Demographics of marine enthusiasts

MARINE ENTHUSIASTS BY AGE

• 18-29 years — 12.16% 
• 30-49 years — 12.51%
• 50-64 years — 9.14% 

MARINE ENTHUSIASTS BY GENDER

•  54% of active boaters are male.
•  46% of active boaters are female.
•  75% of first time boaters are male.
•  25% of first time boaters are female.

INCOME LEVEL

•  72% of boaters have household income of less than $100,000.
•  60% of boaters have household income of less than $75,000.

RACE

• Whites: 90%
• Black: 3.4%  
• Asian or Pacific Islander: 3%
• Native American: 2.1%
• Mixed Racial Background: 1.1%
• Other Race: 1.1%

LOCATION

• Majority of boat owners (marine enthusiasts) reside in Florida, Minnesota, Michigan, and California.

HOME OWNERSHIP

•  750,000 boat owners own a home.

LEVEL OF EDUCATION

•   13% of marine enthusiasts have no high school diploma.
•  17% are high school graduates.
•  24% have some college certification.
•   47% have bachelors/graduate/professional degrees.

Other Relevant insights

• According to a report, the recreational boating industry "generated $170.3 billion in economic activity in 2018, supporting more than 35,000 businesses and 691,000 American jobs across all 50 states".
•  32% of first time boaters are Hispanic.
•  10% of active boaters are Hispanic.

Your Research team applied the following Strategy:

Marine Enthusiasts' Buying Habits

• Besides the enjoyment motive, marine enthusiasts are more interested in the additional invaluable experience that they derive from the activities (and related processes) they engage in, in the marine world.
• Shopping for marine equipment forms a big part of the experiential engagement with the marine world. According to the boating industry white paper, boat buyers apply no logic in making purchase decisions; instead, they make purchase decisions based on their emotions.
• Marine enthusiasts make various purchase decisions depending on the enthusiasts' intended value and expected rewards.  
•  According to one site, marine enthusiasts are passionate shoppers just as much as they are passionate about boating and other marine activities.
• As such, they put much emphasis on value shopping for marine equipment, rather than the conventional ways of shopping.
• While there are marine enthusiasts who prefer buying from physical stores, others prefer to utilize the online channels for specific reasons as outlined in the following section.

Reasons Marine Enthusiasts Buy Online

• CONVENIENCE-Marine enthusiasts choose online platforms owing to the convenience attached to such shopping experience.
• Through online shopping they get to have their ordered items faster compared to the longer time it takes one to visit a physical store to buy a product.
• COST CUTTING-Additionally, some marine enthusiasts choose online platforms because of the cost savings they realize from the same.
• BoatstoreUSA, for instance, offers marine equipment at discounted prices through its online platform. They state that it is in response to its consumers’ demand for cheaper alternatives.
• BROADER PRODUCT PORTFOLIO-Some marine enthusiasts choose online platforms given the more extensive range of products from which to choose. For instance, in the case of West Marine online platform, one customer was able to acquire a product that he was not able to find anywhere else even after visiting several stores.
• In line with the broad product range advantage, there is minimal time wastage as consumers can browse and find specific products and order the same with surety, rather than walking to a physical store and not finding the desired product. Such a customer would have to spend more time locating the desired product from various locations.

• POSSIBILITY OF CUSTOMIZATION -Some marine enthusiasts prefer to buy equipment from physical stores siting the possibility of customization of products to suit such consumers’ preferences.
• For instance, as part of its in-store services and in meetings its customers’ demands, West Marine offers custom boat graphics.  
• ACCESS TO EXPERT ADVICE AND OPINIONS-Other customers also prefer in-store shopping of marine equipment given the availability of advice and opinions from the experts in such stores.
• From the information they get from the experts especially on product specifications, they can make informed purchase decisions.  
• MINIMAL RISK OF BUYING THE WRONG PRODUCT-In-store marine equipment buyers have the chance to physically counter check and confirm that they are buying the right product.
• This is opposed to online channels often marred with multiple cases of wrong deliveries.

Marine Enthusiasts Research Channels.

• According to a boating industry white paper, boating enthusiasts are using multiple sources to research on valuable information on boats and other marine equipment.
• The internet has over the years gained popularity among marine enthusiasts as a reliable source of information.
• Such enthusiasts utilize numerous sources including product reviews posted online as well as other feedback available on Facebook and Twitter among other social media platforms.
• In addition to media channels, marine enthusiasts make use of the customer support lines that are available on individual marine equipment companies’ websites.
• Marine enthusiasts also make use of expert opinions on products that they get from visits to physical stores.

YOUR RESEARCH TEAM APPLIED THE FOLLOWING STRATEGY: