DEMA’s BE A DIVER POOL GETS MAJOR NETWORK COVERAGE IN JANUARY
Major Network TV Coverage Exposes Scuba Diving to More Than 2.2 Million Viewers
San Diego, Calif. – (January 28, 2008) – Continuing to demonstrate its value as an acquisition tool and a consumer awareness program, DEMA's Be A Diver Pool got off to a great start at its first stop of 2008. At the New York Adventures in Travel Expo on January 5th and 6th, the Be A Diver Pool proved very popular by giving hundreds of people the chance to try scuba diving firsthand and attracting local TV crews to film on-site, bringing scuba diving into the homes of millions of people. DEMA member stores also had the opportunity to sell scuba courses and merchandise by promoting directly to these potential customers at the event.
The eight stores involved in the stop each created promotions to attract customers to their stores. Some stores provided participants with a coupon offering time-sensitive benefits for taking an open water certification course. These DEMA member retail stores demonstrated that, by working together they could promote diving to the entire audience at the Travel Expo. The excitement of the event was seen in several underwater television spotsonWNYW-TV Good Day NY, which has a viewing audience of potential customers that fits the DEMA Be A Diver target consumer group.
“When people came to us at the Be A Diver Pool, many said ‘we saw this on TV this morning and we’ve always wanted to try scuba diving,’” said David Riscinti, owner of Blue Water Divers in New Jersey. “Because of the media attention the pool received and with the help of our group of stores, we were able to give them that opportunity.”
Saturday morning found Big Wave Dave and Don Brown, owner of Ski and Scuba Connections in Connecticut outside the CBS National Morning Show window in wetsuits and holding “Be A Diver” banners. When weatherman Lonnie Quinncame out to do the weather and conduct the interview, once again Dave proved he would do just about anything to promote diving; he ended the segment by jumping into the icy cold waters of the fountainwhile holding up his banner. With an “atta boy” laugh of appreciation, Quinn exhorted everyone to “Be a Diver.”
“I was very pleased with the amount of camera time we got,” said Don Brown, owner of the Sea and Scubadive center in Connecticut. “The quality of media exposure was exceptional. Big Wave Dave was given time to say who he was, what he was representing, and invited viewers to try out the Be A Diver pool at the Adventures in Travel Expo. By the end of the segment even the reporter was encouraging viewers to ‘Be A Diver!’”
The excitement seen in the television spots, the enthusiasm of the reporters, and the level of participation by potential customers at the Adventures in Travel Expo, all point to the power of carefully targeting this specific customer for the diving industry. These two television segments, plus a third on WCBS-TV,reached a total audience of 2,287,136viewers and had a PR value of $476,433.
Making stops throughout the year at various consumer-oriented travel, outdoor activity and adventure shows, the Be A Diver Pool gives anyone age 10 and up the opportunity to discover the fun and exciting sport of scuba diving in the comfort of a tropically warm 25,000-gallon pool, and provides DEMA member retailers with the opportunity to gain students in future scuba classes. Event attendees not only have the opportunity to try scuba diving for free, but also to test out some of the latest scuba equipment provided on-site and have a photo of themselves taken underwater that can be created into an everlasting keepsake. At each event, equipment is provided and the Be A Diver Pool is staffed by diving professionals from local DEMA member retail stores. Those who take the plunge need not worry about getting wet, since the Scuba Tour provides wetsuits, towels, hair dryers and mirrors.
Over the past nine years DEMA's Be A DiverPool(formerly the Scuba Tour) has introduced more than 75,000 people to scuba diving and has generated more than $7.5 million in sales of dive equipment, travel and certifications. Independent media audits indicate that in the past two years alone the Pool has garnered over $13 million in media and public relations value for DEMA members and the recreational diving industry.
DEMA, the Diving Equipment & Marketing Association, is an international organization dedicated to the promotion and growth of the recreational scuba diving and snorkeling industry. With more than 1,600 members, this non-profit, global organization promotes scuba diving through many initiatives including consumer awareness programs, media campaigns and sponsorship of DEMA Show, a trade event open only to companies doing business in the scuba diving, action water sports and adventure/dive travel industries. DEMA Show 2008 will take place October 22-25 in Las Vegas, NV. For more information on DEMA, call 858-616-6408 or visit