There’s no doubt that there are aspects of the marine industry and the individual companies that make it up that are unique compared to other industries and businesses. But exactly how different the factors that drive success in a given marine business vary from a similarly sized business in another industry … well, that’s debatable. […]

In the year and half that has passed since taking on the roll as Lead Certification Consultant, I’ve witnessed a common misunderstanding among many dealers concerning the literal translation of the requirements for Certification. It was bestowed upon me by the MRAA staff and the dealers who sit on our Board of Directors that each […]

During my early days running a dealership and then later at Channel Blade, we constantly made or heard the excuse: “We don’t have time for training. We need to work the phones or sell or fix something.”  We learned later that not dedicating time to training cost us a ton in wasted time! Not to […]

Amidst the monotony of the ongoing political banter and the optimism of a growing economy, you may have missed a troubling report coming out of CNN Money. The report, published just last week, suggests that the American economy may be experiencing the bursting of a retail bubble. Dispute the concept of a retail bubble if […]

Good people are hard to find. This statement is as old as any other business cliché, but it has never been more of a slap in the face for me than it is today. I’m writing this blog as I wait for an interview candidate, who is now more than five minutes late for his […]

Whether you believe in coincidence or not, you’ve probably had an experience like this. A topic comes up. Maybe it’s in conversation, a video or a podcast. You might read it in a book or on a website. And then it comes up again and again and again in the following days and weeks. In […]

We rarely get pushback from dealers on the need for job descriptions. However, this one requirement often slows down a dealer’s completion of their Certification checklist. For some reason, creating and updating job descriptions ranks right up there with cleaning out the head — except when it comes to the person whose job description is […]

My 11-year-old son, Nathan, is at the age where he no longer places an unwavering faith in the words and actions of his parents. Rather, it seems he’s constantly questioning what we do and say, looking for confirmation – and undoubtedly finding it – that we’re the flawed human beings he has recently begun suspecting […]

Following Spader Business Management’s launch of a new type of 20 Group, MRAA’s Liz Walz sat down with John Spader to discuss the impact of 20 Group participation on marine dealers, the thinking behind the new type of group being developed, and the new education and training discounts offered to MRAA Retail Members. Liz Walz […]

What’s YOUR team’s mentality?  In the case of nearly every successful small business, there’s a story of a visionary founder with big dreams of making a difference. Those stories are the epitome of the American dream. Find a niche. Start a business. Become successful. And live happily ever after. Your business likely has that story. […]