Not only has this framework worked for me, when we bought our first boat 10 years ago, but here is a story about Stephen, who was in the same position recently, and look at the transformation he's had in just 6 short months.
- First time boat buyer, expat, 3 kids
- Wanted to look at buying a boat
- Insistent that he was the hardest bargainer ever and that was of utmost importance to him
- Had a USD70k budget, it was initially less but he progressively increased it
- He didn’t know whether he wanted flybridge, no-flybridge, 28’ or 48’ and had no idea what it cost to own a boat, he didn’t even have his licence
- He was ‘just browsing’ and initially didn’t want to engage with us, he thought we were brokers for the owner. We are buyer's advisers, also called a buyer's broker.
- He soon realized we would introduce him to the whole market and work with him through the 9 step blueprint
- Soon Stephen was getting super excited, he’d got his licence and he’d got his bonus. He wanted to move fast
- But, I sat down with him at Step 5, pulled out the ‘8 Costly Boat Buying Mistakes’ one-pager and stepped him through them one by one
- His risk area was he that may be jumping in way too fast
- He had to slow down and finish the steps one by one
- We found and negotiated for him, an amazing deal. The two brokers that had the boat listed didn't even want to present the offer to the owner. They were too scared of what the owner would say as it was a great deal for Stephen
- Do you know what the boat owner said when William called him? He exclaimed "Are you bringing me the best news I am going to hear all year, do you have an offer for me?"
- William said yes. He explained Stephen's situation, his family dreams and hopes, the children, the boating lifestyle – his budget (which was lower than the boat value)
- The owner said, : that’s exactly how I was when I first started boating. That’s OK, I’ll take that offer"
- Stephen's family took delivery. Stephen said to William ‘I am the hero in my family. My kids love me and my wife loves me. I never thought I would ever own such a boat. I am beyond happy’
- We worked through all the framework steps with Stephen, and unlocked those boat ownership and boat buying secrets. He got the full picture, and a deal of a lifetime.
This is what he said... (thank you Stephen)...