WRITTEN BY: Rob Bowman
Apr 25, 2019 
There can be some confusion in the boating industry when it comes to exactly how professional brokerage firms will market your yacht for sale. At SI Yachts, we truly believe in providing the maximum amount of exposure possible for your boat. When a boat owner signs a listing agreement with a broker, the understanding is that the said broker will do everything in their power to market the vessel professionally, which includes trying to sell it as quickly as possible and for as much money as possible. Anything less would certainly be a disservice to the customer.
"We have a full-time marketing staff including one of the top yachting industry marketing consultants. We invest heavily in print advertisements, digital marketing, boats shows, events, and more. Our exposure for our brokerage listings is among the top 5 firms in the industry." - Jay Hendrix, Vice President of SI Yachts.
When your yacht becomes part of the SI Yachts Diamond Listing Program, it is entered into the two largest marine industry MLS (Multiple Listing Services) databases - BoatWizard and IYBA. This is very similar to real estate in how an agent will take photos of a home and enter it into the real estate MLS so that every other agent can see it and it will appear on various websites. The same thing happens with yachts. When a boat is entered into BoatWizard, it then shows up on Yachtworld.com and various other partner websites. the IYBA MLS is managed by the International Yacht Brokers Association and is an industry platform and feeds all its approved listings to a variety of websites.
Now, when a broker takes on your listing they have the option to send that listing to other brokerage firm websites. Yachts listed with us not only show up on Yachtworld.com and SIYachts.com, but also on "Broker A's" website, "Broker B's website", etc. Sometimes this will result in another brokerage firm finding a buyer for that yacht, a transaction takes place, and the resulting commission is split between the brokers and the brokerage firms. Some brokers choose not to open their listings up to feed around these boating MLS networks in fear that they may lose out on half of that commission even though it is not truly the best thing for their client.
Question #1 to ask your broker: Will my listing appear on other yacht brokerage firm websites?
If the answer is no, either that brokerage firm does not believe in feeding their boats to other brokerage firm websites, doesn't want to split the commission with another broker, or they aren't members of all the organizations. In any case, it is in your best interest to list your yacht with a firm that does.
Question #2 to ask your broker: How quickly will my boat get online?
At SI Yachts, we promote your listing before there is even professional photography taken. We believe in getting your boat online and advertised to our social media followers and the other brokers in the industry as quickly as possible. Many times there is a potential buyer waiting for the right model or looking for specific options on a boat that will submit an offer just as it comes on the market. We don't believe in wasting valuable time while we are setting up a professional photo shoot for your boat. This results in both a happy new owner and a satisfied seller.
(Seen below: Our brokerage industry and client database email communications that go out to over 13,000 potential buyers.)
Question #3 to ask your broker: Are you going to post my yacht on social media? If so, are you going to spend money on a social media ad?
If you're one of the 200,000 people on social media in the last 30 days that has seen one of our featured posts, then you know that when you list your boat with SI Yachts, we are going to feature it on our Facebook, Instagram, and other social media site pages.
The example above was posted and advertised to men and women that live in a specific geographic area, are of an age that they can buy a yacht, and have shown tendencies online to be interested in yachting as a hobby. When your yacht is a diamond listing with SI Yachts, we use every means necessary to showcase your boat to as many targeted people as possible. This post above reached over 20,000 people and resulted in over 1,300 visitors to the listing on our website. If you haven't already, make sure you follow us on Facebook at: https://www.facebook.com/SIYACHTS
Question #4 to ask your broker: Exactly how much are you going to spend marketing my yacht?
A lot of brokerage firms tout the size of their marketing budget, but what percentage of that advertising is really going to market your specific listing? When a yacht brokerage firm also is a stocking new boat dealer, there is a considerable financial investment made both in terms of purchasing the boats, maintaining the boats until sold, and acquiring trades. It's only natural that the business focus on moving those boats first instead of the brokerage listings on the market. Unfortunately for the owner, that means the marketing focus ends up being on those boats as well.
At SI Yachts, we will show you exactly how we are going to market YOUR listing right down to the dollar amount. We have in-depth marketing reports that show exactly how many people have looked at your boat online and what potential buyers have contacted us for information. It's our goal to never have you as the owner, wondering about the activity or the financial commitment we've made to sell your listing.
SI Yachts is a new boat dealer for brands like Viking Yachts, Princess Yachts, Prestige Yachts, Absolute Yachts, and HCB Center-Consoles, yet we find that having these brands supplements our brokerage activity. Only 15% of boat buyers purchase a new boat, so many inquiries we receive on new yachts end up purchasing one of our brokerage listings.
"Our sales team has a combined 160 years of experience listing and selling yachts. It's hard to find that kind of tenure, success, and brain-power anywhere in the industry." - Jay Hendrix, VP of SI Yachts.
(Seen below: A professional video shot of one of our listings (now sold), a 2017 Princess 68MY)
Question #5 to ask your broker: Does your company take in trades on brokerage listings?
Most yacht brokerage firms are either unwilling or financially unable to take a trade on a brokerage deal. Ask most brokers this question and they will either say 'No' or refer you to a company that buys boats at wholesale prices. At SI Yachts, we have the ability and are willing to take a trade on a brokerage boat and we invest more than a wholesaler might offer. Our goal is to make our clients happy and keep them as customers for their boating life.
For more information about the SI Yachts Diamond Listing program, please visit our Why List Your Yacht page.
