"Some amazing changes coming to Celebrity fleet" announcement mid-week this week!

[richsea]

[quote name='cle-guy']I have corresponded with a couple of them who monitor this site offline. They get lots of laughs from this forum for sure.[/QUOTE]

I can see it now:

Celebrity (chuckling: "boy, those CCrs are idiots!!"

cle-guy: "yes, I try to set them straight, but, you know..."

[upwarduk]

[quote]I have cabins 1122 and 1124 booked for May on Infinity. Will look forward to feedback before I cancel. Suites are sold out already. Curt thanks for all your input. You are a world of knowledge. Heather[/quote]

For what is is worth, we were in 9156 ( corner aft) on Infinity, with the outdoor Sunset? Bar above us.
The only time that it bothered me was early morning when I was woken by the scraping of moving furniture, as they cleaned. After a few days I even got used to that. The views were amazing ( we were treated to a partial Eclipse of the sun, early one morning) Edited October 10, 2015 by upwarduk

[ORV]

[quote name='richsea']I can see it now:

Celebrity (chuckling: "boy, those CCrs are idiots!!"

cle-guy: "yes, I try to set them straight, but, you know..."[/QUOTE]

Rich, if we ever cruise together I'm buying you a drink.

That there's funny, I don't care who you are.

Maybe they should spend less time laughing and more time trying to understand and respond to their customer's issues

[Ma Bell]

I consider anyone who is being paid by Celebrity to be an employee. Nothing wrong with that but let's not pretend to be "just a cruiser" any more.

[ghstudio]

[quote name='Ma Bell']I consider anyone who is being paid by Celebrity to be an employee. Nothing wrong with that but let's not pretend to be "just a cruiser" any more.[/QUOTE]

While I agree with your thoughts, I don't think the ambassadors are actually paid real money....they likely get some perks in payment....and of course they get "feel important" intangible perks. I'm sure Cle will continue to be honest and he's generally had a pro celebrity view prior to whatever "we" is.

I do think that celebrity "ambassadors" should be required to include that fact in their "signature" by Cruise Critic...sort of like truth in lending.

[Ma Bell]

[quote name='ghstudio']While I agree with your thoughts, I don't think the ambassadors are actually paid real money....they likely get some perks in payment....and of course they get "feel important" intangible perks. I'm sure Cle will continue to be honest and he's generally had a pro celebrity view prior to whatever "we" is.

I do think that celebrity "ambassadors" should be required to include that fact in their "signature" by Cruise Critic...sort of like truth in lending.[/QUOTE]

They get paid with cash and perks. Like I said, nothing wrong with that but don't tell everyone "we're just cruisers". Edited October 10, 2015 by Ma Bell

[cle-guy]

[quote name='Ma Bell']I consider anyone who is being paid by Celebrity to be an employee. Nothing wrong with that but let's not pretend to be "just a cruiser" any more.[/QUOTE]

Celebrity is not paying me. Needle is paying me. Celebrity pays Needle.

We have no access to anything but Google and our personal knowledge. No back channels, or special websites. Just us and our minds.

Travel agents get paid by Celebrity though, and there are dozens of those around here who don't fess up we know that.

Celebrity pays every single cruiser who they give On Board Credit too as well.

I'll identify myself with the program as soon as CC requires travel agents to identify, and all elites to identify, other parties who benefit and profit due to loyalty to the brand.

All I know is we are helping a lot of new cruisers with their planning and trips of a lifetime in plain simple cruiser talk, rather than reading from some textbook binder.

This program is my way of giving back, I'm in a unique position of having the free time, the desire, and ability to help others, so I am doing that, and doing that well based upon guest feedback comments and scores. As to "pay", its hardly anything really, works out to around $9-$10 an hour or so, and I do it just a couple hours a week. The best part is the freedom from the snarkiness that exists in internet forums.

It's always fun to get a chatter who has found certain cruise internet forums, but are afraid to post, as they see so much cattiness and opposing information in internet forums and just don't want to take the abuse. It;s also nice to be able to share all those 3rd party websites that internet forums don't allow discussion of, to help them with their planning, and help them get away from the known issues of the X website.

Love me or hate me I really don't care. I will continue to post my opinions, often backed up with facts and figures rather than rhetoric and supposition. Feel free to find the IGNORE button and hide me from feeds if my opinions are so outrageous.

