Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/556112
36 | Boating Industry | May 2015 www.BoatingIndustry.com /// Market Trends /// customers who want to wake surf. In order to meet the needs of consumers who enjoy a variety of applications for their deck boat, Bayliner offers packs for its boats based on their chosen activities: water sports, fishing, etc. "Much like car companies do, we try to give people packages of things that make the most sense for the activities that they want to do, and they can design or tailor the boat to those needs by selecting those packages," said Yobe. Bayliner created dry storage in its deck boats to fit a standard plastic tote that consumers can purchase at any big box store. The fiberglass of the boat under the port side seat is designed to accept the tote, and customers can pre-pack these totes with anything they may need for a specific activity to be kept in their garages at home when they are not boating. "It gives them the ability to get on the water quickly and enjoy the limited time they have," said Yobe. "Consumers today have limited time to boat. We're not necessarily just competing with other boat brands out there – we're com- peting for people's time. How do we give con- sumers the ability to say 'I've got four hours in the day, let's go for a boat ride'?" As part of its efforts to make it easier for cus- tomers to boat, Bayliner's deck boats are a base product with a windscreen, motor and trailer with an "as low as" price. Customer can choose to add windshields if they desire but they are not considered a separate model from the base with the windscreen. As a result, Bayliner only has two models of deck boats that are customizable to the consumer's chosen use. "We decided that, from a consumer per- spective, it's much easier. … That's a better way to simplify things and give consumers the choices that they want for the market that they're boating in," said Yobe. "When we talked to deck boat consumers, they wanted an 'and' boat, not an 'or' boat." Consumer research from Bayliner also brought out the revelation that consumers don't care as much about sheer performance numbers as they do about increasing the num- ber of passengers, said Yobe. Top speed is not as important; in fact, from a deck boat perspec- tive, if people capacity affects performance in any way, as long as those consumers have the Hurricane builds its deck boat hulls specifically for either sterndrive or outboard power. Bayliner maximizes interior space by minimizing gunnel width, which affords a more open boat on the inside and provides more seating capability.