What Do Boaters Really Want From Their Club Or Marina’s Website?

Published: Wednesday, January 30, 2019

Boating enthusiast and marketing expert Terry Krieg, President of Advantage Marketing Solutions, provided his perspective on websites related to boating in the Great Lakes area.

“Websites are one of the most important assets of any organization,” stated Krieg. “The needs are somewhat similar across all generations. First is easy navigation, followed by being mobile friendly, having up-to-date and accurate information, and finally being able to handle transactions and communication through email or online forms. For example, reservations, contracts and agreements, social information, event registrations, and service orders could all be made available to boaters.”

The boating industry will only survive by focusing on enhancing the member’s or customer’s online experience. For example, most East Coast and Florida Coast marinas have the ability to book and pay for your transient dock slip online. In addition, all forms of communication can be completed online or by mobile device to increase efficiency.

Unfortunately, about 80% of the Great Lakes’ area clubs and marinas have poorly executed and unattended websites and lack an online ship store. As a result, the organization itself is perceived to be behind the times and not putting the member’s or customer’s needs first.

During our recent research of the Great Lakes area, many clubs and marinas have not dedicated time or resources to their website due to the following reasons:

Short boating season and hiring of seasonal staff/volunteers
Lack of technical and/or marketing support
Don’t have the budget to spend money on their website and digital marketing

Advantage Marketing has developed the brands The Harbor Masters and Boaters Locker with the goal to offer solutions to better manage your Yacht/Boat Club or Marina website, including an online ship store solution. Of course, Advantage Marketing can be counted on to build a beautiful, simple-to-use website with the custom features that fit your needs including: