HSI Data: Participation increased, awareness remained strong and consumer engagement improved despite ongoing market challenges
The June Discover Boating Health Score Index (HSI) recorded a lower overall score than May. Yet several underlying indicators — boating participation, consumer awareness and engagement with boating marketing — moved in a different direction. As your dealership tries to understand future demand, those indicators help tell a more complete story than the index figure drop alone.
What June Health Score Index Shows
The June HSI measured 71, down 11 points from May and 29 points below the March 2024 baseline of 100. According to NMMA, the decline reflects continued pressure across the recreational marine market, along with the intentional testing and optimization efforts Discover Boating has been conducting throughout the season.
While the overall score declined, key indicators continued moving in a positive direction:
- Market visibility remained above benchmark levels.
- Participation exceeded benchmark levels and increased 15 percentage points from May.
- Target audience reach improved for the fourth consecutive month.
- Discover Boating’s marketing campaigns continued generating stronger consumer engagement.
- More consumers took meaningful next steps after interacting with Discover Boating content.
These positive trends means there’s momentum for the industry. Consumers continue engaging with boating, participating on the water and exploring opportunities to get involved in the boating lifestyle.
Why June’s Health Score Changed
June marked the conclusion of the first phase of Discover Boating’s second Test & Learn campaign. The objective was to determine whether advertising tailored to a consumer’s interests would outperform standard advertising creative. The campaign produced measurable gains.
Compared with standard advertising, the tailored approach generated:
- A 28% increase in visits to DiscoverBoating.com
- A 13% increase in highly engaged consumers who clicked through to NMMA member websites
The June HIS report also showed growth in consumers moving deeper into the boating journey after engaging with Discover Boating content.
When compared with May 2026:
- Referrals to dealer websites increased 46%.
- Referrals to manufacturer websites increased 97%.
- Referrals to rental operator websites increased 173%.
Those actions suggest consumers continue researching products, brands and boating experiences even as broader market conditions remain challenging. Additionally, the report also highlighted a decline in search trends, which is not uncommon in the age of artificial intelligence. It fell below benchmark levels for the first time in two quarters. NMMA noted that changing online habits may be influencing that metric, as consumers increasingly use AI-powered search tools instead of traditional search engines when seeking information.
Why Dealers Should Pay Attention
June’s report may seem contradictory if your only focus is on sales activity. But remember, participation increased, consumer engagement improved and awareness was strong despite the HSI decline. That critical to understand, because the Health Score Index is designed to measure what happens before consumers enter a dealership.
Discover Boating’s role is not to generate immediate sales and leads. Its role is to help introduce new consumers to boating, build awareness and encourage participation. Dealers, manufacturers and other industry stakeholders then help consumers continue their journey. June’s results suggest consumers are still moving through the top of that funnel and discovering boating. They are spending time on the water and also taking actions that indicate continued interest in learning more about the boating lifestyle.
You should not view any HSI report as a future sales predictor. Instead, use the index to monitor whether consumers are entering the market and engaging with boating before they arrive at your dealership.
What Dealers Should Watch Next
As the summer boating season progresses, be aware of:
- Participation levels and on-water activity
- Continued growth in target audience reach
- Consumer engagement trends resulting from Discover Boating marketing efforts
- Results from the next phase of Discover Boating’s media testing
- How awareness and participation trends evolve through the remainder of the season
Month-after-month, those indicators give you additional perspective on how future boating customers are entering the market.
About the Discover Boating HSI
Discover Boating, powered by NMMA and MRAA, developed the Health Score Index to track how consumers are discovering, engaging with and developing interest in recreational boating. The index measures awareness, engagement and participation across the early stages of the customer journey, helping the industry better understand market momentum over time.
Learn More
New to the HSI? Explore MRAA’s growing collection of Health Score Index resources, previous monthly updates and educational content on the MRAA Discover Boating Health Score Index resource page. Read the April and May updates.
Dealers can also review the complete June report, dashboard, FAQs and webinar resources on Discover Boating’s https://b2b.discoverboating.com/health-score.aspx.
