16 JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2018 • FOGHORN FOGHORNFOCUS: SALES & MARKETING For example, on a summer weekend, which usually has more traffic, it may take longer for a water taxi to navigate its route than on a weekday in the fall. The route departure schedule should reflect that in order to be accurate and reliable. Obviously the service routes are very important. Do you have advice on how an operator should identify routes for a suc- cessful service? Infrastructure to support the service is key, of course, but are there other considerations? In the current atmosphere, every shoreside developer, landowner, and attraction wants a water taxi stop in order to increase access to their entity, but not all sites are necessar- ily ideal for a water taxi stop. Things operators should take into account, before expanding into certain areas are: • Access to the site Will this water taxi stop be used by the entire neighborhood, or one single property? Property owners always inquire about private water taxi stops however, unless said property has thousands of tenants or a major attraction, it may not be lucrative. However if the surround- ing neighborhood can access the stop it increases the value to the operator. • Established market Many developers want to leverage a water taxi stop to entice prospec- tive tenants or residents to their new property; however, it should be the other way around. The water taxi stop should come to the market, not be used to help create it. It can take some time until a new property has a signifi- cant volume of tenants. Unless there is certain potential of a strong market, avoid launching the water taxi stop the day the “ribbon is cut” on that new riverside property. It may save you a season of empty water taxi runs. • Intermodal transportation Some of the most successful water taxi routes work as intermodal transit linking with landside transportation. In Chicago, there are multiple water taxi stops that are adjacent to Chicago’s two major train stations. This link is impera- tive for most passengers’ commutes. How should an operator determine the price for water taxi service? What are the considerations for ticket pricing? In most cases, water taxi services’ main competition is land-based transit, so pricing should be determined to compete with the local buses, trains, land taxis, Uber/Lyft, etc. There is a premium that commuters are willing to pay for marine transit due to the better quality-of commute, but be mindful of land-based public transpor- tation pricing. Also, consider whether it makes sense to offer a larger menu of tickets to appeal to tourists as well as commuters. For example, commuters EASY MANEUVERABILITY Give your passengers a smooth ride with reliable John Deere PowerTech™ propulsion and generator drive engines. With high torque and low-rated rpm, they deliver excellent vessel control and quiet operation. For easy navigation on the water — Nothing Runs Like A Deere™. JohnDeere.com/marine 60 to 559 kW (80 to 750 hp) (281) 532-2080 shearer-group.com Naval Architects Marine Engineers Marine Surveyors Our Core Purpose... is to Create.