- Oct 6, 2006
- 12,155
- Boat Info
- 1996 450DA
- Engines
- 3116 Caterpillars
With more than 24,000 registered users, Sea Ray has recognized that the CSR forum activity probably reaches as many Sea Ray owners as many marine publications. They decided to consider CSR as a media outlet and invited us to participate in Yacht Expo 2011. I was asked to attend the media portion of the Expo as well as the regular 2-day customer event as the media representative for CSR. This will be a 3 part series on the trip:
What is Yacht Expo?
Yacht Expo is a 2-day event hosted by Sea Ray at their Sykes Creek facility in Merritt Island, Florida. All, or most of the coming year’s Yacht and Sport Yacht models are on display. This isn’t a car show for boats where the attendees stand behind the velvet rope and look at but can’t touch the displays. All the boats are in the water and are available for tours, inspection and demo rides during the 2-day event. This photo was taken before the 390DA, the 410DA, the 450DA and the 500DA arrived from Palm Coast with the European journalists aboard:
For the dealers, this is a real selling opportunity because no dealer has many big boats in stock to show customers.
For Sea Ray, even though Yacht Expo is a lot of work and a huge expense, it gives their management an opportunity to connect with the customers in a way not possible by any other means.
For the customer, you can see and lean more about the boats that you ever will at the dealer’s store. Sea Ray staffs each boat with a Captain and one or more helpers to assist customers and answer questions. My impression is that the average dealer’s salesman is pretty much clueless about the new boats, but these factory guys build them and they know every nut, bolt and screw on them. You will get your questions answered by honest and knowledgeable people who’s propriety is only your being satisfied as a customer as opposed to just getting your signature on a buyers in order to make the commission on your sale.
Who attends Yacht Expo?
While Yacht Expo is an invitation only event, getting an invitation is not difficult. You must get your invitation from your Sea Ray or Meridian dealer. When you arrive at Yacht Expo, you will resister where you are given an attendee’s badge that allows admission to all of the events and activities. If you would like to attend next year, just go see your dealer and ask about Yacht Expo. But remember that the purpose of this event is to sell larger new boats in the Sport Yacht and Yacht category. If you are shopping for a new 18 ft. bowrider or a 1998 370EC, it isn’t likely that you will be invited.
What Can I Expect at Yacht Expo?
I found this event to have a very relaxed and laid-back atmosphere. Dress is casual. The Sea Ray folks are there to see that you have a good time and will answer any and every question presented to them. However, while this is a social occasion, it is also a serious selling event. Your dealer will do his best to sell boats during Expo. Sales offices are provided for private discussions with prospects. If there is pressure put on customers, it is done by the dealer’s sales people, not by Sea Ray.
From the customer’s perspective, this is probably your best opportunity to buy a boat at your price. The difference between Yacht Expo and you local area boat show is that Sea Ray’s decision (deal) makers, as well as those from your dealership, are here and they won’t be at a local boat show. Boat sales are typically soft during the winter months and that translates into dealer cash flow problems and production voids in the factories. Soft sales at the dealer and open plant capacity means un-recovered overhead and operating losses. It is, therefore, in everyone’s best interest to sell up the open wintertime capacity, even if it must be done at break-even prices. Sea Ray makes dealer concessions at Yacht Expo that you won’t find at any other time of the year. That isn’t to say that you won’t get a good deal on a new boat at other times, but it does mean that if your dealer can commit for production slots in Jan, Feb, and March, he is a lot more likely to get some help from Sea Ray to make your deal happen at Yacht Expo………..and if it takes a little arm twisting to get you off the fence and committed, well, you might as well get ready.
The Schedule
As a media representative, I attended media day, which was for the print media guys to do performance runs on the new boats and to get their photography done before the customers arrived on Day 1:
We were on the boats all day running and photographing them. The photography was done from boat to boat and by using a helicopter to get the running shots from above. One of the most fascinating things I saw was a Bell Jet Ranger Helicopter flying about 4 ft. off the water, sideways and backwards down the ICW 50 ft. or less away from the boat running at 35+ kts:
We are on a 450DB running 35 kts and the helicopter is not passing; he is in a stationary position relative to the boat……flying sideways.
The European writers’ subject was the mid-sized cruisers, the 410DA, the 450DA and the 450DB. The 450DB was in the center, with the 410 and 450DA’s on either side with the helicopter above, photographing all 3 boats. Here is the 410DA:
Here is the 450DA on the other side:
This is the morning that the customers arrive. Everyone is cleaning boats or tending to last minute details:
The customers begin arriving around noon on the first day. From noon on, people are looking at boats, looking at the static displays from Cummins-Mercruiser, Raymarine, MAN, Kenyon, IMTRA, and other component vendors. The demo rides begin about 2PM on the first day.
The Sykes Creek facility has its own marina with room for several boats in the process of finishing up their assembly. The in-process boats that were not yet finished were moved to a near-by marina for Yacht Expo. There is a very narrow channel connecting the Sykes Creek marina basin to a barge canal that runs between the ICW and Port Canaveral. Here is a series of demo rides just leaving the Sykes Creek marina:
Traffic jam in the barge canal as the 610DA, a 410DA and a 540DA await entry to the Sykes Creek marina:
When daylight runs out, the demo rides stop, but the customers continue looking at the boats and the party begins, while management regroups for tomorrow:
The final day is pretty much more of the same. Attendance is greater and the boats are more crowded, but the activities are the same……look at new boats, take demo rides on the models the customer chooses, look at static displays from engine makers distributors, electronics, lighting, and other component vendors, and, oh yes, write a deposit check for your brand new Sea Ray! As the day ends, Sea Ray hosts a dinner for Yacht Expo attendees:
The boats in-process are moved out to make room for the Yacht Expo dinner and program.
