I've got a radio on my boat, AM/FM/Weather, it has a short stubby antenna that's about 9" long. Are there any tricks I can try to get better reception?

My boat is aluminum, I'm wondering if running a jumper wire from the antenna to a bolt on the hull would help - would that basically make the whole hull act like an antenna and help with reception?

Is there some little gadget on the market that boosts radio reception?