Cruise Lines Woo the Never-Cruisers

Interesting interview with Carnival corporation CEO. https://www.wsj.com/articles/cruise-lines-woo-the-never-cruisers-1487342989

Does he read posts here, do you think?

Interesting interview with Carnival corporation CEO. https://www.wsj.com/articles/cruise-lines-woo-the-never-cruisers-1487342989

 

Does he read posts here, do you think?

Boy is he out of touch. "exceeding current clients' expectations". LOL

Maybe he should read the board about libraries, etc. We are his current clients.

Odd he emphasizes obtaining virtually instant passenger feedback, when for the very first time we never even got a post-cruise evaluation form after getting off the N-A.

Personally, this sounds creepy. I don't want to be monitored or tracked. We cruise to be left alone.

WOW THIS IS 👀 (CREEPY)Like big brother watching you!!

We enjoy being alone also!!!!

Denise:)

Odd he emphasizes obtaining virtually instant passenger feedback, when for the very first time we never even got a post-cruise evaluation form after getting off the N-A.

Didn't you get an email version? We have for the last few cruises.

Nope, and we spend the week checking our spam accounts.

I suspect this CEO might be all surface charm, but with little follow-through. That will be bad for all brands. He is hung up on what he considers "barriers to cruising" for new passengers; yet fails to understand what in his package might alienate current cruisers.

They don't read Cruise Critic.

We had a thread here just a few days ago about some of us not getting the e-mail version of the surveys and sometimes not even getting the surveys on the ship when they did it that way.

Odd he emphasizes obtaining virtually instant passenger feedback, when for the very first time we never even got a post-cruise evaluation form after getting off the N-A.

 

Personally, this sounds creepy. I don't want to be monitored or tracked. We cruise to be left alone.

Creepy is an understatement! It sounds like one of those house-arrest trackers. I do not want to cruise on Bigbrotherdam!

And what does he mean by "guests give live feedback, which we note. Our people are trained to take that." What live feedback? When I tell the waiter my dessert was delicious, he runs to someone to report that a passenger complimented the food? And if I tell him my steak was tough, does he report that, too?

Creepy is an understatement! It sounds like one of those house-arrest trackers. I do not want to cruise on Bigbrotherdam!

 

And what does he mean by "guests give live feedback, which we note. Our people are trained to take that." What live feedback? When I tell the waiter my dessert was delicious, he runs to someone to report that a passenger complimented the food? And if I tell him my steak was tough, does he report that, too?

Good one: Welcome to the MS Grootbroederdam, a Binocular class ship.

 

Personally, this sounds creepy. I don't want to be monitored or tracked. We cruise to be left alone.

We certainly do not cruise to be monitored or tracked.

Do not like the idea of it.

CEO Arnold Donald, a Univ of Chicago MBA but with has no specific background in the cruise or hospitality industry, shares his thoughts at a high tech conference about where he wants to take the Carnival brand: https://www.cta.tech/News/Blog/Articles/2016/December/Why-is-Carnival-Corp-Coming-to-CES-CEO-Arnold-Don.aspx

Mr Donald has served on the Carnival board and he and his wife do like to cruise:

Donald, 59, started the job at the Doral-based cruise giant a year ago after serving on Carnival’s board for 12 years. He was a longtime cruisegoer who took his first vacation at sea to play blackjack and had a professional background that veered closer to science, technology and agriculture than the business of leisure.

HAL CEO Orlando Asford also had an odd path to head a cruise line:

http://www.tnj.com/features/orlando-ashford

No wonder we have been noticing changes on HAL ships in the past two year - some good; some not so good. Two key executive positions with two people with backgrounds well outside of the cruise/hosptiality industry itself.

Good one: Welcome to the MS Grootbroederdam, a Binocular class ship.

Aside: Why does the new forum design still lack a LIKE button???? :D

Current customers never want to hear about changes, unless of course they are the changes they personally asked for, but the numbers quoted in the article speak for themselves. The CEO's sole job is growth and the only pathway to growth is new users ... mining those of us who are already there simply won't do it. Also, while he talks about exceeding expectations and good word-of-mouth, he means among these new customers, not us. We're already talking about cruising but we're not going to be the ones who convince new, younger people to try it out. They need other younger people to do that - consumers tend to put more stock in the recommendations of people who look/think/act like themselves. To a certain extent, us grousing about changes actually helps the cause, because to a younger potential cruiser, hearing older cruisers like me complaining about all the changes can sound like "now they're creating cruises not geared to the old folks, maybe it is for me".

HAL CEO Orlando Asford also had an odd path to head a cruise line:

http://www.tnj.com/features/orlando-ashford

 

No wonder we have been noticing changes on HAL ships in the past two year - some good; some not so good. Two key executive positions with two people with backgrounds well outside of the cruise/hosptiality industry itself.

It's pretty rare for significant change to come from insiders who have been in the industry for a long time, you see this all the time. Steve Jobs was highly unusual, a CEO who advocated for major changes from within. The rest of us get caught up in what we "know" to be true about the industry, the company, our customer, etc. and it's hard to see and accept that what has been working for us for years really does need to change. Outsiders aren't beholden to all of those known truths and are more likely to take risks to effect change.

Current customers never want to hear about changes, unless of course they are the changes they personally asked for, but the numbers quoted in the article speak for themselves. The CEO's sole job is growth and the only pathway to growth is new users ... mining those of us who are already there simply won't do it. Also, while he talks about exceeding expectations and good word-of-mouth, he means among these new customers, not us. We're already talking about cruising but we're not going to be the ones who convince new, younger people to try it out. They need other younger people to do that - consumers tend to put more stock in the recommendations of people who look/think/act like themselves. To a certain extent, us grousing about changes actually helps the cause, because to a younger potential cruiser, hearing older cruisers like me complaining about all the changes can sound like "now they're creating cruises not geared to the old folks, maybe it is for me".

That 4% number is the most telling. And if they can convert 10% of the rest with expectations set based on what's offered today, that'll guarantee a prosperous future for the industry. The intention to capitalize on today's consumers willingness to trade information for marginal benefits will help them landscape their offerings to attract more and more new customers from the same pool, in the same way Google does.

It is important to understand that they're not surveying to determine whether everyone is happy but rather to learn about how to make the most lucrative portion of the market want to cruise and cruise again.

Current customers never want to hear about changes, unless of course they are the changes they personally asked for, but the numbers quoted in the article speak for themselves. The CEO's sole job is growth and the only pathway to growth is new users ... mining those of us who are already there simply won't do it. Also, while he talks about exceeding expectations and good word-of-mouth, he means among these new customers, not us. We're already talking about cruising but we're not going to be the ones who convince new, younger people to try it out. They need other younger people to do that - consumers tend to put more stock in the recommendations of people who look/think/act like themselves. To a certain extent, us grousing about changes actually helps the cause, because to a younger potential cruiser, hearing older cruisers like me complaining about all the changes can sound like "now they're creating cruises not geared to the old folks, maybe it is for me".

Excellent points. Too bad so many on Cruise Critic think that they know how to run a cruise line.

Current customers never want to hear about changes, unless of course they are the changes they personally asked for, but the numbers quoted in the article speak for themselves. The CEO's sole job is growth and the only pathway to growth is new users ... mining those of us who are already there simply won't do it. Also, while he talks about exceeding expectations and good word-of-mouth, he means among these new customers, not us. We're already talking about cruising but we're not going to be the ones who convince new, younger people to try it out. They need other younger people to do that - consumers tend to put more stock in the recommendations of people who look/think/act like themselves. To a certain extent, us grousing about changes actually helps the cause, because to a younger potential cruiser, hearing older cruisers like me complaining about all the changes can sound like "now they're creating cruises not geared to the old folks, maybe it is for me".

I agree with your insights. The negative side to this approach is that the drive to focus primarily on new users runs the risk of alienating your current users which leads to the erosion of passenger loyalty. When the very strategy that is used to increase profitability destroys current sales, competition becomes fierce.

You only have to look at the telecommunication industry to see the outcome of this strategy. The best deals are only offered to new customers. Long time customers are punished by paying more. Loyalty is not rewarded and more and more customers now accept that they will be in a perpetual cycle of switching providers on a regular basis.

We are starting to see this play out in the cruise industry. We already see threads where long time passengers are complaining of first time cruisers being offered lowered prices to sail. As passenger loyalty erodes, we may also see a reduction in cruise passenger reward programs.

You only have to look at the telecommunication industry to see the outcome of this strategy. The best deals are only offered to new customers. Long time customers are punished by paying more. Loyalty is not rewarded and more and more customers now accept that they will be in a perpetual cycle of switching providers on a regular basis.