I sleep well knowing that 90% of people find my information useful and honest, and clearly know there are about a dozen where who will always say black when I say white. And I choose not to hide anonymously, being one of the few here with my actual photo and contact information. Edited October 10, 2015 by cle-guy

[cle-guy]

[quote name='Ma Bell']They get paid with cash and perks. Like I said, nothing wrong with that but don't tell everyone "we're just cruisers".[/QUOTE]

We say "we are not Celebrity staff but rather avid cruisers with a passion for our favorite cruise line, Celebrity" when asked in chat, that at the onset on the chat banners identifies us not as employees, but as "Cruise Xperts" or as "Avid Cruisers". These are factual, correct descriptions of our position.

For anyione to think the people they are chatting with are not somehow incentiviced by the cruise line, is just kind of an odd thought. Common sense should say the people have some sort of incentive to be giving their time to the project, which by the way has been a huge success for NCL since its inception in 2012, and continues today. Edited October 10, 2015 by cle-guy

[Karynanne]

[quote name='cle-guy']We say "we are not Celebrity staff but rather avid cruisers with a passion for our favorite cruise line, Celebrity" when asked in chat, that at the onset on the chat banners identifies us not as employees, but as "Cruise Xperts" or as "Avid Cruisers". These are factual, correct descriptions of our position.[/QUOTE]


Symantics...

Whatever the "Official" description, you are being paid for your impressions and opinions. Nothing wrong with that, but I would have kept it to myself while posting on this forum.

There are many of us that have cruised with Celebrity for a long time (and were asked to be a Ambassador, but declined) and do post our opinions and perceptions regarding a specific topic...but we don't regards our answers as gospel or boastings.

[Ma Bell]

[quote name='cle-guy']Celebrity is not paying me. Needle is paying me. Celebrity pays Needle.

Travel agents get paid by Celebrity though, and there are dozens of those around here who don't fess up we know that.

Celebrity pays every single cruiser who they give On Board Credit too as well.

I'll identify myself with the program as soon as CC requires travel agents to identify, and all elites to identify, other parties who benefit and profit due to loyalty to the brand.

All I know is we are helping a lot of new cruisers with their planning and trips of a lifetime in plain simple cruiser talk, rather than reading from some textbook binder.

This program is my way of giving back, I'm in a unique position of having the free time, the desire, and ability to help others, so I am doing that, and doing that well based upon guest feedback comments and scores. As to "pay", its hardly anything really, works out to around $9-$10 an hour or so, and I do it just a couple hours a week. The best part is the freedom from the snarkiness that exists in internet forums.

It's always fun to get a chatter who has found certain cruise internet forums, but are afraid to post, as they see so much cattiness and opposing information in internet forums and just don't want to take the abuse. It;s also nice to be able to share all those 3rd party websites that internet forums don't allow discussion of, to help them with their planning, and help them get away from the known issues of the X website.

Love me or hate me I really don't care. I will continue to post my opinions, often backed up with facts and figures rather than rhetoric and supposition. Feel free to find the IGNORE button and hide me from feeds if my opinions are so outrageous.

I sleep well knowing that 90% of people find my information useful and honest, and clearly know there are about a dozen where who will always say black when I say white.[/QUOTE]

Don't know why you are so upset. I have no problem at all with you. I think my information is always correct as well, especially in this case. I don't expect you to always identify yourself as an Ambassador but I also don't think you should speak about the program and then say you are all just ordinary cruisers when you are being paid.

[Ma Bell]

[quote name='Karynanne']Symantics...

Whatever the "Official" description, you are being paid for your impressions and opinions. Nothing wrong with that, but I would have kept it to myself while posting on this forum.

There are many of us that have cruised with Celebrity for a long time (and were asked to be a Ambassador, but declined) and do post our opinions and perceptions regarding a specific topic...but we don't regards our answers as gospel or boastings.[/QUOTE]

Amen. We don't all know everything, even after many years. We also don't post our status, list our cruises or cabins because we don't presume to consider our opinions to be more important than others. If it comes up in the context of discussion I may include my particular experience, but this forum is for all kinds of opinions and we can choose which ones are relevant to us. Edited October 10, 2015 by Ma Bell

[ghstudio]

[quote name='cle-guy']We say "we are not Celebrity staff but rather avid cruisers with a passion for our favorite cruise line, Celebrity" when asked in chat, that at the onset on the chat banners identifies us not as employees, but as "Cruise Xperts" or as "Avid Cruisers". These are factual, correct descriptions of our position.

For anyione to think the people they are chatting with are not somehow incentiviced by the cruise line, is just kind of an odd thought. Common sense should say the people have some sort of incentive to be giving their time to the project, which by the way has been a huge success for NCL since its inception in 2012, and continues today.[/QUOTE]

Cle...where I go tilt is when you say you are not a celebrity employee because they pay an intermediary. That's a real stretch of the truth.....you are essentially a part time celebrity employee working for the "part time employment company rather than directly by Celebrity. Sort of like all those call centers where folks answer the phone and you think they are employees of the company but they really work for some company in bangalore who is paid to handle call center calls.

You do work for Celebrity...even though someone else is technically paying you. Claiming otherwise is fooling yourself....

[upwarduk]

And what we did know might now be out of date!

[cle-guy]

[quote name='Ma Bell']Don't know why you are so upset. I have no problem at all with you. I think my information is always correct as well, especially in this case. I don't expect you to always identify yourself as an Ambassador but I also don't think you should speak about the program and then say you are all just ordinary cruisers when you are being paid.[/QUOTE]

Has my opinion or the way I discuss Celebrity in this forum changed in any manner since I started this program in August? Have I been skewed by the program in any manner? Did I go from hating X to loving X the day this program started?

My issue is my motives and character are being called into question under the assumption I have some alterior evil motives for offering my opinions. This is what upsets me.

I do not believe so anyway, so it's really a non issue. Once identified with the program people can easily google and find out about the program, much like how I investigated them before signing on.

My posting's here have zero to do with that program, I get no payment or consideration of any kind for spending my time here in case that's what people may be thinking. My postings here are not telling people, "click here to talk to me so I can book you and get 300 measly points which convert to $1.50 for me to spend on board,if you actually make a reservation after the 30-45 minutes of time I give chatting with you to guide you thru the process". I have given ZERO call to action of any sort.

Shame on me for putting it out there that I was happy to help people out by passing on specific website issues in hopes of finally getting some resolution. Lesson learned. By the way, I have listed every single issue folks presented here, as well as those emailed to me, in the proper form for consideration. Happy to help. Edited October 10, 2015 by cle-guy

[cle-guy]

[quote name='Ma Bell']Amen. We don't all know everything, even after many years. We also don't post our status, list our cruises or cabins because we don't presume to consider our opinions to be more important than others. If it comes up in the context of discussion I may include my particular experience, but this forum is for all kinds of opinions and we can choose which ones are relevant to us.[/QUOTE]

The only way we will learn all is by sharing opinions and experiences.

I post my cruise history so people with questions specific to itinerary, cabin type etc., know they can ask specific questions of me and get real answers. I post my sailing dates so people can determine how recent my experience is in regards to what I post here. Was surprised recently for example, by what seemed to be a long time and regular cruiser based on postings, who was surprised 3 months ago to hear that Constellation no longer had a florist and bar on the top deck where Qsine is.

And its a farce for anyone to say that they don't think their opinion is not more important than another, If it were not important to them, they wouldn't have bothered sharing the opinion. But as you say, we can all choose what's relevant and take any post as we wish, and do our own research based on the information presented.

An example, some have said the chairs and foot noise of the new deck is going to affect the majority of Aqua cabins, yet when one drops the deck plans on top of each other, one can easily see that less than half will have a direct impact. So I post the 15 cabin numbers under that area, and people can then conclude from that if they think the cabins not under the area with chairs will have chair noise or not. At least it gives people a specific list of cabins to definitely avoid should they have a problem, rather than blanket "all those cabins are ruined and will be noisy".

The reader can decide for themselves if "all those cabins" will be noisy, or if in reality probably only those 15 or so full aft will have the problem and the ones full forward likely won't have a clue anything changed.

Is my opinion better than the other opinion? Let the reader determine. They now have 2 sides of the discussion with details enough to make an educated decision, thanks to the free flow of opinions here. Edited October 10, 2015 by cle-guy

[ghstudio]

[quote name='cle-guy']Has my opinion or the way I discuss Celebrity in this forum changed in any manner since I started this program in August? Have I been skewed by the program in any manner? Did I go from hating X to loving X the day this program started?

My issue is my motives and character are being called into question under the assumption I have some alterior evil motives for offering my opinions. This is what upsets me.

I do not believe so anyway, so it's really a non issue. Once identified with the program people can easily google and find out about the program, much like how I investigated them before signing on.

My posting's here have zero to do with that program, I get no payment or consideration of any kind for spending my time here in case that's what people may be thinking. My postings here are not telling people, "click here to talk to me so I can book you and get 300 measly points which convert to $1.50 for me to spend on board,if you actually make a reservation after the 30-45 minutes of time I give chatting with you to guide you thru the process". I have given ZERO call to action of any sort.

Shame on me for putting it out there that I was happy to help people out by passing on specific website issues in hopes of finally getting some resolution. Lesson learned. By the way, I have listed every single issue folks presented here, as well as those emailed to me, in the proper form for consideration. Happy to help.[/QUOTE]

I'd suggest you be a bit careful saying "I book you".....some states require travel agents to be licensed...canada requires anyone acting as a TA to take and pass an online course. If the folks in your program are acting as Travel agents (you get to figure out how that's defined in each state), you may actually be in violation of the law. Don't count on Celebrity to have done their due diligence....

BTW...I know you are giving honest opinions here....but when folks review or talk about the company they work for (we can argue semantics), it's reasonable and I guess we could argue about ethical, to tell folks because you might have a bias. Have you read reviews of products/restaurants online and wondered if the reviewer worked for the restaurant??
Have you ever told anyone you chat with to not book a cruise with Celebrity???

It's a grey area...your comments here are great...I just believe in truth in advertising for everyone. Edited October 10, 2015 by ghstudio

[Ma Bell]

Curt, you really need to take a breath. No one is questioning your motives. It was a simple comment that when YOU mention that you are an Ambassador you should not describe yourself as "just a cruiser" when you are being compensated. That is not being truthful and you need to disclose that you are being compensated for your position. In the alternative you don't have to mention it at all.

I had no problem with any of your posts, but if what you are saying is that you should never be questioned or contradicted, I find that to be a little over the top. Even you don't always have the complete facts on every subject and your opinion is not always necessarily the gold standard.

[elena7seas]

[quote name='cle-guy']Has my opinion or the way I discuss Celebrity in this forum changed in any manner since I started this program in August? Have I been skewed by the program in any manner? Did I go from hating X to loving X the day this program started?

My issue is my motives and character are being called into question under the assumption I have some alterior evil motives for offering my opinions. This is what upsets me.

I do not believe so anyway, so it's really a non issue. Once identified with the program people can easily google and find out about the program, much like how I investigated them before signing on.

My posting's here have zero to do with that program, I get no payment or consideration of any kind for spending my time here in case that's what people may be thinking. My postings here are not telling people, "click here to talk to me so I can book you and get 300 measly points which convert to $1.50 for me to spend on board,if you actually make a reservation after the 30-45 minutes of time I give chatting with you to guide you thru the process". I have given ZERO call to action of any sort.

Shame on me for putting it out there that I was happy to help people out by passing on specific website issues in hopes of finally getting some resolution. Lesson learned. By the way, I have listed every single issue folks presented here, as well as those emailed to me, in the proper form for consideration. Happy to help.[/QUOTE]

Curt, just for the sake of clarity, are you saying that the "advocates", such as yourself, can book guests, and that the advocates then get points that convert to OBC for making the booking? Edited October 10, 2015 by elena7seas

[need2bespoiled]

[quote name='ghstudio']I'd suggest you be a bit careful saying "I book you".....some states require travel agents to be licensed...canada requires anyone acting as a TA to take and pass an online course. If the folks in your program are acting as Travel agents (you get to figure out how that's defined in each state), you may actually be in violation of the law. Don't count on Celebrity to have done their due diligence....

BTW...I know you are giving honest opinions here....but when folks review or talk about the company they work for (we can argue semantics), it's reasonable and I guess we could argue about ethical, to tell folks because you might have a bias. Have you read reviews of products/restaurants online and wondered if the reviewer worked for the restaurant??
Have you ever told anyone you chat with to not book a cruise with Celebrity???

It's a grey area...your comments here are great...I just believe in truth in advertising for everyone.[/QUOTE]

He said is posts are NOT "book you". He said he can't book anyone, only give his option and search google.

I agree with Curt. There are MANY travel agents posting here.

I'll also add that lots of rumor starts with misreading and "assuming" some have admittedly done. I for one will wait for first hand reports.

Happy sailing,
Jenna

[cle-guy]

[quote name='ghstudio']

BTW...I know you are giving honest opinions here....but when folks review or talk about the company they work for (we can argue semantics), it's reasonable and I guess we could argue about ethical, to tell folks because you might have a bias. Have you ever told anyone you chat with to not book a cruise with Celebrity???[/QUOTE]

Thanks of the heads up on the TA issue, I'm not concerned, is anyone were to come investigate, it'd be simply proven otherwise. I'm open to the audit LOL. We don't have access to even the name of the person we are chatting with unless they introduce ourselves. It'd be tough to say we we making bookings. The guest has to complete all steps themselves, and if they are having difficulty, we just tell then to phone in for personal assistance.

Again, as to bias, anyone reasonable person chatting to someone on a Celebrity Website, should assume there will be some bias toward Celebrity don't you think?

Anyone spending time in a Celebrity internet forum should be considered to have some bias to Celebrity, right?

Someone who's signature includes nothing but cruises on Celebrity should be considered bias to Celebrity right?

I think those clues are enough.

I have had people with pop in and ask questions that the answer is to find a different cruise line. I give an honest analysis, saying things like Summit in summer is best for kids, holidays too. Celebrity had a kids program, the fun factory, then send them links to it. Then tell then that in honesty while kids will be happy here, RCL may be a better fit. Or another time someone wanted a cruise that stopped somewhere X didn't so I found the port website we use, and give them the cruise lines that call there. And as I say, we readily share all the 3rd party sites so people can do further research and book outside the Celebrity realm should they desire.

Honestly the worst part go the chatting, is trying to walk people thru the booking process. We hate it as much as you guys do, the kinks and hiccups....we far more enjoy the question and answer type of chats where we can quickly helps someone out rather than a long drawn out 45 minute chat. I had one lady I chatted with, took me 2 hours 30 minutes help her. It was the 1st day, But she was eternally greatful, popping back in the next day to say thanks again for being so patient with her and get one more question answered.

[cle-guy]

[quote name='elena7seas']Curt, just for the sake of clarity, are you saying that the "advocates", such as yourself, can book guests, and that the advocates then get points that convert to OBC for making the booking?[/QUOTE]

No, we can not book anyone, We use chat to guide people thru the process themselves, based on our knowledge of the booking routine having done it ourselves so many times.

They are on the site, they open chat and say "can you find me a 7 night caribbean in January?" then we go to X site, do a search, and then give them the link to that search result so they have a focused list. if they ask us about fares, we tell then to click thru and find their cruise, and prices will display. Some ask us foe better rates, we have to of course say what you see is what you get.

Then they ask, how do I add my kids, so we say, see that drop down, add in the number of adults and kids" . Then they go silent for a while, work their way thru then say "how come I can't pick late dining, it says only early or select. What is select?" and we explain, and they continue on. Then they get to the finalization page, that shows the full cabin fare taxes etc, and then they chose BETTER, got free grats, and also booked select, so now the question "my booking says I have to pay the gratuities, but they are supposed to be free, how do I fix that" and we explain "it will be removed form your invoice by final payment, it takes 10 days or so for promotions to appear on your reservation t credit of the gratuity charge, but don't worry you only pay a deposit today, so you are not paying the gratuities today."

If they do end up confirming a booking, we get 300 points. I've had all of 3 confirmed bookings - it's clearly not the focus of what we do. If our customer satisfaction score over 25 chats is a certain number, we get 200 more points. If we can perform 25 chats in 3 hours time, we get more points. Points roughly value to half a cent each. It will likely take me 3 months or so to accumulate 20,000 points, maybe longer which equates to a $100 gift card bonus. Hard to say that's a huge bit of incentive.

[Karynanne]

[quote name='cle-guy']No, we can not book anyone, We use chat to guide people thru the process themselves, based on our knowledge of the booking routine having done it ourselves so many times.



They are on the site, they open chat and say "can you find me a 7 night caribbean in January?" then we go to X site, do a search, and then give them the link to that search result so they have a focused list. if they ask us about fares, we tell then to click thru and find their cruise, and prices will display. Some ask us foe better rates, we have to of course say what you see is what you get.



Then they ask, how do I add my kids, so we say, see that drop down, add in the number of adults and kids" . Then they go silent for a while, work their way thru then say "how come I can't pick late dining, it says only early or select. What is select?" and we explain, and they continue on. Then they get to the finalization page, that shows the full cabin fare taxes etc, and then they chose BETTER, got free grats, and also booked select, so now the question "my booking says I have to pay the gratuities, but they are supposed to be free, how do I fix that" and we explain "it will be removed form your invoice by final payment, it takes 10 days or so for promotions to appear on your reservation t credit of the gratuity charge, but don't worry you only pay a deposit today, so you are not paying the gratuities today."



