We thought we'd start off the year with a bang. Introducing two major announcements from Dockwa. Whether you host large annual storage contracts or smaller transient boaters, there's something in this launch for you. Take a look.
Onsite purchases for marinas have long been cash-based and hard to track. With this new release, Marinas can simplify their fuel dock transactions and other on-site charges by enabling boaters to pay by credit card right through Dockwa. Enabling better tracking for marinas and a smoother purchase process for boaters.
Get a Central Hub of Transactions: From slips and storage to fuel and service, the new POS gives a single interface for all your transactions.
Get Clear and Comprehensive Reporting: Get advanced accounting reports on all your transactions.
Create New Sales from Anywhere: Use our web-based point of sale or the iOS app to charge boaters and take payments securely. You can even add charges in advance to contracts.
Dockwa already serves more than 300 thousand boaters, but the boater boom has really increased demand for storage and slips. We need more marinas to take online bookings, so we're removing the price tag for our booking tools.
Take online bookings and securely process credit card payments.
Get a profile on Dockwa & Marinas.com, sites with millions of views.
Get unlimited inquiries whether for transient bookings or long-term storage requests.
Get unlimited storage of boater details including boats and insurance in a secure contact database.
Send unlimited messages to your boaters.
This way you can see proof of value in our free Dockwa Book tier, and then if it's right to consider our paid management and optimization product, we'll be there to walk you through it.
Sign-up for Dockwa Book, our free version.
Our promise to the marine and boating industry is to connect more marinas with more boaters. We talk to marina operators each day to learn how Dockwa can further facilitate this connection and keep this industry growing. The software updates shared on this page are a result of these conversations. You can see a history of our iterations and product innovations below to get a sense of how often we improve the product.
Onsite purchases aren’t the only thing Dockwa is speeding up. With an entirely redesigned contract flow, marinas can now expedite their contract process, removing steps and reducing boater fall-off. In addition, you get a better view into the state of your contracts -- which are complete and what's outstanding. The newly designed process enables cuts down on administrative work so marina operators can get out of the office and onto the docks. This is available to all Dockwa customers.
This summer Dockwa released the beta version of its updated assignments and availability tools. Since then more than 700 marinas have joined the beta and used the new functionality to swiftly manage their space availability and reservations. Today, all new customers gain access to this functionality and any existing customer can request to switch over.
This release brings with it Dockwa's biggest reporting update ever. You can gain better insight into your business through these updates which include a half dozen new or enhanced reports:
Daily Sales Report: A daily snapshot of all sales processed at your marina (available to all Dockwa customers).
Unpaid Invoices Report: A list of all outstanding bills owed to the marina (available to all Dockwa customers).
Aged Receivables Report: A summary of outstanding accounts by days past due (Available to pro and enterprise level Dockwa customers).
Accrual Revenue Report: A revenue recognition report summarizing accrued revenue and revenue adjustments for a selected time period (In beta for pro and enterprise level Dockwa customers).
Registration Expiration Report: A report that alerts marinas about customers with outdated or missing registration information. (Available to pro and enterprise level Dockwa customers).
Insurance Expiration Report: A report that alerts marinas about customers with outdated or missing insurance documentation. (Available to pro and enterprise level Dockwa customers).
Revenue Forecast: A report for users who want to see projections for future revenue based on existing reservations in the system (Available to pro and enterprise level Dockwa customers).
Some of these reports are available now, others are rolling out over the next week. We're excited to see them in use.
In addition to the marina-side improvements, Dockwa also introduced today a number of new boater features to make reserving a marina and pulling into a slip easier. These features include:
A new signing and payment flow: The new checkout process described above includes a significantly streamlined signing flow for boaters, which brings every step into one view and gets you confirmed quicker.
Hospitality information: To keep boaters from having to scrambling for information as they approach their stay, Dockwa has added a view to access all hospitality details right in the free app. Here marinas can add approach instructions, wifi or gate codes, announcements and helpful hints for a boater’s stay.
Response time display: Boaters can now see the average response time for a given marina, something that can be helpful when boaters are on a tight schedule or just eager to get their plans finalized
Marina favoriting: Boaters on Dockwa’s free app can now indicate their favorite marinas and the app will rearrange listings to make it easy to find them in one centralized place.
A new "Item Sales" financial report is now available to all starter, pro and enterprise Dockwa accounts. The report provides a summary and detailed view of all sales made through the Dockwa platform via the “Charges” field.
Marinas can now attach recurring charges to reservations: By popular demand, marinas can now set up recurring charges as part of a reservation or contract. You can then view these charges as distinct line items in your accounting reports, making it far easier to see which items are strongest at generating revenue for your marina. Also, your accountant will be able to get all the detail they need to close the books.
Gas and Diesel Move to Top-line Income Categories: The Dockwa engineers got wind that marina managers, dock staff, and accountants would save time if "Gas" and "Diesel" were their own top-line categories, as opposed to subcategories that fell under "Fuel." So, they fixed that!
- Occupancy reports (available to Dockwa Pro users) are now easier to consume and apply to your business
Our updates to the Dockwa Occupancy report include the removal of repetitive information and the rearranging of data. All the same information is provided, it's now just easier to draw insights that can inform operational changes that improve your occupancy.
