Sept 6, 2022

This industry knows how to sell boats…no doubt about it but do we know how to sell the intangibles and the lifestyle benefits of being a part of this industry?

I had the pleasure of playing in the Boating Ontario Golf Tournament last week and it was a really enjoyable day. My foursome included Karen Benell from Gifford Carr Insurance, Sean Beamish and Ken Boyd from Mercury Marine. Everyone got in a few good shots and we all appreciated that the weather steadily improved all day. The event brought out lots of old friends and also, many new members of the industry. 

The day reminds me that this can be an enjoyable and rewarding industry to be a part of and there are both very promising business opportunities and some very attractive lifestyle benefits to being a part of it.

As the COVID-19 effects subside and things return to a more normal pace, I expect a return to more predictable product supply, a predictable loss of some boater newbies, but a pandemic-driven net gain of new boaters and also a changing of the guard. By that I mean, some of the industry veterans will have decided to step down, some marinas and other businesses will change hands and the wave of new technologies that have been a bit under the radar the past two years, will emerge in a big way at the boat shows this winter and on-the-water next summer.

So, what are we doing to sell the excitement and opportunity of joining Canada’s marine industry? Are we a well-kept secret? I suspect that to get the people we need to keep growing and to keep our customers happy, it makes sense to work together and perhaps actually create an advertising campaign to show the lifestyle and business opportunities.

This campaign could be launched in the upcoming boat shows and could be expanded through social media to embrace both the satisfying work and the lifestyle of living in cottage country; being around boats and the water and also, enjoying the off-season aspects. That would be sledding, skiing, all-season fishing and all the sports people can enjoy on their off hours.

I’m seeing some great new people now, but we need to attract a lot more. Selling the sizzle should certainly help.

In this end-of-the-summer edition of Boating Industry Canada News Week Digest, we are highlighting our group of recent marine industry graduates. I hope you will take a few minutes to read their individual stories. These are people who are crafting an interesting and rewarding life that is a lot more than just repair work. They have wide-ranging personal interests as well and a career in boating can make other dreams possible. Watch for more profiles in the future and if you know a person who deserves to be profiled here, send me an email: aadams@kerrwil.com

Andy Adams – Editor