Hollywood, Florida based Boatzon, the marine industry’s fast growing digital retail platform, has unveiled Boatzon 2.0. A sweeping upgrade designed to help boat dealers close deals faster, streamline operations, and keep pace with increasingly digital-first boat buyers.
Touted as the “Carvana for boats” Boatzon lets shoppers browse, finance, insure, and even purchase new and pre-owned boats entirely online. But with its latest version, the company is doubling down on dealer tools; blending fintech, AI-driven buyer insights, and CRM style dashboards to modernize how boats are sold.
Boatzon, acquired by global marine retail giant MarineMax in 2022, is on a mission to reshape the boat buying experience, addressing an industry long seen as lagging behind automotive retail. A key focus is long term financing options, with loans available for terms of up to 20 years.
Today’s boat buyers expect more. They’re digital-first, finance-savvy, and they want information instantly. Boatzon 2.0 gives dealers the tools to keep up and stay ahead.
said Eric Glass, Boatzon’s Director of Business Relations
Dealer-Centric, AI-Powered
At its core, Boatzon 2.0 introduces a centralized dealer dashboard that consolidates all leads from Boatzon.com, third-party platforms, and dealership websites into a single, intuitive interface. AI-powered tools assign buyer scores based on real-time pre-qualification, soft credit checks, and financing readiness, allowing dealers to identify serious buyers instantly.
The Boatzon platform features over 90,000 boats, but unlike traditional marketplaces, it generates revenue not through listing fees, but by facilitating financing, insurance, extended protection plans, and boat delivery, all backed by partnerships with over 20 banks via Boatzon’s financing arm, Newcoast Finance, which is also owned by MarineMax.
Among the standout features is Boatzon’s intelligent search functionality. The site remembers recent searches, offers a range of filters by boat type, budget, and destination, and generates “Boatzon Scores” AI-driven indicators of a buyer’s likelihood to complete a purchase. An intuitive chatbot provides instant responses on boat locations, dealer details, and financing options, enhancing the online shopping experience.
For dealers, real-time buyer intelligence offers immediate visibility into pre-qualification status, estimated approval amounts, and any outstanding conditions required to close a deal. Inventory intelligence further strengthens the platform by automatically matching interested buyers with available boats, alerting dealers to new listings or price changes that might reignite buyer interest.
The built-in CRM tools allow dealers to track conversations, manage appointments, handle documents, and oversee the entire sales process directly within the platform. Flexible partnership models accommodate dealerships of all sizes. Smaller dealers without in-house financing teams can leverage Boatzon’s revenue sharing model, while larger operations can opt for a SaaS structure, providing pre-qualification and buyer scoring tools without disrupting their own financing processes.
Advanced lead intelligence also identifies multiple interested buyers per boat, helping dealers prioritize high quality leads and focus their efforts on the most likely sales opportunities.
Future enhancements will include automated insurance quoting, AI-driven remarketing alerts for price changes or new listings, and a fully unified lead management system that spans all dealer sales channels, simplifying workflows and accelerating sales.
A Boating Industry Wake-Up Call
Launched in 2020 and now working with over 1,500 marine dealerships nationwide, Boatzon reflects broader trends in recreational retail, where pandemic era habits and generational shifts are pushing buyers online.
Feedback from hundreds of dealers helped shape Boatzon 2.0, with early adopters reporting improved close rates, faster deal cycles, and a sales process better aligned with modern buyer expectations for instant information and digital convenience.
For South Florida, one of the nation’s largest boating markets, the platform’s growth also signals how local marine dealers, from Miami-Dade to Palm Beach are adapting to evolving buyer expectations.
“Don’t Get Left Behind”
That’s the message from Boatzon’s latest press release, positioning the 2.0 rollout as both a competitive advantage and an industry wake-up call.
Boatzon 2.0 is purpose-built for the real-world needs of today’s dealers. Every feature is shaped by dealer feedback to help them work faster, sell smarter, and stay ahead.
said Michael Muchnick, Boatzon’s President.