SAFETY & TRAINING CHECKLISTS, RULES & RESCUE TRAINING ECO PRO THE MISSING LINK IN INSTRUCTION
RETAILING NEW ANTI-FOG TECHNOLOGY, CREATING A RETAILER SCORECARD PT 2
SCANDINAVIA, ADVICE FOR TRIP PLANNING SUCCESS BUSINESS EDU 5 KEYS TO SUCCESS, NEW SHOPPING RESEARCH
Dr.
of diver
touching both sides of the
a crack in the Earth's crust between the North American and Eurasian continental plates, which is filled with glacial melt water. In this photo the American plate is on the left. Thingvellir National Park, Iceland.
TRENDS IN DIVE RETAILING, TRAVEL & TRAINING
Photo by
Alexander Mustard
Kathryn Arant
Silfra fissure,
PAGE 17
PAGE 5
FROM THE PUBLISHER
Turning Online Clicks Into In - Store Sales
PAGE 7
SAFETY
Dan Orr: Checklists and a Consistent Pre-Dive Ritual
PAGE 9
TRAINING
Al Hornsby: Rules, Standards & Liability for Your Staff and Company
PAGE 11
TRAVEL
David Prichard & Lily Mak: Schedule Time to Smell the Roses: Building in Time for Disruptions
PAGE 12
ECO PRO
Alex Brylske, Ph.D.: Beyond Blowing Bubbles: How Instructors Can Be The Missing Link
PHOTO PRO
Amos Nachoum: Behind the Lens – Entangled Orca, A Fight for Survival
PAGE 18
TRAVEL
John Christopher Fine, J.D.: Florida Keys Coral Restoration Success
PAGE 20
DEMA UPDATE
Tom Ingram, MBA, CAE: DEMA Association Mid-Year 2025 Update
PAGE 22
BUSINESS EDU
Cathryn Castle Garcia: Show and Sell: Tips for Using Video as a Sales Tool
PAGE 25
RETAILING
Shelli Hendricks, Ph.D.:
5 Keys to Success in a Startup Dive Business
PAGE 27
INNOVATION
Gil Zeimer: Hydrophilic Film: A Breakthrough in Anti-Fogging Technology
PAGE 30
RESEARCH
William Cline: The Return of In-Person Shopping & Print Magazines
PAGE 33
TRAVEL
Peter Symes: Summer in Scandinavia: A Diving Paradise
PAGE 34
TRAINING
Patrick Hammer: The Value of the Rescue Diver Course for Retailers
PAGE 37
RETAILING
Jeff Cinciripino: Winning with a Balanced ScorecardPart 2
2 & 3 Aggressor Adventures
6 Diver’s Alert Network (DAN)
8 DRYFOB Key Containers
8 Books by Dan Orr/Best Publishing
9 Make A Difference Challenge
10 Aggressor Adventures
13 Alex Brylske’s Book by Reef Smart
15 Neal Watson’s Bimini Scuba
16 Stream2Sea Reef Safe Products
16 Sea Experience, Ft. Lauderdale, FL
19 Big Animals Global Expeditions
21 ScubaWeather.com
21 Barefoot Cay Resort, Roatan
23 Blue Force Fleet Liveaboards
24 Clear Story Coach
26 Wayne B. Brown Book
28 Fog-X Mask Defogging Film
29 All Star Liveaboards
31 Sau Bay Resort & Spa, Fiji
32 SeaCure Custom Mouthpieces
33 X-Ray Magazine
34 Take Our Subscriber Survey & Win
34 ScubaRadio
35 Deep Blue Adventures Travel
36 DIVO By Scubatech
39 Explorer Ventures Liveaboards
BACK COVER DEMA
41 Level Up Podcast
41 Marketing Minutes Podcast
42 Article Index
FROM THE PUBLISHER
Today’s dive gear buyers aren’t making decisions in isolation. According to the latest Quad/Graphics consumer behavior research, 71% of shoppers still visit brick-and-mortar stores, but almost all of them – 89% – have started their journey online. They’re searching for products, comparing pricing, reading reviews, and checking availability long before setting foot in a shop. For dive retailers, this means that aligning digital and in-store marketing is no longer optional; it’s a competitive necessity.
Customers across all age groups now expect seamless connections between online and in-store touchpoints. Younger shoppers (18–34) are especially thorough, with roughly half conducting in-depth online research, relying heavily on online reviews and stock availability. Meanwhile, those aged 35–54 balance digital searches with priorities like checking opening hours and verifying in - store promotions. Even the over - 54 group increasingly use digital platforms first, focusing on pricing, special deals, and product information before making the trip to a physical location.
