Boat Dealers

[B-Faithful]

There are usually two-sides to the coin... I help sell Judge Yachts as I am a satisfied customer who thought it would an easy sell as they offer a product that I believe in. While I havent been in the marine industry long and only do it part time, I have seen how demanding and unreasonable some potential buyers can be. Case in point, I got yelled at earlier this week for the first time by a customer who claims to be a serious buyer. His beef was that I wouldnt tow my boat from Annapolis MD to the ocean in DE, which is 2 hours a way from me, for him to sea trial my boat in the ocean for him without a signed contract or small refundable deposit. He said that he had never heard of such a thing and would never consider one our boats due to it. I even offered a no obligation sea trial on my boat in the Chesapeake Bay without a contract or deposit (which is where the boat is kept). However for the 4 hours of towing time and expensive involved with that, I want a contract on an agreed price and small deposit to show he was serious. I didnt think that was unreasonable but this person did. In this tight market I know you have to jump through hoops and work extra hard to earn someones business but there are some unreasonable people who can wear on you. Fortunately there are a lot of good people too that do make this type of business enjoyable.

The guy in the inital example should be grateful for the offer and present it to the owner of the boat. Yes things are tight but do your best to move the boat. That is his job.

Edited July 29, 2009 by B-Faithful

[Slingnbait]

But on the other side of it, that is cost of doing business and to even remotely get the business sometimes you have to bite the bullet. I am not saying you are wrong but that is something you have to do at times. I work with a boat company also and we did a sea trial fishing trip with potential customers. Ended up putting us over the top and getting the business. Where the other company did a sea trial and that was it. It helped that the boat was a better boat than the other companies. Yes I bit the bullet for the boat company on the charter but it helped sell a boat. That is money that was not there before but now is. How much would have it cost you to take the boat and sea trial it for the potential client? As a potential buyer would you want to put a deposit on a boat that you have not sea trialed?

[denny-o]

How far you go for a given customer depends on how likely he is to make a purchase (a gut call)... It also depends on the size and margins on the sale... A 15' fishing boat with a 700 dollar margin will not get as much invested in the prospective customer as a 3 million dollar mega yacht...

denny-o

[B-Faithful]

I understand the need to sea trial and do jump through hoops to do it for people. I offered a no obligation sea trial to the guy in DE. While the ocean offers different sea type than the Chesapeake, it can get very rough here and was willing to take him out on any day of his choosing. This offering was just at the request of a sea trial. If someone wants to go for a ride, I take them. However it was the 4 hours of towing the boat without a good faith gesture on his end. I doubt any dealer would have towed a boat over 2 hours to a location without at least an agreed upon price (Judges are built to order and prices greatly vary depending upon what the client wants or needs) or at least a small refundable good faith deposit. I actually have done very well with selling boats this year and most the people I have dealt with said I have gone beyond the call of duty to make them understand the boat. One of the tools I use is the no obligation sea trial. Personally I believe the guy may not have been all that serious if he didnt want to even sea trial the boat in the Chesapeake Bay. Had he sea trialed it here and was still interested, I probably would have towed it to the ocean without a refundable deposit or signed contract. I probably would have wanted an agreed upon price though. Being how the guy responded to the good faith request, it probably isnt worth dealing with him anyhow.

Edited July 29, 2009 by B-Faithful

[PMac]

I worked for a company that sold factory direct. After seeing the business model it is hard to argue with its efficiency. I suspect that many boat companies in the future will convert to this model if they want to survive...

[Erie Skipper]

I worked for a company that sold factory direct. After seeing the business model it is hard to argue with its efficiency. I suspect that many boat companies in the future will convert to this model if they want to survive...

And there are many examples of builders selling factory direct, upsetting their dealer base, and going out of business--ever hear of Skiffcraft? Factories don't do service, storage, parts, glass work or any type of needed service. If they start, they will no longer be just builders now will they? I suspect your factory direct company will fall by the wayside sooner or later as well, or they will remain very small at best.

[B-Faithful]

There are advantages and disadvantages to each business model..

Judge currently is factory direct. However we would love to establish a dealer network in order to reach more people and sell more units. Regional dealer networking is the best way to reach and support the most people. Unfortunately floorplan financing is too tight to be able to do so rightnow. We certainly hope that loosens up in the future or we can find some self-financed dealers (few and far between).

I will say that being smaller and factory direct will help us get through the slow time as there are no dealer inventory buy-backs and currently most boats are built to order. We have a good regional reputation and are still selling some boats. Right now for our out of the area customers who run into small issues, we work with the customer to work with a local repair shop of their choice to resolve any small issue (like bildge pump failure etc). Of course if there were to be any major issues, then the boat would come back to the factory which I believe is the same for most manufacturers who sell through dealers. Hopefully as our reputation grows outside the region and demand increases, the financing will begin to flow again and we can reach more people and support them through a dealer network who the buyer can have a relationship with. Until then, Judge will have to continue to plug away on a smaller scale at dealing factory direct with our buyers and support them directly were ever they are the best we can on a first name basis while we are on a volume level that we can continue to do so well

Edited July 29, 2009 by B-Faithful

[Erie Skipper]

There are advantages and disadvantages to each business model..

Judge currently is factory direct. However we would love to establish a dealer network in order to reach more people and sell more units. Regional dealer networking is the best way to reach and support the most people. Unfortunately floorplan financing is too tight to be able to do so rightnow. We certainly hope that loosens up in the future or we can find some self-financed dealers (few and far between).

I will say that being smaller and factory direct will help us get through the slow time as there are no dealer inventory buy-backs and currently most boats are built to order. We have a good regional reputation and are still selling some boats. Right now for our out of the area customers who run into small issues, we work with the customer to work with a local repair shop of their choice to resolve any small issue (like bildge pump failure etc). Of course if there were to be any major issues, then the boat would come back to the factory which I believe is the same for most manufacturers who sell through dealers. Hopefully as our reputation grows outside the region and demand increases, the financing will begin to flow again and we can reach more people and support them through a dealer network who the buyer can have a relationship with. Until then, Judge will have to continue to plug away on a smaller scale at dealing factory direct with our buyers and support them directly were ever they are the best we can on a first name basis while we are on a volume level that we can continue to do so well

Understand your situation and wish you continued success; and I hope you establish a dealer network one day.

[Mr. Paul]

B-Faithful I can only speak from experience when dealing with selling cars since I was a 22 year old(now 59). When a "customer" starts yelling you will never have a sale. I don't think it is unreasonable to refuse this request. This guy wanted a boat ride on your dime and time. You did not lose a sale because you never had one in the first place. Lets put this in another way so maybe some people would understand. It like asking a builder to build a house with out a contract or any investment on the purchaser part. Is that going to happen? I don't think so. If this person was in the "checking out" stage and wanted that boat bad enough he would have drove the 2 hours to see the thing. But he refused because it would mean HE would have to invest time and money. Hmmm does not want to spend a tank of gas. I submit to you the proof positive he was a mooch and a looker not a buyer.

[DJWILLIAMS]

B-Faithful,

Keep up the good work!!!!! I am glad you believe in a product enough to sell it, and have an understanding to know when someone is wasting your time!!!! I have always believed that the product sells itself!

David