Consumer Research — MasterCraft
MasterCraft owners loved the brand — the research proved just how much. The real question was who wasn't on the boat yet, and how to get them aboard.
MasterCraft sits at the top of the tow-boat world — the wake behind a MasterCraft is a competitive venue. But premium categories can mistake owner loyalty for market health. The research program set out to measure the loyalty honestly and map where the next generation of owners would come from.
A quantitative study of 813 respondents paired with eight in-depth ethnographies of NXT-line owners — the entry point to the brand. The combination mattered: the numbers said how much owners loved the brand; the home visits said why.
79
Net Promoter Score, up from 66 in 2015
813
Survey respondents
8
In-depth owner ethnographies
The NPS of 79 landed between BMW (72) and Apple (89) — rarefied territory for any brand, let alone a boat builder. The persona work sharpened the picture: The Ring Leader, the owner whose boat is the social center of the lake, plus a new NXT sub-persona capturing the younger owner entering the brand.
The synthesis pointed growth at three conversion audiences: sterndrive boaters ready to move to a dedicated tow boat, women — underserved by the category's marketing despite driving purchase decisions — and first-time boat buyers entering through NXT.