- Managing assignments and inventory in Dockwa just got a whole lot slicker
We've evolved Dockwa Assignments into a fast, smart, intuitive tool that makes managing inventory in Dockwa a breeze. This update is not yet available to all customers, but if you'd like to:
...email us at katharine.kirk@dockwa.com to opt in!
- See, at a glance, whether you can accommodate a boater with our enhanced Availability tool
Our new availability tool lets you quickly understand whether you can accept a reservation request or a seasonal/annual customer. No boat dimensions needed - all you need to know are the boater's dates.
- Get to the top of the Dockwa App by running a Dockwa Deal
Marinas running a Dockwa Deal now appear at the top of the Dockwa boater mobile app. Put yourself front and center to boaters and run a Dockwa Deal!
- Set up contactless boater billing at any point during your season
Our new credit-card intake tool enables you to digitize your reservation book and set up on contactless billing. You'll let boaters keep their social distance, reduce encounters with "high-touch" cash, and get paid on time, every time.
- Unlock even more flexibility with month-to-month billing in our customer billing and contract tools.
Whether or not you need a customer to sign a contract for their month-by-month dockage agreement, you can now automatically bill and track these customers in your Dockwa Dashboard.
- Start a chat conversation with boaters on their Long Term boater inquiries
On long-term boater inquiries that are "Pending" or "In Progress," you can now select the "Send Message" option to start a new message thread with your boater directly from Dockwa.
- Apply date-ranged & percent-based fees & discounts in long-term reservations.
Time-boxing line items lets you add discounts or fees for any monthly time frame on a boater's seasonal or annual reservation. Adding percentage calculations for these line items also means marina staff no longer need to "do the math" to find the dollar-value of percentage-based discounts/fees.
- Run a Dockwa Deal to capture the attention of boaters looking to get out on the water this summer.
Previously only available to Dockwa Pro customers, Dockwa Deals is now available to all Dockwa partner marinas. If you're low on occupancy, creating a Dockwa Deal is a simple, effective, and risk-free way to encourage boaters to visit your marina.
- Boaters can now chat marinas about their contract before they sign it.
For boaters that have questions about their contract, they can now chat the marina directly from the contract signing page before signing.
- Let boaters complete contracts in-house, while billing and managing the boater in Dockwa.
For boaters who prefer to sign a physical contract at your marina, you can let them do so while keeping a record of the contract in and billing the customer through your Dockwa system.
For marinas using Dockwa Pro to elevate customer service and grow their boater network…
- Publish your coupon codes directly to the Dockwa Deals webpage
An enhanced coupon code tool lets you enroll your marina's offer directly to the Dockwa Deals program, without working through the Dockwa staff (though we're always here if you need help developing an offer idea or creating the code itself!).
- Let customers upload documents as they sign digital contracts
Your boaters can now upload documents like insurance and registration, upon signing digital contracts, directly to Dockwa.
- Accept mixed payment types from customers
Any boater that want to settle a piece of their bill with cash/check and another with credit, now has that option.
- More easily recognize your revenue processed through Dockwa with new Financial Reports
We upgraded your Dockwa financial reports to better support typical accounting practices. These reports have more information, and are easier to connect with one another to build more sophisticated reports. You'll have the flexibility you need to recognize your marina's revenue your way. More importantly, everything will work the way you expect it to work.
For marinas using Dockwa Pro to elevate customer service and grow their boater network…
- Easily track accounts receivable with your new Accounts Receivable report
This new report shows all unpaid invoices with due dates during your selected time period. The Accounts Receivable report includes reservation, customer and due date information to enable accounts receivable aging analysis.
- Split refunds to multiple credit cards
If your customer has multiple credit cards on file, you may now issue refunds to one or multiple of these cards, based on their preferences.
- Toggle on and off the insurance and registration requirement for specific customer contract groups
Do you require proof of insurance and registration from some - but not all - of your contract-bound customers? Dockwa's Contracts tool now offers this flexibility. Now you can gather insurance and registration from your annual boaters without requiring that info from, say, your kayak renters.
For marinas using Dockwa Pro to elevate customer service and grow their boater network…
- Send custom emails to your long term customers about their stay at your marina
Keep every annual/seasonal customer informed throughout their stay at your marina with custom Confirmation, Pre-Arrival, In-Port, Pre-Departure, Departure, and Post-Departure emails.
- Boaters can update account and reservation credit card info on their own
Never encounter the headache of dealing with an expired boater credit card again. Boaters now have full control over the cards associated with their account and their reservations, so you should see less instances of expired cards and less requests to update a boater's payment info on their behalf.
- Collect custom deposits for long term reservations and contracts
Marinas that require a deposit from their long-term customers can now save serious time collecting that deposit automatically through Dockwa's long term billing and contracts tool.
- Get more visibility into what payments you can expect in the future with Scheduled Payments
For every Dockwa reservation, see what payments have been made and what you can expect to be paid in the future.
- Have more control over when you collect payments with Manual Payment Settling
For every payment, from deposits to boat charges, let it process on its scheduled date, or collect it today, by clicking "Settle."
