March NewsWaves

Table of Contents

• Is the Future of Fishing Female?
• Your Support is Creating a Better Future for Fishing & Boating
• How RBFF is Engaging States in R3 Adoption

Is the Future of Fishing Female?

Throughout the world, March is being celebrated as Women’s History Month. While we and several others have joined along in the celebrations during the month of March, we wanted to show you how RBFF and other outdoor brands are truly embracing and encouraging female participation to extend well beyond Women’s History Month. Join Rachel Piacenza, RBFF Director of Marketing, as we take a look at the progress and trends we’re seeing now, and where this will take us in the near future.

1. Tell us about your journey from recreational angler to an industry leader:
2. Talk about some of the trends we’re seeing with fishing participation:
3. How do you see participation and inclusion changing within the marketplace?
4. How will RBFF’s consumer campaign reach out to the female audience?
5. Where do you see female participation going in the next few years?

Along with other emerging audiences, women are becoming an increasingly important segment to target with our marketing and outreach efforts. Head to RBFF’s linkedIn page to share how you’re working to include the female audience.

Your Support is Creating a Better Future for Fishing & Boating

April 1 marks the start of our new fiscal year, however it represents more than that. That date also marks the first day of our new five-year grant funding, which you all helped us secure.

Thanks to your support, RBFF will continue to utilize the funds to:

• Push forward toward the 60 in 60 goal
• Utilize our national Take Me Fishing^TM campaign to engage families and outdoor enthusiasts in fishing and boating
• Work with state agencies and industry partners to keep fishing and boating as top-of-mind activities among consumers
• Increase awareness of the link between fishing and boating participation and conservation

This work is creating a brighter future for fishing and boating, too. The fishing participation number is at its highest since 1991 after increasing 20% over the last 10 years. Fishing license sales and boat registration sales are both on the rise, too, with licenses increasing 4.25% since 2005 and boat registrations seeing its first increase since 2009.

In addition to our new funding and start of a new fiscal year, we will also be celebrating RBFF’s 20th anniversary in 2018. While we’re excited by the progress we’ve made over the last 20 years, we’re even more motivated to continue growing the sports of fishing and boating, striving for our 60 in 60 goal and making our waterways better than ever through conservation awareness.

Again, thank you for your support thus far. We look forward to continuing our mission alongside you in the years to come.

How RBFF is Engaging States in R3 Adoption

The future of fishing and boating participation depends on effective recruitment, retention and reactivation (R3) practices. During the past year, the RBFF state engagement team has worked directly with eight different state agencies to help develop angler R3 plans. And RBFF will continue to engage with any state fish and wildlife agency that needs assistance in developing and implementing successful R3 programs.

RBFF uses R3-focused meetings with agency staff, that can be as little as a few hours or as long as a one-and-a-half-day training session, to help facilitate R3 development within state agencies. At these sessions agency staff are introduced to:

Ultimately these meetings and training sessions help agency staff build understanding and buy-in and the importance of developing an angler R3 plan.

Making headway in R3 plan development:

• RBFF has conducted R3 meetings in Virginia, Texas, West Virginia, Utah, Tennessee and California.
• New R3 coordinators have been recently hired in California and New Jersey, who RBFF will help get up-to-speed.
• Idaho recently hired a marketing coordinator that will work with their marketing director and team to guide the agency’s R3 efforts, with the help of RBFF’s input and resources to develop an effective retention/reactivation campaign.
• Oklahoma hired a contractor to develop an agency strategic plan and has requested RBFF’s assistance in R3 education to ensure integration into their plan.
• With the assistance of RBFF, new angler R3 plans will shared by Florida, Texas and Virginia in the coming months.
• RBFF will work closely throughout the year with California, New Jersey, Tennessee, Utah and West Virginia in their angler R3 plan development.

The RBFF state engagement team will continue to offer R3 training and resources, and motivate additional states to develop a strategic R3 plan that aligns the organization’s expertise, capacity and resources to guide agency efforts and leverage partnerships on angler recruitment, retention and reactivation. If you’re interested in having RBFF help with your R3 efforts, please contact Dave Chanda, Vice President of State Agency Engagement, or Stephanie Hussey, State R3 Program Director.