When it comes to creating a successful yachting website, knowledge is power. And with more and more people embracing a distinctly digital personal and professional lifestyle, there has never been a more critical time to nurture an excellent digital presence to enhance your yacht marketing efforts. In the world of yachting, this is perhaps even more prevalent. With the challenges now presented with face-to-face meetings and in-person yacht visits, an engaging yachting website must convey everything from the uniqueness of a new yacht project to the USPs of the company in as easy, attractive, and intuitive format as possible.
Though there are more than 150 different functionalities incorporated by the top yachting websites in 2021, here, Relevance Yacht takes a look at some of the most valuable yachting website functions.
Yacht marketing: Top 10 features of the best yacht websites
1 – SEO
Search Engine Optimisation or SEO is perhaps the most important element of any yacht brokerage and charter website. Without an optimised website, the yacht brokerage or charter company cannot be found on search engines, meaning even the most comprehensive yacht marketing campaigns will fail to engage their target audience. A comprehensive SEO strategy with expert implementation leads to higher Google rankings, increased website visibility and, ultimately, more potential clients on your page.
One of the best examples of a search engine optimised website is Fraser. Relevance has been working with Fraser for over a decade, offering ongoing SEO strategy, content development, and digital yacht marketing. The website’s advanced SEO hierarchy enables the site to rank highly for numerous keywords related to yachting. This has helped Fraser to establish itself as a global leader for yacht sales and charter, and the site is now one of the most visible yacht websites on Google.
2 – A smart homepage
The homepage is often the first point of call for website visitors. Visitors to yachting websites should not have to work to find the information or content they need, so easy navigation features that are both intuitive and clean are essential. For example, a scrolling screen or scrolling sidebar function allows the visitor to easily search the page, while a bold and visible menu at the top of each page means that the entire website is easily navigable. Other homepage functions used by the most successful yachting websites include full-size background images, high-quality photo carousels or sliders, featured content sections and visible social media links, and clean and consistent yacht branding.
One of the best examples of a smart home page designed by the team at Relevance is Verpeka Dolling. For the boutique yacht sales and charter company, we created a brand new homepage featuring several content blocks, carousels and an animated logo, where brand colours perfectly complement each other.
3 – An effortless search functionality
When buying and selling yachts or looking for a luxury yacht for charter, undoubtedly, the most important feature is a fully integrated search function. When it comes to the top yacht brokerage and superyacht charter websites, all search functions include the ability to filter between motor and sail yachts, as well as length, price, number of guests accommodated on board, destination and yacht name. The easier it is for the visitor to reach the information that appeals to them, the higher the chance of converting that visitor into a sale.
For the luxury yacht brokerage firm Morley Yachts, Relevance created a next-level yacht portfolio feature that allows visitors to search and filter with optimum ease and accuracy. The custom-built WordPress platform hosts more than 200 yachts for sale and charter, ensuring excellent visibility.
4 – Comprehensive yacht profiles
Comprehensive yacht profiles, both for sales and charters, are a top feature of the best yachting websites. An integrated enquiry button drives conversion rates and is a feature found on all top yachting websites. Though a function not currently found on many yacht platforms, the inclusion of comprehensive information such as deck plans goes one step further in providing the complete image of the yacht, ensuring robust yacht marketing. Including a direct download link to the PDF brochure of the vessel takes it to the next level. Video content is a fantastic bonus to get the feel of the yacht while including a ‘save comparison’ functionality is a useful feature to keep visitors engaged and offer a personalised touch to their experience.
For the Monaco yacht broker Worth Avenue Yachts, our team’s expert optimisation of yacht listing pages resulted in the visibility of the luxury brokers website progressing more rapidly than any other luxury yacht broker website in the past two years.
5 – A dedicated news section
The addition of news and media sections are another top feature of the most successful superyacht platforms and will further enhance a yacht brokerage’s superyacht marketing efforts. Alongside presenting the company news index in clear categories, single news posts should include the ability to easily share the article to social media channels and have breadcrumbs to get back to the main news index quickly. Some of the best luxury yacht website news sections also include extra features to attract visitors to additional content on the website, including category tags, relevant or recommended news and a company contact link. Almost none of the top yachting websites include a comments section.