- See which rates you have set up in Dockwa to confirm whether you need to make changes
Dockwa users with "Admin" permissions can now see the rates that are active in their Dockwa profile.
For marinas using Dockwa Pro to elevate customer service and grow their boater network…
- Asset sales reports provides an accrual sales report for your specific space groups
Head to the "Reports" section of your Dockwa Dashboard to get custom summaries of how your different space groups perform throughout the year.
- Auto-renew dockage and storage contracts and payments
Boaters sign a dockage agreement once, and their agreement and auto-billing will auto-renew on the schedule that works for you and the boaters. Tip: works great for month-to-month dockage contracts!
For marinas using Dockwa Pro to elevate customer service and grow their boater network…
- Occupancy reports give you the insight you need to optimize your dockage pricing and demand
Head to the "Reports" section of your Dockwa Dashboard to get custom summaries of how your different slips and moorings perform throughout the year.
- Cash Sales and Accrual Sales reports give your accountant all the information they need to balance the books at your marina.
Ask your Marina Success Manager about giving your accountant special user access to Dockwa financial reports and notifications.
- View Payment, Transfer, Line Item, and Assignment reports in one place
Head to the "Reports" section of your Dockwa Dashboard to view all relevant accounting and inventory reports in one convenient place.
- Use Dockwa Contracts to send and collect storage contracts and payments
Square-footage pricing and storage-specific inventory management tools allow marinas, yacht clubs, and boat yards to automatically collect dry storage payments and signatures, maximize dry storage occupancy, and delight dry storage customers.
- See payment status for each item in your Line Items report (and alert your controller!)
When you export your Line Items report, you will see a Payment ID and a Transaction Date associated with each line item. If a line item has any of these two data points, it means that the item has been paid for (or refunded)! This information will help your controller understand what revenue to expect during any given time period and what payments remain outstanding at any given point.
- See all settled and outstanding payments on reservations that are billed recurrently
For boaters that you bill more than once for their stay at your marina (ex. long term boaters paying monthly, transient boaters paying a deposit and a final invoice), you can now see on the boater's reservation page which payments are complete and which payments are outstanding.
For marinas using Dockwa Pro to elevate customer service and grow their boater network…
- Use date-specific promo codes to drive demand during slow periods
Add date restrictions to your marina's promo codes to create compelling offers that bring boaters to your docks when you need them the most.
- Collect insurance from your boaters
Boaters can now add their boat's insurance information to their Dockwa profile. Whenever a boater requests a reservation, you will see these details in their request and will keep this information in your Dockwa boater database.
- Manage your marina's bank account
Update your marina's bank account information, without having to contact your Marina Success Manger, in the "Configure Bank" section of your Dockwa Settings.
- Send (and resend) itemized receipts to your boaters
Upon checkout, boaters will receive itemized receipts for their stay at your marina. If your boater needs a new copy of their receipt, you can send a new receipt to them from within their reservation record.
For marinas using Contracts to promote & manage long-term dockage:
- Capture all long term dockage requests in on one page
Last month, we added to your tool box custom landing pages where boaters can request specific types of your long term dockage. This month, we added a custom landing page where boaters can make a general inquiry for your long term dockage. You'll be notified - via email and in your dashboard - each time a boater makes a long term dockage request (just like a transient reservation request). You can find the link to this landing page in the Contracts section of your Dockwa Dashboard.
- Automatically remind boaters of outstanding dockage contracts
If a boater's contract is unsigned for five days, Dockwa will automatically send the boater an email reminding them to complete their signature and payment. We'll keep sending a reminder every five days until the signature and payment are captured or you expire the contract.
For marinas using Dockwa Connect to elevate customer service and grow their boater network…
- Include reservation-specific information in your custom reservation emails
Customize your reservation emails to include things like the boater's dockage assignment and reservation confirmation number. Interested in updating your marina's custom reservation emails? Complete the form on the Contact Marina Success page.
Want access to custom pre-arrival, in-port, and departure emails? Schedule a demo of Dockwa Connect.
- Customize your dockage contracts and contract emails with your marina's branding
Apply your marina's logo to contracts and contract emails to ensure your boaters have a consistent experience with your brand.
– Account for cash and check payments
Now when boaters want to pay with cash or check, you can easily log these payment types in Dockwa. This lets you account for all dockage reservations – not just those paid via credit card – in your Dockwa dashboard.
– Assign user roles to different members of your team
The administrator of any marina's Dockwa account can now assign user roles to grant/restrict different permissions levels for different members of your team.
– View Boat Charges at categorized line items
Boat charges are now categorized line items in your Payments and Transfer reports. Scroll to the right in these reports to see these new Boat Charge columns.
For marinas using Contracts to promote & manage long-term dockage:
– Create custom billing schedules for all boaters
Custom billing allows you to specify exactly how and when you’d like to bill each boater for dockage. This is available to you both for the short term reservations that boaters book Dockwa and for the long term reservations that you create in the Contract tool.
– Add boaters from the Dockwa network to a Contract Group
If your boaters already have Dockwa accounts, you can search for them by email and add them directly to your Contract groups, for easy setup.