What can dive retailers do? First, optimize online platforms for product searches and availability. Maintain accurate, updated inventory online and highlight promotions clearly. An intuitive website that mirrors the experience of visiting your shop can make or break a sale long before a customer arrives.
Once customers walk through the door, environment is critical. According to the research, shoppers stay longer and spend more when stores have a wide range of products, a pleasing atmosphere, and opportunities to browse. Interesting displays and staff that can answer questions instantly deepen engagement. Meanwhile, special in-store events or promotions can appeal across age groups, converting online interest into in-store purchases.
Ultimately, dive retailers must recognize that shoppers no longer separate “online” and “in-store” – and their marketing tactics must evolve accordingly. By aligning website experience, pricing transparency, and review availability with an inviting, well-stocked shop environment, retailers can build trust, deepen connections, and drive long-term sales in a competitive market.
El Sheikh, Red Sea, Egypt. Photo Credit: John Walker
SAFETY
Checklists and a Consistent Pre-Dive Ritual
– by Dan Orr , President, Dan Orr Consulting
Preparation for any dive actually begins before you leave home. Besides making sure that your skills, recent experiences, and equipment are equal to the demands of the upcoming dive, you need to make sure that you bring everything that you will need for the dive. When I was actively teaching, I spent time talking about the value of a Save-ADive Kit, making sure that you have everything you need, including some spare parts in case of part failure. I asked the class, “If you spent thousands of dollars on the dive trip of a lifetime and traveled thousands of miles to get there, how much would you pay to replace a broken fin strap if you didn’t have one? How much would you pay if you traveled to one of the best dive spots in the world only to find out you forgot your prescription mask?” That is kind of a sobering thought. I am sure something like that has happened to many divers, possibly even you.
The best way to keep from forgetting anything is to have a detailed checklist. Actually, divers may have many checklists. I have one to make sure I bring everything I will need for the upcoming dive. To make that packing checklist, I refer to notes from previous dive trips, visualize the dives I’m going to make, and take note of things I will need, plus any back up equipment in case of equipment failure. On a trip to Antarctica in 2024, we were told to leave our equipment in the Zodiacs, as it would be hauled aboard the research vessel where we could retrieve it more easily. Well, when I went to retrieve my gear, a large hook used to raise the Zodiacs had gone right through the middle of my prescription mask. Luckily, I had brought a backup prescription mask, or that would have been the end of any in-water activities for me.
A detailed packing checklist will not only make sure you bring everything you need but will also help make sure that you bring everything back with you. Once at the dive site, you may also want to consider another checklist to make sure that you have everything you will need while making the dive. When I was actively teaching, we would make sure that we had everything we
needed for the dive by laying out our equipment in the form of a diver on a ground sheet. The exposure suit, the hood, the boots, and the gloves were laid down first, followed by the mask, snorkel, and fins where they would go, followed by the weight belt, BCD, and any other accessory equipment for the dive. The dive buddies would then take a few minutes looking over each other’s equipment to make sure nothing was missing. You could also do the same with a checklist.
In 2012, Divers Alert Network (DAN), the Professional Association of Diving Instructors (PADI), and the American Academy of Underwater Sciences (AAUS) joined forces to hold Rebreather Forum 3.0. Part of the outcome of the Rebreather Forum 3.0 was a number of consensus positions. One involved the importance of checklists, primarily for the use of rebreathers, but the implications are far ranging: “The Forum acknowledged the overwhelming evidence demonstrating the efficacy of checklists in preventing errors.”
Checklists are important but only go so far. I suggest combining a checklist with what I call a consistent pre-dive ritual. The consistent pre-dive ritual begins before you and your diving companion get into the water. As I have mentioned many times in previous articles and my diving safety webinars, the recent practice of critical emergency skills such as the exchange of breathing gas in an emergency is critical. Skill practice comes in different forms, including “static rehearsal,” that involves review of training manuals, checklists, photographs, and videos only. Static rehearsal can refresh your memory but cannot reinforce the all-important muscle memory necessary to be effective if the need arises. Dynamic rehearsal, on the other hand, involves actual practice using the diving equipment divers would be using during a dive. Dynamic rehearsal can be either in a safe, confined water setting, on the surface, or even standing on the boat deck or shore, where divers go through the mechanics of skills such as the exchange of breathing gas. Dynamic rehearsal appears most effective for
SAFETY
the retention of manual or mechanical skills. Therefore, it could be in the best interest of diving safety to adopt a “dynamic rehearsal” practice regimen. This pre-dive practice regimen may include reviewing the mechanics of critical skills such as providing breathing gas to a companion in an out-ofbreathing-gas emergency, the jettison of weights, and even a review of hand signals prior to initiating each dive.
