When is it ok to 'cheat'

[Sailvi767]

There are a lot of good brands out there. The Nautiques are superb! All the inboard dealers however use a territory system. 

[JeffC]

@skyskierNo worries...  think I get your point.  At the end of the day, I think we all want the ability to choose the product we want, and buy it the WAY we want.   I would think that Malibu (or anyone selling a big ticket item like a boat) SHOULD want a strategy to provide product to the market in as effective a way as possible.  I SUSPECT that they want to establish long term relationships with customers, but it isnt very effective it you price yourself out of the market using territory selling, and never get the sale in the first place.  Trust me, I didnt WANT to pay more for the boat, but I do have a dealer with a good reputation, and IMHO, my trade-off will work FOR ME.   Sorry if I came off a little strong, as you can probably tell, I have been burned before in my career

@granddaddy55 I dont think my logic says you HAVE to change to a different brand... but I also would not be happy with the service you got, and if I were buying new again, I probably would change brands - in MY case, mostly because I do not want to take the down time associated with bad service, OR having to take the boat a long distance to get it serviced.  The next closest dealer to me (Colorado) is either in Wyoming, or New Mexico.   For me that means if I am getting warranty service, it is Tommy's, or ... Nothing. Fundamental to my point of view is the idea that I dont want to risk long delays getting the boat serviced... my season is way too short - so my choice to buy local at a higher price was because I believe (rightly or wrongly) that:

• The guy I worked with did the work to earn my business
• That the relationship with the dealer will get me better service
• That the price I got was FAIR, but not cheap (I was comparing a 2016 leftover vs a custom order 2017)

My last boat was a Crownline.   It was too old for me to ever need warranty service, but it was a great boat.   From a brand perspective, Crownline was in good standing with me, but I would not buy a new one because the closest dealer is in Kansas City.  I will not drag the boat that far for warranty service, even once or twice a year, there are too many other GOOD alternatives out there.   Were I in the used market (out of warranty), I would consider Crownline because I have a lot of choices where to have it serviced (including my own work in my own driveway, and a very talented marine mechanic that I already have a history with).

To be clear, I still dont think there is such a thing as "cheating" on your dealer.   We are all free to buy what we want, where we want it, at the best price we can negotiate.  Just IMHO, there is more to the cost of owning the boat than JUST the purchase price, and some of those things that cant easily be monetized (like the value to ME of losing 2 or 3 weekends out of a short summer).   Again, my situation is my situation alone... and my decision would not be right for everyone. 

 

[DarkSide]

I have felt both ways on this topic.  I agree with support your local dealer, within reason.  There are not enough boat sales to keep some dealerships open if they only sell a few boats and are forced into razor thin margins.  

The other side of the coin is the dealer should provide excellent service AND value the repeat customer.   Sometimes dealers get complacent, and do not try as hard to earn/retain your business.   

Periodically it is good to shop at another brand or another dealer of the same brand.  When you have a small dealer they have no choice but to have higher margins because they can't make it up in volume.  The larger dealers, have the luxury of choice! 1. higher margins and potentally losing sales to other brands or dealers,  or 2. lower margins and make it up in volume from other brands or dealers.  

My experience is the volume dealer will value the repeat customer more as it helps maintain their volume.  Where the higher margins dealer would rather lose a customer than shrink margins multiple times.   

Neither is wrong, you just have to decide what is right for you.   If you go through boats/cars/trucks fast find a volume dealer.  If you keep stuff for years,  the margin dealer may be a better fit.