Media Tracking
Report
04/17/2008
Article Index
Archive
National Marine
Manufacturers Association Coverage
Many Boat Owners Struggling To Jump Ship
[Boston Globe (Online), 04/14/2008]
By Keith O'Brien
...The boat industry has been hit hard by the recent economic downturn.
New boat sales last year alone fell by about 15 percent, said Thom
Dammrich, president of the National Marine Manufacturers Association.
And while Dammrich believes the numbers will bounce back by year's end,
others are less optimistic. Boat manufacturers themselves are "expecting
things to get a little worse before they get better," said Thompson, an
analyst at Morningstar, an investment research company. They're laying
off employees and consolidating, Thompson said, while used-boat prices
tumble as more and more people look to sell their boats...
NMMA Task Force Adopts New Communication Standards
[Soundings (Trade Only), 04/14/2008]
A new set of industry standards was adopted to streamline supply chain
communications between accessories manufacturers and boatbuilders, under
the direction of the National Marine Manufacturers Association's
Mutual Efficiency Forum (MEF) OEM Task Force...The intention is to
provide a best practice for communicating information about changes that
could occur in manufacturing of boats; whereby, someone wants to make a
change and various parties within the production channel need to know
about it and what affect it might have on production," John Warnik,
NMMA MEF liaison, told Soundings Trade Only...
Fuel-Efficient Boats Will Save At The Pump
[Newark Star Ledger (Online), 04/10/2008]
By Charles Zusman
If the price of fuel has got you down, look on the bright side. Today's
boats are up to 40 percent more fuel efficient than models made just a
decade ago. That translates into a lot fewer gallons for miles traveled.
Boats burn less fuel because new design and construction methods make
them lighter, said John McKnight of the National Marine Manufacturers
Association, a trade group. At the same time, emission requirements
have forced better fuel control, making engines more efficient, he said...
ABC Will Deal With Critical Issues
[Soundings (Trade Only), 04/01/2008]
By Jo Ann W. Goddard
The countdown is on. Unless Congress approves an exemption before a
September deadline, about 18 million U.S. boat owners will need
clean-water permits. The issue, the result of a recent court case
concerning ballast water, will be principal topic at the upcoming
American Boating Congress. The event, organized by the National
Marine Manufacturers Association, will be held April 27 to 29 at the
L'Enfant Plaza Hotel in Washington, D.C. The NMMA has until Sept.
28 to pro mote passage of the Clean Boating Act of 2008...Industry
leaders and sympathetic legislators have been scrambling to pass the
Recreational Boating Act. "As effective as we try to be here in
Washington on the industry's behalf, we can't do it alone," says Duncan
Neasham of the NMMA's government affairs staff, who is organizing
ABC. "The industry and the boating community are really going to have to
come together at this ABC, and get up to the Hill and speak in strong
voice about why this (permits] shouldn't happen."...
Two-For-One Discount At Sail America Sailboat Shows
[Sports Features Communications (Online), 04/09/2008]
US SAILING, national governing body for the sport, has teamed up with
Sail America, the trade association for the U.S. sailing industry,
to provide US SAILING members with an exclusive discount to visit
Sail America and National Marine Manufacturers Association's
(NMMA) popular Strictly Sail sailboat shows and SailFests.
Under the new agreement, US SAILING members will enjoy a discount of two
tickets for the price of one for all of the upcoming Strictly Sail
and SailFest events in the next year...
Discover Boating Coverage
Revamped DiscoverBoating.Com Site Launches Today
[Boating Industry (Online), 04/08/2008]
The redesigned DiscoverBoating.com Web site officially launched
today, including an updated look and several new interactive features
designed to show visitors how easy and enjoyable it is to become boat
owners, Grow Boating officials said in a release this
morning..."The Spousal Conversion Kit also launched this week as part of
DiscoverBoating.com's overall redesign..."The Spousal Conversion
Kit is really a home-run for DiscoverBoating.com," said Carl
Blackwell, vice president of marketing communications for Grow
Boating Inc. and NMMA. "It's a humorous and fun tool that's
designed to help boating enthusiasts convince their significant others
to buy a boat by walking them through the many benefits of being on the
water and demonstrating just how easy it can be to get started. We all
know that boating is fun and exciting, so the act of convincing someone
to buy a boat should be just as enjoyable."...
Boating Turns Schmidt Into Pitcher
[Chicago Sun-Times, 04/06/2008]
By Dale Bowman
Ted Williams had Sears. Mike Schmidt has DiscoverBoating.com. The
times and format change, but the long connection between baseball
players and outdoor pursuits just keeps going. Having hunting and
fishing as a hobby seems to be a prerequisite to lacing up a pair of
spikes..."They found me," Schmidt said. "From the time my agent and
representatives [talked to me], I said, 'Wow, cool, something in the
marine industry finally came my way' I can't think of a better spokesman
because I spent so much in the marine industry. I deserve this." On
Wednesday, Schmidt, the greatest third baseman, made the media rounds to
hype the release ofthe Spousal Conversion Kit on DiscoverBoating.com.
The kit (click on the "Getting Started" button) has a nice
tongue-in-cheek touch. I say that as somebody who knows the challenges
of selling my wife on a canoe and has an ongoing campaign to buy a
johnboat with a 9.9 hp motor...
Finding Consumers' Strike Zones
[Star Tribune, 04/06/2008]
By David Phelps
...Fischer's observations of hectic lives and limited family time helped
create an advertisement for Discover Boating that showed a family
in a mall waving at strangers and no one waving back. Then the family
was shown in a boat waving at other boaters and everyone waving back and
smiling. "When you wave to another boater, they always wave back,"
Fischer said. "People want to take control of their lives. Free time is
so precious. It all comes down to the story that you want to tell."...
Consumer
[Linden Herald, 03/27/2008]
For those who own one, there's no better way to relax With family and
friends than by taking the helm of a boat and heading out for a
beautiful day on the water - a testament to the more than 72 million
Americans who went boating in 2006. Many daydream about owning their own
boat but are often discouraged or intimidated. However, contrary to
popular belief, it doesn't have to cost a small fortune or require years
of boating experience to become a boat owner. For more information on
choosing the right boat for you, visit www.DiscoverBoating.com...
Boat Show Coverage
Strictly Sail Pacific Show Opens April 16
[Soundings (Trade Only) (Online), 04/03/2008]
Strictly Sail Pacific will showcase the latest in sailboats and
equipment, as well as five days of seminars, when it opens its gates
April 16 at Jack London Square in Oakland, Calif. "Showgoers who come to
this year's show will not only see an extensive marketplace, but also
gain a great deal of information and inspiration," said Kevin Murphy of
show organizer Sail America, in a statement. "Weather experts,
round-the-world racers, cruisers who lead lives of bluewater adventure ,
" they all make this event a unique mix of products and personality."...
NMMA Should Engage Boaters
[Great Lakes Boating, 04/01/2008]
...While at the time of publication no concrete numbers on attendance or
sales were released, anecdotal feedback from dealers about the 2008
Chicago Boat Show was sobering: there was virtually no weekday foot
traffic, few reliable leads from past shows attended this year and
weekend foot traffic consisted of "cliff dweller" types who were there
to just spend winter afternoon and not to purchase a boat...Copious
amounts of money were spent by the NMMA, but the media buy relied
too heavily on ads placed on the internet and AM radio stations fn
Chicago...Despite the advantages of print ads, regional publications
were left out of the advertising equation again...