ROI for the automotive industry. The independently conducted study was funded by a group of industry organizations led by the National Marine Manufacturers Association (NMMA), including the Lake Erie Marine Trades Association, Michigan Boating Industries Association, Southern California Marine Association, Boating Trades Association of Houston, Southwest Florida Marine Industry Association and Show Management, Inc.

The first of its kind for the marine industry, the study measured which marketing channels have the most influence on consumers’ decision to purchase a new boat.

The study calculates the total share of influence from a number of marketing channels including dealership experience, the Internet, boat shows, print articles, brochures, print advertising, boat dealer sales events/races/seminars, TV advertising and programming, direct mail, social media and radio.

The findings are the result of interviews among 3,295 boat buyers who purchased a boat during the last 18 months, ending August 2010. The study looks at behaviours, information received and how buyers were influenced to select the boat they did.

'This is one of the richest databases we’ve come across on how consumers’ are influenced in the boat buying process,' says Carl Blackwell, vice president for NMMA. 'The findings offer valuable insight for manufacturers and dealers to optimize their marketing efforts. Not only does the study reveal the most influential marketing channels, it also spells out why they are influential.'

Of note, consumers highly influenced by boat shows ranked the ability to compare boats/models/prices and the ability to board boats as the most influential elements.

Foresight will publish 'in-depth' reports on the marketing channels that have the most influence on purchase. These analyses will include boat shows, the dealership experience, and the Internet.

They will offer a detailed understanding on how buyers use these channels, when in the shopping and purchase process they are influenced, and what specific take away messages they received that ultimately influenced their purchase decision. The first to be analyzed was boat shows and is the research being released today. Analysis on the additional marketing channels will be released later this winter.

'Boat shows offer a very important combination of factual information plus emotional stimulus,' says Ron Hein, Executive Vice President for Foresight. 'The most notable finding to come out of the boat show analysis is that the average new boat buyer spent 49 minutes at the display of the brand he/she eventually purchased. It is no surprise that most buyers who attend a show mostly have their mind made up when leaving the show and purchase shortly thereafter.'

For consumers who attended a boat show, the boat show had the most influence on their decision to buy a boat (57% ranking 4 or 5 on a 5 point scale) versus their experience at a dealership (54%) and the Internet (47%).
Buyers said boat shows have the most influence during the interest/consideration phase of the purchase process. Boat show attendees often 'discover' brands they may not have known about.

Among buyers who attended a boat show, 70% purchased their new boat within three months of attending the show.
Nearly six in 10 new boat buyers (57%) attended at least one boat show in the 12 months prior to buying their boat.
Nearly 20% of new boat buyers were first introduced to their dealer at a boat show.

The report will be provided to NMMA members at no cost as a member benefit. NMMA is expected to email the report to its members and boat show / boat dealer exhibitors this week.

More at www.nmma.org