What is Yacht Expo?
Yacht Expo is a 2-day event hosted by Sea Ray at their Sykes Creek facility in Merritt Island, Florida. All, or most of the coming year’s Yacht and Sport Yacht models are on display. This isn’t a car show for boats where the attendees stand behind the velvet rope and look at but can’t touch the displays. All the boats are in the water and are available for tours, inspection and demo rides during the 2-day event. This photo was taken before the 390DA, the 410DA, the 450DA and the 500DA arrived from Palm Coast with the European journalists aboard:
For the dealers, this is a real selling opportunity because no dealer has many big boats in stock to show customers.
For Sea Ray, even though Yacht Expo is a lot of work and a huge expense, it gives their management an opportunity to connect with the customers in a way not possible by any other means.
For the customer, you can see and lean more about the boats that you ever will at the dealer’s store. Sea Ray staffs each boat with a Captain and one or more helpers to assist customers and answer questions. My impression is that the average dealer’s salesman is pretty much clueless about the new boats, but these factory guys build them and they know every nut, bolt and screw on them. You will get your questions answered by honest and knowledgeable people who’s propriety is only your being satisfied as a customer as opposed to just getting your signature on a buyers in order to make the commission on your sale.
Who attends Yacht Expo?
While Yacht Expo is an invitation only event, getting an invitation is not difficult. You must get your invitation from your Sea Ray or Meridian dealer. When you arrive at Yacht Expo, you will resister where you are given an attendee’s badge that allows admission to all of the events and activities. If you would like to attend next year, just go see your dealer and ask about Yacht Expo. But remember that the purpose of this event is to sell larger new boats in the Sport Yacht and Yacht category. If you are shopping for a new 18 ft. bowrider or a 1998 370EC, it isn’t likely that you will be invited.
What Can I Expect at Yacht Expo?
I found this event to have a very relaxed and laid-back atmosphere. Dress is casual. The Sea Ray folks are there to see that you have a good time and will answer any and every question presented to them. However, while this is a social occasion, it is also a serious selling event. Your dealer will do his best to sell boats during Expo. Sales offices are provided for private discussions with prospects. If there is pressure put on customers, it is done by the dealer’s sales people, not by Sea Ray.
From the customer’s perspective, this is probably your best opportunity to buy a boat at your price. The difference between Yacht Expo and you local area boat show is that Sea Ray’s decision (deal) makers, as well as those from your dealership, are here and they won’t be at a local boat show. Boat sales are typically soft during the winter months and that translates into dealer cash flow problems and production voids in the factories. Soft sales at the dealer and open plant capacity means un-recovered overhead and operating losses. It is, therefore, in everyone’s best interest to sell up the open wintertime capacity, even if it must be done at break-even prices. Sea Ray makes dealer concessions at Yacht Expo that you won’t find at any other time of the year. That isn’t to say that you won’t get a good deal on a new boat at other times, but it does mean that if your dealer can commit for production slots in Jan, Feb, and March, he is a lot more likely to get some help from Sea Ray to make your deal happen at Yacht Expo………..and if it takes a little arm twisting to get you off the fence and committed, well, you might as well get ready.
The Schedule
As a media representative, I attended media day, which was for the print media guys to do performance runs on the new boats and to get their photography done before the customers arrived on Day 1:
We were on the boats all day running and photographing them. The photography was done from boat to boat and by using a helicopter to get the running shots from above. One of the most fascinating things I saw was a Bell Jet Ranger Helicopter flying about 4 ft. off the water, sideways and backwards down the ICW 50 ft. or less away from the boat running at 35+ kts:
We are on a 450DB running 35 kts and the helicopter is not passing; he is in a stationary position relative to the boat……flying sideways.
The European writers’ subject was the mid-sized cruisers, the 410DA, the 450DA and the 450DB. The 450DB was in the center, with the 410 and 450DA’s on either side with the helicopter above, photographing all 3 boats. Here is the 410DA:
Here is the 450DA on the other side:
This is the morning that the customers arrive. Everyone is cleaning boats or tending to last minute details:
The customers begin arriving around noon on the first day. From noon on, people are looking at boats, looking at the static displays from Cummins-Mercruiser, Raymarine, MAN, Kenyon, IMTRA, and other component vendors. The demo rides begin about 2PM on the first day.
The Sykes Creek facility has its own marina with room for several boats in the process of finishing up their assembly. The in-process boats that were not yet finished were moved to a near-by marina for Yacht Expo. There is a very narrow channel connecting the Sykes Creek marina basin to a barge canal that runs between the ICW and Port Canaveral. Here is a series of demo rides just leaving the Sykes Creek marina:
Traffic jam in the barge canal as the 610DA, a 410DA and a 540DA await entry to the Sykes Creek marina:
When daylight runs out, the demo rides stop, but the customers continue looking at the boats and the party begins, while management regroups for tomorrow:
The final day is pretty much more of the same. Attendance is greater and the boats are more crowded, but the activities are the same……look at new boats, take demo rides on the models the customer chooses, look at static displays from engine makers distributors, electronics, lighting, and other component vendors, and, oh yes, write a deposit check for your brand new Sea Ray! As the day ends, Sea Ray hosts a dinner for Yacht Expo attendees:
The boats in-process are moved out to make room for the Yacht Expo dinner and program.
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