TJB Super Yachts is one of Relevance’s latest luxury yacht websites projects. We managed the design, build, SEO strategy, and content, delivering a fully optimised website that showcases this luxury boutique yacht brokerage’s unique selling points. The website boasts a superb news section that showcases industry insights, yachting stories, and luxury superyacht news. In addition, the social media buttons at the top of each article enable readers to share articles across multiple platforms quickly.
6 – Custom luxury destination content
Destination content is a fantastic feature of yacht charter and brokerage sites, providing inspirational information that inspires, motivates and keeps the visitor engaged with your website for longer. All of the top luxury yacht websites break yachting destination content down by region, with some also delving into country-specific information. Google Maps or custom-designed interactive maps are a useful function, as well as sample itineraries with relevant yachts clearly linked to the destination.
One of the best examples of custom luxury destination content can be found on the newly launched TJB Super Yachts. The website includes an interactive itinerary builder and downloadable PDF, which we believe is a first in the industry.
7 – Mobile-friendly design
The easier it is for the visitor to reach the information that appeals to them – no matter where they are in the world – the higher the chance of converting that visitor into a sale. With mobile devices being used for more and more aspects of busy lives, a mobile-friendly website function is a key to expanding accessibility, visibility, and ease of use for visitors.
We made sure that the entire Fraser website is mobile responsive while being custom-built to Fraser’s precise requirements. Its exquisite mobile-friendly design ensures it is just as easy to navigate on a desktop as it is on a smartphone.
8 – An events section
The addition of a yachting events section not only enables visitors to easily learn where and when they can arrange a meeting or yacht viewing with your company but is also a great tool for SEO. Some of the best luxury yacht website events sections also include extra features to attract visitors to additional content on the website, including category tags, relevant or recommended news, and a company contact link.
Worth Avenue Yachts’ dedicated events section stands head and shoulders above many other luxury yacht websites, featuring details on yacht shows and industry events. It can also easily be reached directly from the homepage, including menu listings that feature some of the most prominent annual yacht events. Relevance completed a full upgrade on the luxury yacht brokers site, enabling it to work with the latest PHP versions, speed up existing feeds, and adding extra functionality, including a yacht listing page and sidebar menu.
9 – Easy to find Contact Us page
In addition to contact functions on each page of the website, a dedicated Contact Us page is an essential feature of luxury yacht platforms. The Contact Us page should be clearly visible in the main menu of the website for instant visibility. On the page itself, a great contact section will include an interactive map specifying global offices as well as a great team presentation with professional yacht broker profile photos and contact details.
Morley Yachts’ website boasts all the great features of a great Contact Us page. It’s easy to navigate directly from the homepage, has an interactive map, clear contact details, including yacht broker profile photos and direct contact details. The languages each yacht broker speaks are also clearly indicated.
10 – Intuitive navigability
Visitors to yachting websites should not have to work to find the information or content that they need, so easy navigation features that are both intuitive and clean are essential. A fresh design that utilises hi-resolution photography, clean copy, featured content sections and clear menus are all key features of the most navigable yachting websites.
Mortola Yacht & Ship Brokers contacted the Relevance team to upgrade their luxury yacht website to a modern, responsive, and especially easy to navigate platform. Our team worked closely with the client to develop a future-proof site that is both easy to use and sophisticated. In addition to intuitive navigation, we brought in various APIs of yachts with intelligent SEO and utilised knowledgeable yacht writers to create the content in both English and Italian.
Relevance Yacht is a dedicated luxury yacht marketing agency that has helped develop the online presence of some of the world’s leading yacht brokerages, helping them reach High-Net-Worth and Ultra-High-Net-Worth audiences. If you need help creating a cutting-edge website or a 360 digital yacht marketing strategy, contact our digital marketing experts today.