Is your watersport business located at a marina? Learn how to sustain a great relationship with your marina management and what different strategies are used by watersport businesses!
Is your watersport business located at a marina? Learn how to sustain a great relationship with your marina management and what different strategies are used by watersport businesses!
Hey everyone, welcome to episode 13 of the Weekly Wave podcast presented by WaveRez. I’m your host Greg Fisher, and today we’ll be talking about what you need to do to sustain a great relationship with your marina management.
If your business is located at a marina, you will often come in contact with marina management and staff. These are the folks that will be assisting you with day to day operations. In my experience, you’ll want to have an even better relationship with them than the marina owner and here’s why…
At most marinas, the owner or general manager are typically not present, and get most of their updates from their staff. If you and your team are doing everything right and treating the marina staff with respect, they will not only treat your customers well, but make sure your business is looked after. You’ll also find yourself in a position of opportunity if new slips become available, as your name might be put ahead of the list.
Marina’s can be picky on what type of activities they want, and it’s important to fully understand how the ownership wants the property to function. You might bring a lot of customers to the marina, but do they purchase food and sundries at the dock store? If there's a restaurant on site, are you recommending customers to eat at their restaurant or drink at their bar? Even though you have a lease, it doesn’t mean that you are guaranteed to be renewed. It’s not uncommon to see marina’s open up their own watersport operations, and this could mean your operation could get phased out. Don’t let the management even think about doing that by building a relationship that is interdependent of one another. Bring something to the table that is hard to replicate, and valuable to the entire operation of the marina.
Cross promoting your marina in your advertising is another great way to build your relationship. I’ve seen several operators team up with their marina and participate in joint ad campaigns. Not only is it cost effective for each business involved, but it shows that everyone is looking to grow together. Whether it be flyers, Facebook ads, billboards, there are many different opportunities to partner on.
Lastly, be sure to read your lease thoroughly and frequently, and before you enter into agreement, do your homework to understand if this location is best for you. Your relationship could get off on a rocky start if you jumped into a lease that didn’t make sense. You can get more information on how to choose your location on episode 4.
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