Top 10 ways that Marine Merchants are doing it differently and making waves

The marine world is a million (nautical) miles away from anything else in retail, and working in it, we have to know our SUP boards from our surfboards, and our winches from our windlasses. But it's an industry we adore.

So, how are marine companies standing out in this market?

Large Catalogues that are easy to navigate

Marine business stocks a huge range of products. Manufacturers will not just sell the end-products, but also the parts that make them, like the screws and washers too. That's tens or even hundreds of thousands of products to navigate.

To stop customers from feeling lost at sea, careful use of navigation, categorisation and intelligent search is paramount to help a customer navigate your store.

Products can have hundreds of different technical details to contend with. Watertight Marine brands let customers easily filter down to the exact part they need, and see side by side comparisons of products to find the right one for their needs.

Well-chosen integrations to manage Product Information

Marine brands all operate differently so an eCommerce platform that can be completely tailored to start simple and grow with the business is vital. Most Marine brands pick Magento as the open-source and feature-rich tool for the job.

Contending with complex product sets and international distribution requires the right tools for the job. Integrations with tools such as Microsoft Dynamics give marine businesses the tools to succeed. Tight integrations with eCommerce platforms are key to keeping everyone sailing smoothly.

High-quality product imagery without a reduction in pagespeed

Marine brands are uniquely gifted with stunning images, showing sunny horizons and beautiful seas, but all too often, the technical detail gets in the way of the aspiration.

It's a constant balancing act between form and function that marine brands must walk carefully.

Using lifestyle imagery thoughtfully around the site keeps customers engaged with the end result instead of being bogged down in tables.

Images must be sized perfectly for the end-user's device to avoid sites getting slow. We use tools like Storyblok to perfectly size every image for customers, leaving them to just upload and keep going about business-as-usual.

Simplify buying Spares and Replacement Parts

The complexity of marine products means that many require numerous parts, such as the fixings for a winch or the rubber seal for a portlight. 

Marine brands may not sell just complete items but also the parts of these items to ensure the longevity of their product range. These parts are typically sold in ‘kits’, with the various products linked together. 

These kits can be complex, with detailed specifications, so merchants should enable these spares and kits to be clearly shown for the specific products in a user-friendly way, with technical guides alongside the products.

Don't forget the end consumer

B2B brands don’t sell directly to the public, but often just have one website that is inaccessible to non logged-in users.  The best way to stand out in this industry, whilst reducing the risk of alienating potential future customers, is to have two versions of your website. 

Rather than hiding everything away, smart marine brands show a brochure style website to end-consumers, allowing them to learn about the products showcased with high-quality editorial content,  search functionality for products and technical guides readily available for any product, whilst simultaneously selling the expertise and workmanship of the brand.

A simple trade login transforms sites into a transactional site with customised pricing per company, live stock information from global warehouses and delivery information. To go the extra mile and stand out, B2B marine brands should have adaptations to show unique pricing for varying customer groups.  

By keeping the websites together and seeing it as a whole entity, development efforts are reduced, and everyone gets to experience the same beautiful store.

Let B2B brands buy fast

The classic model of searching for a product and adding it to the cart works great for B2C brands, but for B2B brands that know exactly what they want, this can be a slow process.

Let customers order in a way that works for them. Many marine brands let customers upload a spreadsheet of all the products they need, straight from their system and order it in just a couple of clicks.

Stock information and pricing should be instantly accessible after import to let customers see all the key details before placing their order.

Let trade customers get key details quickly

Trade customers require different information from a typical eCommerce customer. Marine brands need to build dashboards that can handle complex orders, provide customers with unique pricing, previous purchase lists, and backend complexities such as warranty claims and historic order information. 

These customers have likely ordered thousands of products over a considerable time period, and portals that are user-friendly and simple to navigate are key to standing out.

Marine specific checkout process

B2B businesses often already store shipping addresses and let customers pay on invoice, making a standard checkout process unnecessary, slowing down orders from busy customers.

Using a customisable platform like Magento lets Marine companies hone in every step to reduce friction and build an experience tailored to their customers. This will speed up the process considerably for customers and service teams alike. 

Picking the best Platform for their business

One size doesn’t fit all, and marine brands that wish to stand out need to use the best platform for their unique business requirements. 

Here, we are biased towards Magento with Hyvä, as we believe it outperforms other platforms in terms of speed, functionality and customisation. 

Marine stores will benefit from using Magento to provide a robust eCommerce platform, as it can handle complex catalogues. It also allows a marine brand to match its website to its unique company style and branding, as every part can be customised to match the needs of the business.

Magento can handle gigantic catalogues of millions of products with ease, allowing for exceptional growth, with the ability to integrate absolutely anything with it, giving a strategic edge. On top of this, it can handle multiple languages, currencies and brands all under the same site.

Hyvä also provides a solid foundation for fast development, outstanding site performance straight out of the box, and a simplified, modern programming structure. It can be built quickly by developers and assists brands with a global reach, as it's super lightweight and is therefore adaptable to changing internet speeds globally.