Low conversion of Discover/Try Scuba participants into actual OW students is a common topic of discussion, with many folks bemoaning that these programs "just don't work as intended."
While I certainly agree to a certain extent... I would add "as typically/currently conducted they don't work as intended."
In marketing and advertising we look at "conversion rates" all the time; for things like direct-mail campaigns, free-trials, people who use product samples, whether coupon users convert to repeat customers, people who "call to request information" ever follow-through, etc. In almost every analysis I've ever seen, the main thing that lowers conversion rate has been a disproportionate participation by people who had low/no conversion potential in the first place. In those cases, it's not that the campaign "didn't work" it simply means it drew in the wrong people.
My suspicion is that dynamic is a big factor behind low conversion of Discover/Try Scuba programs as well. While this might differ for shop-run vs resort-run programs, as well as CW vs OW programs, but think about the people who are likely participants:
Not sure if there's anyone I missed - and maybe not all of these are large segments - but it's pretty easy to see that the deck is stacked against Discover/Try Scuba programs because of who they attract... and who they don't.
As a DM for many years I've done quite a few that converted few if any people. These were largely doomed to failure from the get-go: a Girl Scout troop from a real blue-collar town, "Free Demo Today" types, etc.
But I've also done many that worked well.
My favorite one was the 35-40yo woman who came by herself and was so scared she was shaking while filling out the paperwork. I asked her what was wrong, and she said "I'm just really afraid." I told her everything would be ok, we'll take it slow, stop at any time if she wanted to, the whole "don't worry, it'll be ok" speech. Fortunately it was 1:1 and there was nothing scheduled after. She was trying her hardest, but she wasn't terribly comfortable in the water. I started with the gear floating next to her just let her trust the gear before putting it on. She was at the point of tears several times, but you could just tell she wanted to love diving. I spent quite a while with her. For half of the program we never left the shallow end, but were tooling around in the deep end eventually. By the end she was very comfortable with everything, smiling from ear to ear, gave me a big hug, and told me she was going to sign up. But my favorite part was the conversation we had while rinsing the gear:
ME: "See, that was a lot easier than you expected... right?"
SHE: "Absolutely... I loved it!"
ME: "So what were you so scared about?"
SHE: "I don't know how to swim."
ME: "Ha, ha! But seriously..."
SHE: "In fact, that was actually the first time I've been in a pool since I was about 8yrs old."
ME: "Uh... um... uh... huh?" (Dumfounded realization that she was telling the truth.)
SHE: "Oh yeah... I'm deathly afraid of the water."
God bless her... though I wish she had told someone BEFORE participating that she wanted to become a diver specifically to overcome her lifelong fear of water. But she went and took swimming lessons, came back, signed up, and completed OW.
I think this single experience is a pretty instructive "case study" in that it demonstrates that a DSD program CAN work as intended as long as two conditions are present:
1. The participant has a genuine - ideally strong - desire to dive
2. The DSD can - and does - overcome a specific barrier or objection that is keeping them from diving
Sure, other thing go into whether someone takes up diving - enough time, money, etc - but, from a pure audience segmentation standpoint I'll take "desire plus an objection I can overcome" as a prerequisite for a prospective target every time.
So, what can we do in order to stack the deck in our favor?
DESIRE:
How do we identify those people who might have a disproportionately high desire... even if it's a latent desire? How can we identify them and draw them out? I don't mean things like target water-sport participants, skiing, golf etc. Sure, as a group those people may have the MEANS (time/money/etc) to dive... but whether any individual person in that group actually has a DESIRE to dive is a completely random event, and no higher than any other group. Conversely, the woman mentioned above was a seamstress at a local dry cleaner and no amount of demographic targeting would have found her.
Of course I'm not saying that demographic don't have a place, nor am I saying that members of Aquaphobics Anonymous are a great target. There are many people who might be willing and able... but there's got to be a way to find the people who are likely to DESIRE to dive.
