professionals. They may have teenage or adult children. They may be caring for aging parents. They may have significant purchasing power, but very limited time. For many Gen X consumers, the question isn’t necessarily, “Can I afford to go diving?” It may be, “When am I going to find the time?” They value efficiency, convenience, personal relationships, and experiences that justify the investment of time. Marketing to Gen Xers The key with Gen Xers is to make diving easier. A Gen Xer may already want to dive. The obstacle may be the logistics. How much time will certification take? What equipment do I need? Where do I go? Can my family participate? The more questions the customer has to solve independently, the easier it becomes to postpone the decision. When marketing to people in their mid-40s to early 60s, try these tips: Market convenience. Sell a clear path from online learn- ▪ ing through pool and open water training. Offer packaged experiences. Combine training, equip- ▪ ment rental, boat diving and travel into straightforward packages. Use email well. Provide concise, useful, informative con- ▪ tent, not just sales flyers. Respect their intelligence. Explain features and benefits. ▪ Provide examples of your expertise. Make re-entry easy. Some Gen Xers are divers who set ▪ diving aside while raising a family or focusing on their career. Have a simple plan to invite them back into div- ing. Millennials (1981–1996) Millennials are 30 to 45 years old, and they represent an especially important category for scuba businesses because they’re a traveling bunch. Millennials often respond strongly to experiences with personal meaning, social proof, sustainability, and digital convenience. They want a sense of community that’s convenient to engage in. They value experiences over acquisitions. When marketing to people in their 30s, try these tips: Stop marketing scuba certification as a qualification. ▪ Market it as the gateway to adventure. Show the experience, not just the equipment. Use video ▪ to show what it feels like to descend beneath the surface. Build social proof. Invite reviews, testimonials, and user- ▪ generated content. It can be extraordinarily powerful in winning Millennials. BUSINESS EDU continued
Turn customers into storytellers. Invite them to share ▪ their first dive, first shark, first manta encounter or first international dive trip. Make booking frictionless. Make schedules, prices and ▪ next steps easy to understand online. Generation Z (1997–2012) Gen Z range in age from mid-teens to late-20s. They are the first generation to have grown up entirely in a world of smartphones, social platforms and algorithmically curated content. But here’s an important misconception: Digital native does not mean digital only, because they’re big in- person shoppers who love unique analog experiences. Use digital media to get them into the dive center. Gen Z consumers respond to visual storytelling, interactive (digital and analog) content, creator- and peer-recommended buying. When marketing to people of the Gen Z generation, try these tips: Create short-form video. Show the experience, prepara- ▪ tion, mistakes, excitement and people. Feature real customers. Your customers are already creat- ▪ ing your best marketing material.
If your marketing message isn’t CLEAR, all you’re making
is NOISE. I can help. Hi, I’m Cathryn. I specialize in branding and marketing strategies for the scuba industry. Visit my website for a FREE Brand Messaging Guide. Email me at hello@clearstorycoach.com to schedule a call.
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