Future of DiveShops?

[J_Rod]

There are a lot of opinions and circumstances in this thread....The question may really be, which areas will be more profitable and support the less profitable areas....We can hardly engineer life support equipment to fail at a certain point (like wear and tear car items). "Mandatory" service is a continuing revenue stream, though. Less and less are "joining" the sport and are choosing more often to "try" it. So we have to rely more on people upgrading equipment as new models are introduced...Regs and BCD's are not like iPhones though...My '82 Sherwood Brut is as dependable as my '13 SP S600...higher end certainly breaths better, but I don't really have to worry about my older, entry level stuff killing anyone. I've already read comments about equipment purchases as a one time thing....We know, if we take care of it...it is....

Training...does going to Belize and getting certified in 3 days count?? For the Belize shop, sure, but how does that help the industry? Do they ever dive again? Who knows. How many of them actually continue their training? Getting specialty certified...Going Tek, maybe? Just a niche in the grand scheme of diving revenues. They are trying to increase "enjoyability" with NITROX, but a new diver is probably not going to notice increased bottom time like a veteran diver who is already hooked...Is underwater welding or other commercial areas a booming business or is it like EVERY other highly trained skilled professional that are getting harder and harder to find?

Like every other business....the life's blood are new clients...that is a function of marketing and that video didn't do much for me....it's like showing a beautiful woman with a sports car believing that subliminally, a person will feel the woman comes with the car....Only they came right out and said it....Is there some new aspect that will open up diving to anyone?? Perhaps the novelty of "adrenaline" sports has simply worn off from our Yuppie class and has not been kindled in enough of our Millennials....I still get a RUSH exiting a plane after 20 years or breathing underwater after 30...Seeing the bottom appear 50 feet below me is still COOL!!

Man...I went back and read what I've typed and it sounds pretty negative. That is not my intention. I am trying to do my part, but in the 24/7 activity cycle that is available to people in SoFlo....it's VERY hard. We have a HUGE population and the best, easily available, local diving in the world (IMO). Beach, boat, protected, spear, deep, shallow, wreck, reef.....You name it....Regionally, I suppose the industry is OK but it is not growing and we current participants are getting older...LOL...My 3 boys joined the fun last year....DEFINATLEY not addicted like me, though....

 

[boulderjohn]

Training...does going to Belize and getting certified in 3 days count?? For the Belize shop, sure, but how does that help the industry? Do they ever dive again? Who knows. How many of them actually continue their training? Getting specialty certified...Going Tek, maybe?

It wasn't Belize. I got certified in 3 days in Puerto Vallarta, by a shop I later realized skipped a bunch of standards to get the job done in those 3 days. I did it in anticipation of another tropical vacation. My plan was to do a handful of dives on such a vacation every few years. If you had required me to do anything different, I probably would not have done it. It was something of a whim. I did not want to invest too much time or (especially) money into it.

Five years later I was a DM. Two years later I was an instructor. Then I became a tech diver. Then a cave diver. Then a tech instructor.

I needed to get a taste of things first. Once I got that taste, I was hooked.

 

[dmoore19]

I drop into my LDS once a month or so. I buy a few things now and again. I have done group trips and use the travel agency that specializes in dive trips. The classes I have taken over OW were done while I was on a dive trip done by instructors from the LDS I use. That keeps the cash in the LDS family. There are many people that dive in Colorado, just not many that dive IN CO. I know a couple of people with dry suits, they both are instructors. I have bought a couple of things online but would rather walk into the store, buy it and walk with it. If I was in the business I would be looking for people like me.

The whole point is that the industry doesn't need to thumb their nose at anybody. To ignore one or the other is flat out stupid.

I've read that 80% of people live within 70 miles of the coast. Usually, marketing has a budget, and because of this I usually try to first target the group that I expect to have the best ROI. Maybe I'm wrong about which type of diver produces more business, a vacation diver or a local diver. Keep in mind they aren't mutually exclusive. I'm sure there are people who dive locally in Colorado. They probably bought a dry suit (score one for a manufacturer). The 15-20 you spend a year on dive vacations is probably mostly spent on airfare and accommodations. I take a couple of fly somewhere and dive vacations a year too, but between them I dive locally (within 200 miles). I spend money in a LDS about once a month on average and mail order gear/parts about ever two-three months. If I was looking for a customer to support the diving industry, I'd look for divers like me.

