There’s no doubt our industry’s future growth will depend, in significant measure, on our appeal to kids. “Survey data tells us we must expose boating to kids,” Brunswick CEO Dusty McCoy told the Lake Erie Marine Trades Association in Cleveland recently. (Read More…)

Remember the battle in Congress at Christmas over extending the payroll tax reduction? Get ready – tomorrow is Feb. 1, so let the battle begin – again! (Read More…)

There’s little doubt history is loaded with examples of sales people who can be labeled “great” at the game. And, we can learn from them because they personify selling techniques and styles that can be replicated to make one successful, even today. (Read More…)

“Our industry isn’t going away, we’re going to make it stronger,” Dusty McCoy told more than 150 dealers, marina operators and others in Cleveland last week. The chairman and CEO of Brunswick was addressing the annual meeting of the Lake Erie Marine Trades Association during the Cleveland Boat Show. Moreover, he called for quick follow up to the successful “Recreational Boating Stakeholders Growth Summit” held in Chicago in December. (Read More…)

Whenever I need a few laughs to brighten up a day when the fishing is slow and the sky is overcast, I just think about PETA. You remember them — the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals — the group noted for wanting all fish to be renamed “sea kittens?” (Read More…)

If it wasn’t so annoying, it would be funny. Football in Houston, snow in Chicago, bad roads (schools closed early) in Nashville, winter storm in Cleveland and a tsunami in Atlanta all disrupted many boat shows last week . . . but the shows still rolled on. (Read More…)

To trust or not to trust – that is the question! When it comes to the Internet, it’s an interesting one. (Read More…)

One of the major topics at last month’s first-ever boating summit in Chicago was the need to reach minorities with our boating lifestyle message as a path to growth. So, it might seem that all we need to do is replace some white people in our ads with minorities, right? Well, it’s a start but it’s not that simple. (Read More…)

I must be old school. I still think talking with someone face-to-face is the best way to go. Obviously, I must not be one of today’s high tech-enabled people who can text and drive or Twitter everyone what I’m doing without ever seeing them face-to-face! (Read More…)

Industry eyes will be focused on the “Big Apple” and Houston this week as the New York Boat Show opens tomorrow (Jan. 4) for five days and the Houston International Boat Show kicks off Friday (Jan. 6) for a 10-day run. Hopefully, both shows will be good early indicators of an uptick in sales expected from the industry’s 2012 winter show circuit. (Read More…)