Two weeks ago I gave a keynote speech at the Cornell School of Hotel Administration on our customer engagement strategy. I enjoyed this opportunity for a number of reasons. First, the Hotel School is the premier school of its kind in the U.S. Second, my mother graduated from this school in the late 1950′s when few women undergraduates attended. Third, it was the first Hospitality Research Summit and there was a lot of enthusiasm at the conference.
While our customer engagement takes place primarily onboard the ships, my remarks and the questions from the audience mostly revolved around the growing influence of social media. The online environment has completely changed the nature of our interaction with consumers in general, and our loyal guests in particular. Only ten years ago, two-way interactions with even our most regular customers were limited to their time on the ships. With today’s communication portals the opportunities are nearly without limit. We take this into consideration in virtually every program, product and service, that we brainstorm and then either implement or reject. How we obtain feedback, how we launch new ships, how we convey new programs – all of these things have social media at their heart today.
So, it follows that I should ask what you would like to read about in this blog beyond the obvious topic of Allure of the Seas, more Allure of the Seas and even more Allure of the Seas. Don’t worry, Lisa Bauer is on her way over and has her laptop with her to keep you amused as the ship makes its way to Port Everglades. In any event, I look forward to your suggestions as always.
Personal note – I have started doing 5:30 a.m. sessions with a personal trainer on top of my other athletic pursuits. My trainer is both a physical therapist and a strength and conditioning coach. He is very capable and I think he is helping me. An alternative hypothesis is that he is killing me. It’s remarkable how much work one can do in 30 minutes without touching a machine. I don’t know yet how this will specifically make me run faster, but I was pretty happy about the whole thing the other night when I ran my 6th 800 meter interval in 2:45. If I suddenly stop writing the blog you can pretty much guess what happened.
Thanks for opening the floor to requests for topics on this enjoyable blog. You do a good job of posting a wide variety of stories, but maybe you could give more employee stories? For example, I know some of the waiters have worked for RCL for many, many years and it would be neat to read about their experience.
Another topic of interest might be the origin of artwork on the ships, or information about the latest menu changes and offerings fleet-wide.
Thank you for your suggestions Roger. Those are some very interesting topics worth looking into. Thank you once again, and we hope to see you soon.
Morning Adam. Your trainer sounds just a little like a Drill Sargeant! If it doesn’t hurt then you need to do it all over again! And on the subject of exercise, would it be possible to devise some kind of program for us ‘slightly older’ passengers. I walk into the gym and the sight of all those machines, complete with trim, lean, active bodies scare the daylights out of me. Where would I start?, what do I need to do?, How do I get out of here?? Having talked with other ‘SO’ passengers I know that I am not the only one that wishes there was something set up just for us. Something we could do without making fools of ourselves with our starting efforts. RCL takes care of us in so many ways but I do think that this would be a big plus. Who knows, if it works maybe we could have RCL inter-ship Senior Sports events?
Hi Helen, we completely understand where you’re coming from, and we appreciate your suggestion. We will pass it along to the right department for review and keep it under consideration when developing future programs.
Asking our opinion is flattering – thank you! I would love to read more about all facets of cruising, including the inside scoop on employment, employee stories, cruising experiences in general, upcoming events – and more! (And more often!)
As I near my upcoming cruise on Allure of the Seas, your blogs become a source of great anticipation. Keep them coming!
Thank you for your kind words Michele. We appreciate your feedback, and will take your suggestions into consideration. Allure of the Seas is an amazing ship that we are extremely proud of, we are very confident that she will definitely deliver the WOW once you are onboard. We are looking forward to having you with us soon.
Thank you for the opportunity to suggest topics. I would love to hear more about life on the ship for the employees. We love asking our waiters where they are from, how long they have been on the ship, when they will see their family next. Maybe a “Day in the Life of ____” type of thing. Greatly looking forward to our back to back cruises on the Navigator & Allure in Feb 2011. Really enjoy your blogs!!
Thank you for your feedback Karen. Bloging about employee life on the ships sounds like a very good idea. I will definitely take your idea into consideration.
In light of what is happening with another cruise line, can you explain to us how Royal C. keeps its ships in tip top shape. I’m a little nervous about going on an older ship, especially when the one on the news was so new. I sail soon on the Voyager of the seas. Never sailed with Royal before, but looking forward to a safe and enjoyable trip. Thanks.
Hello Renee, we can assure you that our ships are in the best operating condition. Once you set foot on Voyager of the Seas, you will have peace of mind and enjoy the wonderful experience that lies ahead. Our ships undergo a rigorous check system and are constantly being maintained to avoid any potential infestation. We continue to follow strict rules that ensure our ships meet all health codes. Rest assured that you will have a very enjoyable time with us Renee. We can’t wait to see you onboard.
I pretty sure I saw you on the TODAY show today. You were sitting behind Kathy and Hoda. The food portion of the show I thought was awesome it made me hungry just looking at it. Kudos to your marketing dept. you guys have really out done yourselves.
Hello James, thank you for your high praises. The show was very entertaining, and the food portion was amazing in its own. We hope to see you sometime in the future. Until then, take care.