PROGRAM OBJECTIVE:
What can we do to ensure that the DSD that they participate in has the best shot at moving them to the next step? Yes it must be safe. Yes it must be enjoyable. But is merely "fun" enough? Monopoly is 'fun. We don't dive because it's "fun" but because it's just about the most amazing, awesome, life-changing activity that we've ever done on this planet. What are we doing to convey THAT? Sure, for them just breathing underwater will be pretty cool. But will that be enough?
People know what diving is, and most will assume that it must be fun. So that's the minimum thing they need to get out of the program. But think about it. We're talking about moving people who want to dive, and already believe it's fun. They need more! There's something that is stopping them. The DSD need to overcome THAT... not just confirm that scuba is fun.
In the program I mentioned above, if I didn't know that woman's main issue was that she was afraid to dive - and conducted the program with the specific objective of overcoming that issue - she never would have "converted" to being a diver. I probably would have shown her how cool it was, told her about all the sharks I've seen, mentioned wreck diving off the NJ coast... and twenty other things that would have had her more scared at the end than when she walked in.
We all know to "ask people why they want to go diving" but do we also find out "why they haven't dome it yet?" And more importantly - armed with that information - have we done or said anything different while conducting the program itself? How can we both reinforce their expectations and overcome whatever barrier(s) have kept them from diving to date?
Of course there's lots of different people here; resort folks, shop owners, independent instructors, warm water, cold water. Coast... landlocked. Whatever. What has worked for you? What have you always wanted to try? What hasn't worked? Any thoughts as to why? What questions do you have for other folks?
Hopefully we can use this thread to share experiences and brainstorm ideas.
Ray
While I certainly agree to a certain extent... I would add "as typically/currently conducted they don't work as intended."
In marketing and advertising we look at "conversion rates" all the time; for things like direct-mail campaigns, free-trials, people who use product samples, whether coupon users convert to repeat customers, people who "call to request information" ever follow-through, etc. In almost every analysis I've ever seen, the main thing that lowers conversion rate has been a disproportionate participation by people who had low/no conversion potential in the first place. In those cases, it's not that the campaign "didn't work" it simply means it drew in the wrong people.
My suspicion is that dynamic is a big factor behind low conversion of Discover/Try Scuba programs as well. While this might differ for shop-run vs resort-run programs, as well as CW vs OW programs, but think about the people who are likely participants:
- Participants whose goal is only/specifically to "try" scuba diving and check it off the list. (DSD participation satisfies desire.)
- Participants who are actually (even if they don't say/know it) looking to confirm their belief that they DON'T want to become a diver. "I'll try it... but I don't think I'm gonna like it." (DSD participation confirms negative desire.)
- Some participants come to a DSD thinking/believing that they DO want to become a diver, but end up not enjoying the DSD experience. Either the experience was genuinely negative... or they just didn't enjoy it enough to convert. (DSD participation changes or satisfies positive desire.)
- Some participants come to a program only because a friend/family member/spouse convinced (begged/cajoled/dragged) them into doing so, even though they have no intention whatsoever of going further. "Ok, I tried it. NOW will you stop bugging me?" (DSD participation to satisfy SOMEONE ELSE'S desire.)
- Some participants will try anything... especially if it's free/cheap. (DSD participation absent desire.)
- Some participants enjoy the DSD experience and would love to enroll in certification... but were never going to be able to in the first place for any number of non-diving related reasons (Genuinely can't afford it, too busy with work/family, spouse already vetoed decision, etc) (DSD participation with desire... but no intention.)
- A large proportion of those potential DSD participants with the highest likelihood to convert - people who know they want to take up diving and already have every intention of getting certified - just go right to signing up for OW without ever participating in a DSD program. (No desire for DSD participation.)
Not sure if there's anyone I missed - and maybe not all of these are large segments - but it's pretty easy to see that the deck is stacked against Discover/Try Scuba programs because of who they attract... and who they don't.
As a DM for many years I've done quite a few that converted few if any people. These were largely doomed to failure from the get-go: a Girl Scout troop from a real blue-collar town, "Free Demo Today" types, etc.
But I've also done many that worked well.
