Tennis NRA. Biking Golf. Food Boating. Skiing Hiking

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1 2020 Vision Session The Scuba Show: Long Beach California June 8, Vision in late 2013 and 2014 changed* slightly from previously-conducted brainstorming sessions, (*see 2020 Vision Session Results below). Two questions were asked: What are (at least) five things the diving industry can do to bring inactive divers back into diving? What are (at least) five things the diving industry can do to bring in a younger consumer audience? The following ideas and processes were discussed at the Long Beach Scuba Show: What are (at least) five things the diving industry can do to bring inactive divers back into diving? TOP PRIORITIES 1. Initiatives with non-diving recreational activities and markets that attract a similar customer. AARP Tennis NRA Biking Golf Food Boating Skiing Hiking Beer 2. Finance from the bottom up Place marketing dollars into dive centers to encourage them to conduct refreshers for inactive divers Target and build relationships with resorts such as Sandals who are engaged with potential customers that may wish to return to diving Ask the manufacturers to share their warranty database to target previous consumers 3. Create heroes, mentors and media leaders It should look like adventure. Facilities may need to use a segmented approach that includes the ability to reach younger divers and previously certified (or older) divers Seek out non-divers using celebrities Movies, sports, educational, political More influence in news and media 4. Bring a Grand Kid initiative. Make it look cool to ask for assistance with aging and diving. Generation skipping go for the grandparents who do have money and time Family friendly resort primarily US not offshore Make the grandparent feel it is safe to do this with their grandkids 5. Get diving out in the media Using social media and other inexpensive channels ie: #TBT use non-diving activity channels Bring back heroes Create positive feeds instead of yielding to the negative press that diving injuries or shark attacks brings. Target single parents who has custody of the kids? Find the tribe leaders and influencers using social media, blogs, etc Page 1 of 5

2 Other ideas brainstormed by this group: It is important to understand why divers are inactive? Was it a bad experience, no time, no buddy, no equipment, medical, family, etc? What is an active diver? Dive once/year? Why did they get certified in the first place? Since inactive divers are out of the community a new communication channel is needed Must find a way to ease the inactive diver back in Get out of the mind-set that the diving environment is degrading (no fish, ocean is dying, etc) Budget-focused via health clubs, resorts (normal, non-diving), go beyond diving diving is interesting and has lots to offer Diving is considered a third world sport fix from the bottom up, not top down, put dollars into dive centers (e.g.: you have $5k to conduct refreshers this year). Divers were typically certified 10 years ago o Churn typically 36 months o Diving is boring o Nothing interesting for younger people o Go where those people are - #TBT Facebook, years ago they were interested, now need to generate fresh interest again o US diving is good why are we going offshore/out of country? Key West passport, Cayman 365 sites, NPS stamps for their sites o Divers are aging Dan Orr s talks are seeing the average age of 60 Engage previous divers o Similar to the ski industry women teaching women, young teaching young, watch trainer with customer o Will people go to a dive center? They will pay $150 for 2 hours on a jet ski, but won t pay $500 for a scuba course or the dollars for kit o Diving is expensive we have devolved it why should it not be an elite sport? o Generational skipping take a grandkid to dive o Initiative with AARP o Golf is dying o Free refresher course for everyone possibly in the winter for off-season. It needs to be a full refresher course but saying full scares them away o There is not enough time spent to build a relationship o Not enough stores providing clubs o Kids attention span is 20 minutes o There is a belief that if you build it they will come. No they won t. o Build adventure o Stepping stone to your diving future o 10 years ago it was EANx now it is take pictures and go deeper o Way to a common core with all divers, all training agencies provide data for participants to a neutral 3 rd party o We want you back diving o The Silver Tsunami Page 2 of 5

