Am I only the one who finds big boat shows such as those in Miami and Fort Lauderdale miserable? Both are crowded, impersonal and wickedly expensive affairs on both sides of the aisle. If delivering an enjoyable customer experience is a goal, neither achieves it.
Combine that with the significant cost of the big-ticket products displayed for sale at these events—you know, boats—and the whole experience is that much more unacceptable.
Large boat shows are, for the most part, pretty awful. There. I said it.
Street parties and exhibits such as the one that happened last Thursday ahead of Saturday’s 1,000 Islands Charity Poker Run, on the other hand, are a wonderful alternative. They are by definition outdoors, but the possibility of too hot or—much rarer—too cold is far preferable to certainty of convention center lighting and narrow docks crammed with folks doing the zombie-walk.
And guess what? At least in the high-performance world, street parties sell boats. From the Shootout On The Strip affair ahead of the Lake of the Ozark Shootout to the Boyne Thunder Poker Run Street Celebration and Exhibit , they generate sales in a pleasant environment. They are celebrations of the “boating lifestyle,” and though that term can be cringe-worthy when used to excess it makes sense here.
Odds are lot of the folks strolling street exhibits during boating events already own boats. This is good thing, as the most likely new-boat buyer is an existing boat owner. Street party exhibitors are putting their products in front of an audience that already appreciates them.
Plus, no matter how satisfied boat owners are with their current rides, they are forever window-shopping, which leads to buying.
Plus-plus? They bring their friends, many of whom are not boat owners but are seeing the products in their very best light, a relaxed social setting. Then the next day, they’re on the water with their hosts. At least in the high-performance segment, it’s a winning experience.
And one without bad lighting or excessive crowds.