This is something that I go through before my diving companion and I actually get in the water. I call it my “Safety Cross.” If you see me crossing myself before a dive, I’m not praying (after all, if I have to pray, I probably should not be making that dive!). I’m checking to make sure that everything is ready for the dive I’m going to make.
my cylinder valve is not open all the way. Moving to my left to complete the cross, I check my BCD power inflator, pushing the button, and making sure that gas is coming from my scuba cylinder into my BCD. If I’m wearing a dry suit, I will check the suit inflator at the same time. Since I secure my octopus 2nd stage on my left, I make sure it is functioning properly by taking a couple of breaths just in case I am called on to share breathing gas. The final part of my check is to ask my diving companion if they are ready to dive. If you are carrying other things such as a surface marker buoy (SMB) or safety sausage, knife, or cutting tool, they can also be added to this process.
Starting from the top; regulator in my mouth, breathing gas is on, and I’m satisfied that the regulator is breathing properly and there is no significant breathing resistance. I move down to check my weights, making sure the weights are on and adjusted properly and I know where the quick release mechanisms are. I then move to my right (where I position my submersible pressure gauge-SPG). I look at my SPG and take a breath at the same time. If the needle fluctuates, that means
This process may not completely eliminate the possibility of something going wrong, but it will, at least, reduce the possibility that you have forgotten something vital.
A checklist combined with a consistent pre-dive ritual may reduce the likelihood of something vital being missing and will, hopefully, enhance the diving experience. A good checklist and consistent pre-dive ritual can be the best start of a good dive!
TRAINING
Rules, Standards & Liability for Your Staff and Company
– by Al Hornsby , owner, Al Hornsby Productions , Singapore
Al is regarded as one of the industry’s most experienced
risk management litigation executives.
It’s not unusual in the dive industry to hear questions about our common habit of rule-making. And, to some extent, we are perhaps somewhat more developed in this than many other sports, even sports that also carry elements of risk. However, the issue is often related to the old question, “Well, what’s the worst that could happen?” While lots of sports and recreational activities have risks that could lead to injuries, most of them don’t typically have such small lines between just fine; potential injury; and potential fatality.
The general response to this reality has been the development of excellent guidelines and training. However, we do often hear complaints that we may be overly involved in such rule-making (“standards”) and related enforcement. That said, if we look at diving and the rule-making it includes, I don’t believe we typically view ourselves as control freaks, but more likely responsible folks who are adequately cognizant of the sometimes narrow spaces between safe practices and the potential for something going very wrong.
example – the common, standard practice that introductory scuba participants remove all their gear at the end of a dive. While it may sound like mere common sense, the reality is that this particular ‘rule’ (standard) operates at several levels, the obvious first ones being for participants’ comfort and safety – once the dive is done, we don’t want them waddling around (perhaps still in their fins) with weights and a cylinder still strapped on, with the danger of them losing their balance, falling, etc. There is also the inherent upside of their developing a bit more knowledge and practice in handling their gear in a safe manner. And, when this is occurring on a boat, the ante goes up – they could also easily fall on someone else, as well.
When such standards development occurs in diving, however, there is also sometimes that element of “what’s the worst that could happen?” that adds to the importance.
I’d also suggest that a great many (most?) of our standardized safety practices and techniques came about in direct response to things that actually happened or things that had/have the potential for increased risks or dangers to ourselves, our students, or to our customers, day-to-day.
In diving, we collectively do a good job of investigating accidents and recognizing when a rule (a “standard”) could likely reduce the risks of the event happening again. Most of these standards are thus actually fairly simple logic and direct responses to actual occurrences, or likelihoods. Let’s look at an
Well, the worst that has happened can answer this rather directly. At the end of an introductory scuba dive off a small boat, one of the participants, a young lady, was allowed (or maybe it was not noticed by the instructor?) to keep her weight belt on as she began to cross the channel and head back toward the resort. The group, happy and thrilled at their first dive and sitting on the rails, was talking about how cool it all was… then, the boat hit a small wave, the lady fell backwards into the water, quickly sinking out of sight - never to be found or seen again.
So, what’s the worst that could happen, even when involving such a simple, common standard regarding removing all equipment at the end of an introductory dive? The reality was pretty horrible, and so, so unnecessary.
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