And consumers now enjoy the lowest prices for landline service, the lowest prices per minute of cellular talk-time, the lowest prices per GB of cellular data - and the industry is superlatively profitable.

There are some "ugly truths" about the long time most loyal HAL cruisers. Most of us are seniors who have done a lot of cruising on HAL (and some other lines). The older more experienced cruisers tend to spend less money on wine, other drinks, photos, tours, etc. On many longer HAL cruises the typical cruiser will dine early, go to the early show, and go to bed. Yes, these folks are a loyal group and keep returning for more cruises....but they generate a relatively low amount of "onboard revenue" which is necessary for a cruise line to show a healthy profit.

Compare this to newer and younger cruisers. They tend to drink more (many like the new drink packages), buy photos, take the overpriced excursions, gamble, and stay up past 9pm to spend extra money enjoying adult beverages. These cruisers generate more onboard revenue per passenger day...which is passenger sought by all cruise lines.

When it comes to HAL we think that loyalty has become mostly one-way.....i.e. passengers who are loyal to HAL. How does HAL repay that loyalty? By often offering better pricing to new cruisers. Offering new cruisers upgrades, and often first shot at some upsells. And then there is the Mariners Program....which really pales by comparison to many other cruise lines (we are in top tiers of many frequent cruiser programs...and HAL is about the worst). If we take a 21 day Celebrity cruise we will get a free (2 hours) cocktail party for 20 of those days (not the first night). If we take a 21 day HAL cruise we will usually get invited to 1 or 2 special parties where we get 1 or 2 drinks. If we cruise on Princess for 3 weeks we will get 1000 (yes, 1000) free internet minutes. On HAL you get no free internet...and do not even get a discount until you are 5 Star Mariners.

One irony is that HAL has become a victim of their own Loyal cruisers (among the best in the industry). Take a HAL Grand Cruise and its likely that over 75% of the cruisers will be at least 4 Star Mariners. As a 4 Star Mariner on a 62 day Grand Cruise we were only invited to a single social event (which was only 1 hour in length) where the line served free cocktails. Priority embarkation, tendering, disembarkation has no meaning when nearly the entire ship qualifies :).

One of our favorite cruise agents (who works for a high volume agency) told us she thinks that HAL does little to nothing for 4-5 Star Mariners. At times you can actually get a better price by logging onto HAL's website as a Guest....then by using your Mariner's number. That is really sad. I once mentioned this to our PCC (from whom we have never booked a cruise) when she called...and she became very quiet. Finally, when I pushed the issue she said it must be a "software error.: Sure!

According to one of my cruise agents, HAL seems to practice a simple philosophy not unheard of in the travel industry. The company assumes that a loyal cruise will always be loyal....so they need to do little to keep their business. But attracting a new customer is much more difficult (and competitive) so the company pulls out all the stops to snag that new customer. From a business point of view this makes a lot of sense. But as a loyal HAL cruiser...it sucks!

Hank

If it ain't broke, don't fix it. Not sure why HAL is "broken". Nothing wrong with being a cruise line for "older" passengers because there will always be an endless supply of the same. It is simply a matter of calendar tyranny.

When it comes to HAL we think that loyalty has become mostly one-way.....i.e. passengers who are loyal to HAL.

If it ain't broke, don't fix it. Not sure why HAL is "broken".

Excellent points. Too bad so many on Cruise Critic think that they know how to run a cruise line.

While we may not know how to run a cruise line, we are 100% proficient in choosing a cruise line or even choosing to cruise in the first place.

While we may not know how to run a cruise line, we are 100% proficient in choosing a cruise line or even choosing to cruise in the first place.

If loyalty to a cruise line comes down to how many free glasses of alcohol it dispenses, I can see why management is concerned.

Does anyone know what percentage of auxiliary services a cruise line must to sell in proportion to its basic passenger rates to be "profitable? Silly me, I erroneously thought "cruising" was more about reasonably comfortable travel from point to point. I am learning a whole different side to this industry.

How novel to have at least one cruise line in the CCL family that was dedicated far more to travel and enrichment, instead of added frills, distractions and free alcohol perks. I nominate HAL. Pick up where Voyages of Discovery left off and where Voyages to Antiquity currently does not go.