Health Score Index (HSI) – FAQ
March 2026
Version 3
Questions & Answers are organized in three sections:
A. Purpose & Objectives of the HSI
B. Reporting & Communication
C. Metrics & Methodology
A. Purpose & Objectives of the HSI
1. What is the Health Score Index (HSI) designed to measure?
The HSI gives the NMMA and its members a clear, consistent, data-driven way to understand whether Discover Boating is strengthening the category of recreational boating over time, rather than relying on fragmented or anecdotal signals. It combines multiple indicators that span the initial stages of the customer journey (Reach, Inspire, Engage), into a single, trackable index.
2. Why does Discover Boating need a single index instead of individual metrics?
Individual metrics can move in different directions at the same time, making it difficult to interpret the overall performance of Discover Boating. An index helps synthesize those signals, reduces noise and focuses leadership on direction and momentum, while still allowing detailed drill-downs when questions arise. The users will be able to see how individual metrics are influencing the overall index.
3. How will the HSI be used?
The HSI gives the NMMA Board and members a shared fact base for discussing what is working, what is changing, and where to focus attention, as it relates to Discover Boating. As such, it is intended to support strategic oversight, trend monitoring, and prioritization of marketing investments rather than day-to-day operational decisions.
4. How does the HSI help dealers and OEMs sell more boats?
The primary objective of Discover Boating is to generate interest and participation in recreational boating among our targeted customer segments. Interest and participation are crucial steps for new boaters to rent boats, join boat clubs, or purchase new/used boats. As Discover Boating builds
interest and participation indicated by improved Health Index Scores there will be more interested boaters for OEMs and Dealers to sell into. OEMs and dealers have to meet prospects who signal intent in the middle of the customer journey to further engage and ultimately convert them to buy their products and services.
The HSI measures if our industry is making progress in the first half of the customer journey and as such is a precursor for potential sales.
B. Reporting & Communication
5. What does the HSI dashboard show at a high level?
The dashboard shows the month-by-month performance for the last 12 months in a visual format, the current month score and how it changed month-over-month and year-over-year. In addition, the dashboards shows the breakout for the nine metrics in table form.
6. How and how often will the HSI be shared with NMMA members?
The HSI will be reported monthly, beginning in spring 2026. A newsletter/email will be sent to all NMMA members with the overall score and brief commentary. We will also share a link leading to a member-only website showing the HSI dashboard with full details.
7. Who should members reach out to if the FAQs don't answer all their questions?
We are planning webinars for NMMA members as we roll out HSI to provide more details and the opportunity for questions. In addition, you can also reach out to Kevin Williams at kwilliams@nmma.org for more information.
C. Metrics & Methodology
8. What markets does the HSI cover?
The HSI covers the USA. We are in discussions to develop a separate HSI for Canada.
9. What types of metrics are included in the HSI?
The HSI aggregates nine core metrics related to marketing reach, engagement, and participation rather than relying on a single performance measure. Broadly, these metrics are grouped into three groups to reflect the typical customer journey stages, also sometimes referred to as funnel stages:
• Reach – how well is Discover Boating reaching its intended targets and bolstering recreational boating’s presence
• Inspire – to what extend are potential boaters feeling inspired to begin engaging with the Discover Boating website, social content, and shows?
• Engage – to what extent are potential boaters raising their hands to reach out to a OEM/dealer/club/rental, and to begin to participate in the boating activities?
1. Target Segment Reach
2. Market Visibility
3. Search Trends
4. DiscoverBoating.com Engagement
5. Social Engagement
6. DB Marketing Pop-Up Events
7. Hand Raisers
8. Boat Show Event Attendance
9a. Boating Participation –Monthly
9b. Boating Participation –Annually
The estimated % of the total Target Segment(s) (unique reach) that Discover Boating has reached across marketing channels
The share (%) of mentions for boating related terms, relative to a predefined competitor set, across print, online publications & news websites, radio, broadcast TV, podcasts, and social media
The keyword search volume on Google.com for boating, boat types, boat activities, and boating how to
The number of unique users interacting with key features on DiscoverBoating.com (Boat Finder, Boat Loan Calculator, resource articles, etc.)
The cross-network engagement and video views per Discover Boating post (organic + paid; Facebook, IG, TikTok, YouTube)
Overall pop-up events attendance achievement; details for pop-up events to be developed; expected launch in 2027
Number of unique users who interacted on DiscoverBoating.com in meaningful way and clicked a link to a Dealer or OEM
Overall Boat Show Event attendance achievement (weighted across paid attendance, registration, comp kids, comp adults)
Number of people “on the water”, across 220 sampling locations, covering all 50 U.S. states weighted by state population
% of respondents in an annual survey of the general population, who indicate participation in a boating activity in the past 12 months; Includes new + existing boaters
10. What are “Customer Journey Stages”?
Customer Journey Stages describe the typical path people follow as they move from first becoming interested in boating, to eventually purchasing a boat, and then coming back again. The stages are a simple way to clarify who is responsible for what in growing the industry.