 

[boulderjohn]

I drop into my LDS once a month or so. I buy a few things now and again. I have done group trips and use the travel agency that specializes in dive trips. The classes I have taken over OW were done while I was on a dive trip done by instructors from the LDS I use. That keeps the cash in the LDS family. There are many people that dive in Colorado, just not many that dive IN CO. I know a couple of people with dry suits, they both are instructors. I have bought a couple of things online but would rather walk into the store, buy it and walk with it. If I was in the business I would be looking for people like me.

The whole point is that the industry doesn't need to thumb their nose at anybody. To ignore one or the other is flat out stupid.

When I was a brand new diver living in Colorado, I had school age children and little extra income. We budgeted for vacations each year, and I went diving on those vacations, but what was I to do in the time in between?

What I did for the most part was go into the (then) three local dive shops in Boulder and look around. I rarely bought anything, and when I did, it was nothing of consequence. I was mostly just getting a feel for things and satisfying an itch to get to know more. More importantly, I was comparing the shops. None of the shops put a lot of pressure on me on those visits. If they had, I would not have come back. I was just looking. Eventually, I bought some gear--all online. It was not a complete set--I needed a couple items. I am embarrassed to say that I went into the shop that I liked the most, bought the rest of the gear, and had the gall to ask them to help me put it all together. They did--very nicely, too. At that moment I developed something like a conscience. I became their devoted customer in thanks for their fine service. They soon merged with another shop, and I transferred that well-earned allegiance there.

 

[RJP]

...it's like showing a beautiful woman with a sports car believing that subliminally, a person will feel the woman comes with the car....

That sort of thing sells an awful lot of Corvettes, however. (Though see "PS" below.)

Years ago I coined the term "bliminal" to describe what the headline would say if we could actually reveal what we learned in the market research. Of course we'd never actually run an add that said "Drive a Corvette - just in case your p***p really IS is smaller than average" or "Feed your children Quaker Oats - and stop feeling guilty about being a working mom. We know you're not REALLY a selfish b***h"

PS - Corvette ads for men typically don't show women. If there is a person in a Corvette ad targeted to men... it will typically show another man. Or more often than not, it will imply another man. Why?

This is subtle, but important. It goes to the power of knowing what problem your customer REALLY has, and then solving that. The insight the brand knows about the target audience is that the insecure American man is not really concerned about "getting" a women... they are concerned about being compared to another man. Every man can take being rejected by a woman... unless it's because of another man.

The message is very clearly "If you drive a Corvette you won't have to worry about 'coming up short' compared to anyone."

---------- Post added November 21st, 2014 at 12:45 AM ----------

It doesn't take wealth to go scuba diving.

Reminds me of British comedian Eddie Izzard's take on the cliche American bumper sticker:

"Guns don't kill people. People kill people... but having a gun helps."

 

[drrich2]

Interestingly, a class mate of mine years ago got a used Corvette, and mentioned to me women reacted to him differently with the car involved. While the tying together of 2 seemingly unrelated things (e.g.: sports car & beautiful woman) may seem like subtle marketing manipulation with an empty promise, let's remember, that obvious symbols of power and success do sometimes help people achieve other goals, whether impressing women or just feeling good about themselves. I suppose some even care about the driving experience.

Disclaimer: I am not a car person. I drive an old '02 Chevy Malibu with over 125,000 miles & I'd like to drive it past 200,000, then maybe someday get a Honda Accord or Toyota Camry because from what I understand they're highly reliable and I'm not mechanically inclined. To me, the car is a horizontal elevator; I want value, comfortable transportation and no malfunctions. So I am not into the zen of sports cars.

That said, the guy who shells out for the pricy sports car isn't always a tricked fool...

Richard.

 

[RJP]

That said, the guy who shells out for the pricy sports car isn't always a tricked fool...

Richard.

Willing accomplice, sometimes.

 

[MrCultureJammer]

I've been looking all over for this ad I put in one of my sketchbooks in ad grad school, but can't find it. It was for a used high-end sportscar dealer. Newspaper ad. Won a lot of ad awards. It showed a small line drawing of a Porsche 911 and had the dealer name/city, number, etc.

The headline said "Small penis? Have we got the car for you."

 

[underwaterbuddy]

They're useful for diving equipment. Although there are online alternatives, I think they're here to stay

 

[CAPTAIN SINBAD]

Once again I would like to ask

a) Independent Instructors
b) Dive shops

How often do you guys host Discover Scuba sessions in hotels, apartment buildings, sports complexes etc. Do people who do Discover Scuba sign up or do most of them never show interest towards certification?

I ask because I know hang-gliding exists. I have never done it because I do not wish to go and try something that is way out there. If there was a free session somewhere close to where I live then I would surely try it.

Can anyone please comment on their experience with this style of aggressive marketing?