YachtWorld is proud to be closely associated with The Association of Brokers and Yacht Agents (ABYA) on many levels, working together to achieve professional brokerage in all areas of the industry. For this years annual conference, ABYA invited YachtWorld as a guest speaker to put the case for the internet in a “Print vs Internet” debate. The setting was the impressive RNLI College in Poole.

Alastair Walton (European Sales Manager at YachtWorld.com) presented to a packed room of yacht brokers, offering an insight in to why potential boat buyers use the web to carry out their research and looking at the significant impact this has had on the way we trade today. Alastair also highlighted some of the features available to brokers to help them service this demand, and offered a sneek preview on some of the products coming soon to a screen near you! 

The case for print was put forward by Mike Shepherd of the newly-formed Marine Advertising Agency. Mike’s experience comes from a long career with IPC Marine Media, publishers of titles such as Motor Boat & Yachting and Yachting Monthly.

A lively debate followed the presentations, with good questions posed to both speakers from the attending brokers. The general consensus was that a balance of both mediums was important in order to retain a strong market presence and that achieving this online was easier than many brokers often percieve. What exactly the balance should be for individual businesses depends heavily on the type of buyers it was pursuing and the budget available to achieve it.

Should anyone like a copy of the presentations given, please email [email protected] or contact Jane Gentry at ABYA on +44 (0)1730 266430.