There is alignment across NMMA that Discover Boating is focused on the first half of the journey building awareness, interest, and consideration for boating as a category while OEMs, dealers, clubs, and rentals focus on the second half, where brand choice, sales, and repeat ownership occur. This division helps ensure marketing investments work together rather than competing with each other.
Customer Journey Stage
What the Buyer is doing
Reach Becoming aware of recreational boating as an option
Inspire
Engage
Developing interest and emotional motivation to get out on the water
Evaluate and consider options for how to participate in boating (e.g., ownership, clubs, rentals)
Take pre-purchase actions that signal intent (e.g., researching brands, visiting a dealer)
Convert Selecting a product or service and making a purchase
Retain
Primary Marketing Focus
Boating Awareness Marketing ➔ Discover Boating
Performance Marketing ➔ OEMs, Dealers, Clubs, Rentals
Returning to boating through repeat purchases, upgrades, or continued participation
11. Are all metrics weighted equally in the index?
The metrics are for the most part equally weighted in the index, with a slight emphasis on the metrics representing “Reach”. See table for details.
The decision to slightly over-index on “Reach” was made to reflect the importance of “getting the word out” to new prospective boaters and get as many relevant prospects as possible into the next steps of the customer journey.
12. How often will the underlying metrics be updated?
All metrics are updated monthly, with exception of metric 9b) “Boating Participation – Annually”, which is based on consumer responses of a large-scale survey that will only be conducted annually. The first Participation survey is targeted for spring 2027.
13. What are Hand Raisers?
Hand Raisers are individuals who have sufficiently engaged with Discover Boating’s website (as indicated by time on site, engagement with key elements) and who have indicated additional interest by clicking out to a dealer or OEM website.
14. What are Discover Boating Marketing Pop-Up Events?
Discover Boating Marketing Pop-Up Events are smaller, experiential events designed to introduce recreational boating to people who may not actively seek out a traditional boat show. While boat shows remain a strong form of engagement for consumers already interested in boating, pop-up events are intended to meet prospective boaters in everyday settings and expose them to the boating lifestyle, ideally through on-the-water experiences.
NMMA plans to pilot Discover Boating marketing pop-up events in 2027. Attendance at these events will be tracked once they are launched and will then be incorporated into the Health Score Index. Additional details on event formats and locations will be developed over the coming months.
15. How exactly does metric 9a “Boating Participation – Monthly” work?
NMMA has partnered with a location analytics provider which aggregates anonymized cell phone application data to ascertain foot traffic for 220 lakes and marinas across the US. These lakes and marinas were selected to ensure comprehensive coverage across all 50 US states. Traffic data is aggregated across these 220 locations to measure monthly boating participation.
Monthly Boating Participation data will be available starting April 2026.
16. Why are all metrics indexed?
Each metric is relative to a fixed baseline year (2024). Each month is measured relative to respective month in the fixed baseline year. This approach allows to control for seasonal swings which are very apparent in recreational boating.
Indexing each metric allows us to roll-up all metrics into the overall Health Score.
17. What does an index score of “105%” actually mean?
Metric scores are measured / indexed relative to a baseline, so 105%, or 1.05x, indicates that aggregate performance is 5% above the baseline level, usually the same month of the baseline year. A score of 100% indicates that performance is at (equivalent to) the baseline level.
18. How was the baseline year for the HSI selected?
We selected 2024 as fixed baseline year out of two very pragmatic reasons. One, when we started developing the HSI in Fall of 2025, we needed to establish a baseline for a full calendar year, which was 2024. Two, the years 2020-2023 are biased to a degree by the surge in interest and participation in recreational boating driven by the pandemic.
19. Will the baseline ever change?
We are not planning to change the baseline. In fact, it is important to keep the baseline year unchanged in order to reliably measure longer-term trends.
For short-term trends, the HSI dashboard also shows year-over-year, and month-over-month trends.
20. How does the HSI account for external factors like the economy or interest rates?
The HSI is primarily focused on marketing-related signals and does not explicitly isolate macroeconomic effects in the index itself. We will do our best to contextualize trends in the Health Score with external factors in the commentary of monthly reports.
21. Can the HSI distinguish correlation from causation?
The HSI is a directional health indicator and does not claim to prove direct causation between Discover Boating activities and outcomes. We are transparent about this limitation to protect the credibility of the HSI and to ensure the index is used appropriately as a decision support tool.
To establish insights around causation between Discover Boating marketing activities and desired outcomes, we are preparing a series of marketing test which will be launched in spring 2026.
22. Does the HSI measure return on investment (ROI)?
The HSI reflects performance and health trends but is not a direct financial ROI calculation. We will, however, launch marketing campaign tests in 2026 to provide a perspective on ROI of Discover
Boating activities. In combination with these tests, the HSI index complements ROI analysis by showing whether marketing investments are strengthening the category.
23. Can HSI results be attributed to individual OEMs or member companies?
No. The HSI reinforces Discover Boating’s role as a collective industry investment and is designed to measure category-level impact rather than individual company performance.
24. Who owns and governs the HSI methodology?
The HSI is overseen by the NMMA Board and a dedicated Advisory Group of member marketing leaders and was developed in collaboration with the Discover Boating leadership team and independent third-party consultants.