Case Study 1

The boating industry in WA has suffered a marked downturn in the last 2 years as a result of the flood of cheap second hand boats from the USA. Some of these boats have been of poor quality but the volume was enough to cause a significant reduction in the price of second hand boats sourced locally.

Our client asked Solutions Base for help to tailor a solution for his business that would generate:

• Increased turnover
• Increased awareness of his brokerage
• Improved systems and reporting

Given the market conditions the budget was limited and the business was operated by the owner. Solutions Base worked with the owner to develop a Strategic Plan for the business, a first for his fledgling company. From the plan a number of proposals were implemented to achieve the goals listed above.

For example:

• Telemarketing provided a cost effective method that increased the number of listings and consequently the volume of sales. It also increased the awareness of the company in the boating market;
• Internal systems were improved and a simple weekly Profit and Loss report was implemented that would enable the owner to monitor the company’s performance more closely and in a more timely manner.
• A newsletter was developed to be emailed to customers on the company’s database

The Strategic Plan also provided a detailed SWOT analysis of the business which lead to a number of other proposals going forward. Russell Higginson, the owner of the business under review said that the involvement of Solutions Base has been ‘…integral to the improved performance of my business and has more than paid for itself. I would have no hesitation in recommending Solutions Base to any company searching for cost effective tailored solutions to the issues facing its business”.