Everything You Need To Know About Optimizing Your Yacht For Charter
As a yacht owner, balancing enjoying ownership and maximizing commercial potential can be challenging. The luxury yacht charter market provides an ideal platform to offset the significant costs of ownership. However, optimizing a yacht for a successful charter program requires meticulous planning and strategic decision-making. From choosing the best yacht and location to hiring the perfect crew and leveraging marketing opportunities, there is a lot to consider.
Here, we have put together a comprehensive guide on everything you should know when you consider chartering your yacht:
What Are The Benefits?
Chartering your yacht can provide huge financial and practical advantages. Firstly, chartering lets you offset ownership costs - including maintenance, crew salaries, insurance, and dockage. A well-executed charter program can also help you preserve your yacht's value and help maintain that competitive edge by keeping it in excellent condition.
Notably, the increased utilization also ensures your crew are always engaged and that the yacht remains at the highest standards for when you enjoy the off-charter time. Eventually, if and when you come to sell, with the right approach and support, a charter yacht will also have the added benefit of a proven track record.
The Perfect Yacht
The yacht must be perfect not only for your needs but also for commercial needs; therefore, balancing investment and emotion is key. There are various factors to consider, such as its general condition, extras such as zero-speed stabilizers for guest comfort, a high crew-to-guest ratio for impeccable service, competitive pricing, and the yacht's draft and accessibility to popular cruising grounds such as The Bahamas.
Additionally, it is important to review whether the yacht has a previous charter history, understand its unique selling points, and appeal to prospective clients.
Location, Location, Location
The location of your charter yacht can significantly impact charter bookings and guest preferences. Working with your yacht charter management team, you can identify destinations that align with your personal preferences and are viable for charter.
Certain regions tend to be more popular than others and are season-dependent so this strategic placement can maximize the yacht’s potential.
All The Amenities
Today's luxury yacht charter guests expect a huge selection of amenities to enhance their experience. Watersports and toys are always at the top of this checklist; therefore, ensuring your yacht is well-equipped with the latest and greatest toys is critical. Keeping on top of the toy trends, such as lots of floating inflatables to accompany a vast beach club, new toys such as E-foils, and old favorites like Seabobs and Jet Skis on hand for playtime, is essential. Some of our popular yachts in our fleet that are going above and beyond regarding toys are KING BENJI, REMEMBER WHEN, KOJU, and ALTA, to name a few. Recently, a tow tender has become desirable for most guests and is particularly popular for those charter programs that run diving and fishing trips. Other amenities to consider include a swimming pool, Jacuzzi, large beach club, fitness facility, spa and wellness spaces, and entertainment options onboard.
Hire The A-Team
The success of a charter program falls heavily on the talent and professionalism of the crew onboard. It is important to hire a diverse and dynamic team with exceptional customer service skills, relevant qualifications, and desirable additional skills.
For example, onboard THIS IS IT, there is a qualified masseuse, LOON has kitesurfing instructors and content creators, while KING BENJI has a Personal Trainer and a fantastic chef. GALILEO has scuba diving instructors onboard for dedicated scuba charters off the beaten path. The crew's ability to anticipate and exceed guest expectations will be a driving factor in securing repeat bookings and gleaming feedback.
Showcase The Yacht
Effective marketing and industry exposure are crucial for attracting charter clients. Consider having your yacht participate in industry events - particularly charter shows - where the yacht will be showcased, as well as its amenities and crew talents. These events provide valuable networking opportunities with charter brokers and other industry professionals, helping to build lasting relationships while increasing market awareness.
Some examples of prime industry events for next year include the Bahamas Charter Show in January, the Palm Beach International Boat Show in March, the MYBA Charter Show in San Remo in April, MEDYS in Nafplio in May, Monaco Yacht Show in September, Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show in October and the Antigua Charter Show in December.
Be Social
Alongside these in-person events, investing in imagery and video assets is vital to build a social media strategy for the yacht. A solid online presence and visually compelling content can significantly boost your yacht's visibility and appeal. Investing around 10% of your weekly charter fee in a quality photo and video shoot is recommended.
The power of such a visual portfolio has been proven with plenty of IYC clients; listings with great photos get around 30% more visibility, which raises to 50% with video and up to 70% if this includes lifestyle content for potential guests to visualize how they would use the yacht. Creating ongoing content for the yacht is also important; not only does this bolster social media and digital marketing efforts, but having skilled content creators onboard can also offer the guests visual memories to take away with them after the charter.
The Right Price
To maximize inquiries and bookings, it's essential to price your yacht competitively based on market trends and comparisons. Consider the yacht's amenities, guest capacity, location, and unique features when determining an optimal rate.
Additionally, ensure your yacht is adequately insured, with special coverage for certain activities such as scuba diving and cancellation protection to safeguard your investment.
Make It Available
Once you have set the right price, the yachts most successful on the charter scene are the most flexible, allowing for a higher potential of bookings and ample time for peak periods in desired locations. Another aspect to consider is the yacht's flag; some flag states will determine how many days a year you can charter your yacht.
For example, a US flag doesn't offer commercial registration, whereas flags such as Cayman, Marshall Islands, and Jamaica can offer up to 12 weeks or 84 days on a private limited charter. Working with us, you can create a charter plan that increases the yacht's booking potential while also enabling you to enjoy ownership.
Work With Us
The yacht charter sector is challenging to navigate without help on your side. Partnering with an experienced charter management company like IYC helps simplify operations and maximizes your charter income. A dedicated charter manager can provide expert guidance on legal requirements, taxes, and regulations across various destinations and a tailored marketing strategy to attract the right clientele. We also handle all operational burdens, minimizing stress and time commitment from you, whether it be transparent financial reporting and accountability or general client relations and guest satisfaction. We consistently keep abreast of industry trends and insights, making it easy for you to sit back and enjoy your yacht.
If you are a prospective yacht owner, or current yacht owner, looking at charter opportunities, contact one our expert team today to learn more about how to maximise your investment.