Because divers will always need air and the cost of buying your own compressor is prohibitive, the traditional Dive Shop will always be needed.
However, the internet has changed the face of many retail businesses, including diving. I think in the future, we will see even more changes as the traditional retail model for diving tries to adapt to companies like Scubatoys (one of my favorites), Scuba.com, Phil Ellis, and LeisurePro (yeah, had to mention them --
)
I would like to see a future model that helps Independent Instructors. In many ways, they are the backbone of the industry.
A few months ago I thought of an idea that I thought may be beneficial to Independent Instructors.
What if an E-commerce website was designed (or redesigned) that benefited Independent Instructors.
It would allow Independent Instructors to create their own profile page and recommend products within the website. They could include their contact information, picture, education, biography and other pertinent information.
The Independent Instructors would provide the company with the following information:
Name
Address
Phone
Birth date
Experience
Degrees and contact information for verification.
Independent Instructors pages would be automatically assigned a number when a profile page was activated/created by a company administrator and the Independent Instructor could promote his page.
Example:
wvvw.Productpage.com/ic/1237
From their page, Independent Instructors can pick which products they recommend. They can also group products together into a “purchase group” so that customers can just click on that group and buy all of the products in that group without having to search for and/or click each item individually. (i.e. basic OW packages)
When people who buy off of the Independent Instructors page, the Instructor would get a commission. Independent Instructors would have the ability to adjust the cost of each item by adjusting their commission. Their commission can never exceed the maximum level set by the company administrator.
Example:
Item cost $100.00 and Independent Instructors (with a maximum 10% commission) would get $10.00 for each item sold. They can choose to sell items for 5% less commission, the item would then sell, under the Independent Instructor’s ID for $95.00 and the Independent Instructors would then receive $5.00.
Independent Instructors can also create coupon codes for their customers. These customers can get a percentage off the cost of one item, multiple items, or all products offered by the company. Independent Instructors can create coupons that expire by time (can be used for multiple customers), that can be used only once by all of his customers, or just for one individual customers for a one time purchase of items. They can also cancel coupon codes.
Coupons that adjust the cost of items reduce the commission of the Independent Instructors, up to the maximum commission that the Independent Instructors can receive. The Independent Instructors maximum commission is set by the company administrator.
Search for an Independent Instructors can be done by zip code, City & State/Country, or name of Independent Instructors. Customers can choose search area from 5, 10, 20, 50, 100 miles. With the closest Independent Instructors showing up first.
I have other ideas too. This is just a start. Any other suggestions?
However, the internet has changed the face of many retail businesses, including diving. I think in the future, we will see even more changes as the traditional retail model for diving tries to adapt to companies like Scubatoys (one of my favorites), Scuba.com, Phil Ellis, and LeisurePro (yeah, had to mention them --
)I would like to see a future model that helps Independent Instructors. In many ways, they are the backbone of the industry.
A few months ago I thought of an idea that I thought may be beneficial to Independent Instructors.
What if an E-commerce website was designed (or redesigned) that benefited Independent Instructors.
It would allow Independent Instructors to create their own profile page and recommend products within the website. They could include their contact information, picture, education, biography and other pertinent information.
The Independent Instructors would provide the company with the following information:
Name
Address
Phone
Birth date
Experience
Degrees and contact information for verification.
Independent Instructors pages would be automatically assigned a number when a profile page was activated/created by a company administrator and the Independent Instructor could promote his page.
Example:
wvvw.Productpage.com/ic/1237
From their page, Independent Instructors can pick which products they recommend. They can also group products together into a “purchase group” so that customers can just click on that group and buy all of the products in that group without having to search for and/or click each item individually. (i.e. basic OW packages)
When people who buy off of the Independent Instructors page, the Instructor would get a commission. Independent Instructors would have the ability to adjust the cost of each item by adjusting their commission. Their commission can never exceed the maximum level set by the company administrator.
Example:
Item cost $100.00 and Independent Instructors (with a maximum 10% commission) would get $10.00 for each item sold. They can choose to sell items for 5% less commission, the item would then sell, under the Independent Instructor’s ID for $95.00 and the Independent Instructors would then receive $5.00.
Independent Instructors can also create coupon codes for their customers. These customers can get a percentage off the cost of one item, multiple items, or all products offered by the company. Independent Instructors can create coupons that expire by time (can be used for multiple customers), that can be used only once by all of his customers, or just for one individual customers for a one time purchase of items. They can also cancel coupon codes.
Coupons that adjust the cost of items reduce the commission of the Independent Instructors, up to the maximum commission that the Independent Instructors can receive. The Independent Instructors maximum commission is set by the company administrator.
Search for an Independent Instructors can be done by zip code, City & State/Country, or name of Independent Instructors. Customers can choose search area from 5, 10, 20, 50, 100 miles. With the closest Independent Instructors showing up first.
I have other ideas too. This is just a start. Any other suggestions?