3 What are (at least) five things the diving industry can do to bring in a younger consumer audience? 1. Sea Scouts Scuba Ship Through Boy Scouts of America year olds (co-ed) DEMA partners with Scouts to get the word out 2. Outreach to YMCA s Summer programs After-school programs Mentor kids without money Cross-over from swim to scuba Ask DEMA members to make a donation to reach out to youth Ask exhibitors to add on a $50 (or whatever) donation for this program Or DEMA collaborate to help create this program so that others could participate Include a DEMA window cling for donors ( We donate to the DEMA Youth Scuba Program ) 3. Social media training (DEMA Sponsored) that includes some sort of recognition help ensure that social media is effective and consistent Other ideas brainstormed by this group: Sponsor Sea Scout Scuba Ship Introduce a young role model. Advertise on young audience channels better promotion and positive message! Teach after school classes (outreach?) to both kids and teachers Incentives for instructors to teach kids Crossover from swim classes to scuba Create some kind of recognition for kids when they complete training Pp development for a younger audience Create a mentoring program Use social media to promote twitter/facebook/instagram/blog Target grandparents with grandkids (AARP) Family messaging Kids without family support Orthodoxies Orthodoxies are deeply seated beliefs of how things are done around here. The groups were asked to write down industry or association orthodoxies (whether true or not). A list was developed: DEMA show is driven by the travel industry DEMA only talks, never does Male dominated Good old boys club Lack of focus on local diving DEMA is only a show DEMA doesn t keep up with changes DEMA show doesn t highlight new manufacturers properly Companies need to buy 10 booth spaces to be taken seriously by DEMA Page 3 of 5

4 Dive News Wire, Gene industry, Scuba Radio you buy it but they support mom and pop companies Environmental sharks, sharks we know about them need to love another animal DEMA doesn t tell us what is going on Waste at the show not much recycling takes place- need to support charities at the end of the show Public ought to have access on the last day of DEMA Show Kids should be allowed on the DEMA trade show floor DEMA should have a booth at a gun show DEMA Show is an east coast west coast show DEMA is inefficient DEMA markets to Baby Boomers DEMA markets to tweenies There is no innovation in the diving industry Show timing is wrong to introduce new products Perception of the industry is not good Interaction between stores, manufacturers and instructors is fragmented and problematic Barriers exist between buyers at the show (to get in) and sellers *2020 Vision Session Results The sessions conducted in late 2013 and 2014 marked a departure from previous sessions where previous general questions about how to grow the diving industry were discussed. Previous brainstorm questions included; what five things do you see changing or want to see change in the diving industry; what are your priorities; how does the industry get there?. Since the beginning of these 2020 Session good ideas to grow the industry have been generated, and to the extent possible the DEMA Board has acted to implement practical suggestions, including: Sell the Diving Lifestyle along with dive travel. Support & develop professional retailers and their staff Create various benefits for retailers, including health insurance and other benefits Adapt to new media and use social media Make dive travel easier Put the "edge" back in diving make it more exciting Promote to a younger audience Create a positive first experience for divers Provide a local purpose to dive after certification (Promote and use Local Diving ). Promote diving using an environmental slant DEMA has taken steps to implement new programs from those 2020 Vision ideas. Programs implemented to date include: DEMA member access to health insurance coverage (available in all 50 US States) Local diving programs Diving for Texas Treasure Challenge, DiveCaching. Literally hundreds of dives have occurred and hundreds of divers have participated in these activities Utilize the concept of Public Service Announcements (PSA s) to inexpensively promote recreational diving utilizing such diverse topics as using the Dive Flag (partnered with the Safe Boating Association. Page 4 of 5

5 Home-grow a diving celebrity to help promote diving so that they are affordable for the diving industry. As part of the PSA efforts, DEMA contacted the band Youngblood Hawke, a VH1 Band You Oughta Know for March, VH1 has a segmented audience, reaching a younger crowd at certain times of the day and an older audience during others. As the members of Youngblood Hawke were just becoming involved in diving, DEMA utilized the opportunity to bring them into the professional community they have since become certified divers, and have used their appearance in the antishark finning PSA to promote diving (as well as them-selves). Reaching out to young people by creating DEMA s Deep Ambitions Aquatic Career Fair and Science Educator Day. These two programs have staged at DEMA Show as well as through consumer dive shows such as Our World Underwater. The concept is to expose high school children to careers which include diving, covering everything from fire and police dive teams to marine biology and underwater photographer. Professionals in these fields speak directly to the kids on site at the consumer show; kids hear about exciting careers and then get to tour the show and see diving equipment, destinations and more. Science teachers from the same school also have an opportunity to learn how they can use diving to teach science to their students; teachers can use diving to provide practical examples of physics, physiology, marine biology and more. DEMA has worked with schools in this capacity since To develop a true understanding and baseline of the current demographic and to understand the shift needed to reach a younger audience, developed research of the current demographic in five different diving activities (open water certification, continuing education/certifications, equipment purchasers, travelers to dive resortbased locations, travelers who went diving on liveaboard boats). Provided numerous educational programs on social media for the industry, many conducted at DEMA Show. Page 5 of 5