My favorite one was the 35-40yo woman who came by herself and was so scared she was shaking while filling out the paperwork. I asked her what was wrong, and she said "I'm just really afraid." I told her everything would be ok, we'll take it slow, stop at any time if she wanted to, the whole "don't worry, it'll be ok" speech. Fortunately it was 1:1 and there was nothing scheduled after. She was trying her hardest, but she wasn't terribly comfortable in the water. I started with the gear floating next to her just let her trust the gear before putting it on. She was at the point of tears several times, but you could just tell she wanted to love diving. I spent quite a while with her. For half of the program we never left the shallow end, but were tooling around in the deep end eventually. By the end she was very comfortable with everything, smiling from ear to ear, gave me a big hug, and told me she was going to sign up. But my favorite part was the conversation we had while rinsing the gear:
ME: "See, that was a lot easier than you expected... right?"
SHE: "Absolutely... I loved it!"
ME: "So what were you so scared about?"
SHE: "I don't know how to swim."
ME: "Ha, ha! But seriously..."
SHE: "In fact, that was actually the first time I've been in a pool since I was about 8yrs old."
ME: "Uh... um... uh... huh?" (Dumfounded realization that she was telling the truth.)
SHE: "Oh yeah... I'm deathly afraid of the water."
God bless her... though I wish she had told someone BEFORE participating that she wanted to become a diver specifically to overcome her lifelong fear of water. But she went and took swimming lessons, came back, signed up, and completed OW.
I think this single experience is a pretty instructive "case study" in that it demonstrates that a DSD program CAN work as intended as long as two conditions are present:
1. The participant has a genuine - ideally strong - desire to dive
2. The DSD can - and does - overcome a specific barrier or objection that is keeping them from diving
Sure, other thing go into whether someone takes up diving - enough time, money, etc - but, from a pure audience segmentation standpoint I'll take "desire plus an objection I can overcome" as a prerequisite for a prospective target every time.
So, what can we do in order to stack the deck in our favor?
DESIRE:
How do we identify those people who might have a disproportionately high desire... even if it's a latent desire? How can we identify them and draw them out? I don't mean things like target water-sport participants, skiing, golf etc. Sure, as a group those people may have the MEANS (time/money/etc) to dive... but whether any individual person in that group actually has a DESIRE to dive is a completely random event, and no higher than any other group. Conversely, the woman mentioned above was a seamstress at a local dry cleaner and no amount of demographic targeting would have found her.
Of course I'm not saying that demographic don't have a place, nor am I saying that members of Aquaphobics Anonymous are a great target. There are many people who might be willing and able... but there's got to be a way to find the people who are likely to DESIRE to dive.
PROGRAM OBJECTIVE:
What can we do to ensure that the DSD that they participate in has the best shot at moving them to the next step? Yes it must be safe. Yes it must be enjoyable. But is merely "fun" enough? Monopoly is 'fun. We don't dive because it's "fun" but because it's just about the most amazing, awesome, life-changing activity that we've ever done on this planet. What are we doing to convey THAT? Sure, for them just breathing underwater will be pretty cool. But will that be enough?
People know what diving is, and most will assume that it must be fun. So that's the minimum thing they need to get out of the program. But think about it. We're talking about moving people who want to dive, and already believe it's fun. They need more! There's something that is stopping them. The DSD need to overcome THAT... not just confirm that scuba is fun.
In the program I mentioned above, if I didn't know that woman's main issue was that she was afraid to dive - and conducted the program with the specific objective of overcoming that issue - she never would have "converted" to being a diver. I probably would have shown her how cool it was, told her about all the sharks I've seen, mentioned wreck diving off the NJ coast... and twenty other things that would have had her more scared at the end than when she walked in.
We all know to "ask people why they want to go diving" but do we also find out "why they haven't dome it yet?" And more importantly - armed with that information - have we done or said anything different while conducting the program itself? How can we both reinforce their expectations and overcome whatever barrier(s) have kept them from diving to date?
Of course there's lots of different people here; resort folks, shop owners, independent instructors, warm water, cold water. Coast... landlocked. Whatever. What has worked for you? What have you always wanted to try? What hasn't worked? Any thoughts as to why? What questions do you have for other folks?
Hopefully we can use this thread to share experiences and brainstorm ideas.
Ray