If they do end up confirming a booking, we get 300 points. I've had all of 3 confirmed bookings - it's clearly not the focus of what we do. If our customer satisfaction score over 25 chats is a certain number, we get 200 more points. If we can perform 25 chats in 3 hours time, we get more points. Points roughly value to half a cent each. It will likely take me 3 months or so to accumulate 20,000 points, maybe longer which equates to a $100 gift card bonus. Hard to say that's a huge bit of incentive.[/QUOTE]


If I am understanding the point system you have stated, then I do see it as "quasi commission" perk for you.

My only problem with this is you needing to share this info on this forum. It diminishes your credibility....IMHO.

[cle-guy]

[quote name='Karynanne']If I am understanding the point system you have stated, then I do see it as "quasi commission" perk for you.

My only problem with this is you needing to share this info on this forum. It diminishes your credibility....IMHO.[/QUOTE]

That's fine. Each can make their own decision. As I said, I sleep well. Call that $1.50 gift card for spending an hour with a customer and walking them thru the process a bribe if you want. I just don't see it that way. If we were getting some fixed % of the actual sales amount, then I might buy into the idea of a real commission, bit this is nothing more than someone tossing me a promotional pen and Celebrity paper notepad and saying "thanks for your help!". Semantics, as some have said I suppose.

Many have stated that disclosure is needed, I disclose, and now you say disclosure diminished my credibility. Proof that no one is going to ever 100% satisfy everyone. So I'll continue to present facts and my honest opinion and let the cards fall as they may,

The majority of hat I've disclosed here is available thru google searches, nothing really secret about it. Edited October 10, 2015 by cle-guy

[elena7seas]

[quote name='cle-guy']No, we can not book anyone, We use chat to guide people thru the process themselves, based on our knowledge of the booking routine having done it ourselves so many times.

They are on the site, they open chat and say "can you find me a 7 night caribbean in January?" then we go to X site, do a search, and then give them the link to that search result so they have a focused list. if they ask us about fares, we tell then to click thru and find their cruise, and prices will display. Some ask us foe better rates, we have to of course say what you see is what you get.

Then they ask, how do I add my kids, so we say, see that drop down, add in the number of adults and kids" . Then they go silent for a while, work their way thru then say "how come I can't pick late dining, it says only early or select. What is select?" and we explain, and they continue on. Then they get to the finalization page, that shows the full cabin fare taxes etc, and then they chose BETTER, got free grats, and also booked select, so now the question "my booking says I have to pay the gratuities, but they are supposed to be free, how do I fix that" and we explain "it will be removed form your invoice by final payment, it takes 10 days or so for promotions to appear on your reservation t credit of the gratuity charge, but don't worry you only pay a deposit today, so you are not paying the gratuities today."

If they do end up confirming a booking, we get 300 points. I've had all of 3 confirmed bookings - it's clearly not the focus of what we do. If our customer satisfaction score over 25 chats is a certain number, we get 200 more points. If we can perform 25 chats in 3 hours time, we get more points. Points roughly value to half a cent each. It will likely take me 3 months or so to accumulate 20,000 points, maybe longer which equates to a $100 gift card bonus. Hard to say that's a huge bit of incentive.[/QUOTE]

Thanks very much for your very open and complete reply. I think you are performing a great service for prospective cruisers, and also think that you are more than entitled to some kind of "commission" for doing so. Perhaps over the period of the test run, Celebrity will find that the advocates are providing a service with tangible benefits, and will increase the amount of remuneration, which I agree, is currently meagre.

[cle-guy]

[quote name='elena7seas']Thanks very much for your very open and complete reply. I think you are performing a great service for prospective cruisers, and also think that you are more than entitled to some kind of "commission" for doing so. Perhaps over the period of the test run, Celebrity will find that the advocates are providing a service with tangible benefits, and will increase the amount of remuneration, which I agree, is currently meagre.[/QUOTE]

The idea is that as we get more comfortable over time, we are able to manage more chats at a time. We started with access to only 1 chat a a time, then as our average response time started to get lower, they added a 2nd to our capacity, and later added a 3rd, 4th, etc.. Some NCL folks say that routinely manage 6 at a time. If the system determines we are not accepting too many chats because we are busy with other guests, it automatically reduces our capacity so other chatters get the que of guests first.

We have no doubt that the renumeration will remain as-is, it's up to us to be able to handle multiple chats at a time to increase the renumeration. We also have ability to not take chats, such as if I'm deep in with one person needing lots of help I can close myself off from accepting others, to focus attention to the single guest, or we can remain open and toggle multiple, After doing it, you quickly get a feel for which chat needs lots of help, versus those that are asking sporadic questions thus allowing me to grab another chat while that one is browsing the site.