Princess Marketing - Not Impressed

[toberman]

I'm sure this topic has been around before.. just don't remember seeing it.

 

Received a brochure yesterday quoting Balconies for OV prices!! So I checked the prices out and in 5 out of 5 cruises offered I was able to get better prices for the Balcony from My Princess and from an on-line agency. But the biggy is - I could get OV rooms for 200-300 less than the brochure was offering. It's obvious once I looked closely they just upped the price of OV's to Balcony rates. The brochure should have stated OV for the price of a Balcony!! I've been suspicious before, just never checked into it.

[Toto2Kansas]

We have always been able to beat any of the 'deals' advertised or not, offered by Princess when booking with a discount TA. It is one reason why I rarely have to watch for price drops as my original price has always been less, even when Princess drops prices or runs specials. ;)

[toberman]

We have always been able to beat any of the 'deals' advertised or not, offered by Princess when booking with a discount TA. It is one reason why I rarely have to watch for price drops as my original price has always been less, even when Princess drops prices or runs specials. ;)

 

OMG Toto - does your phone ring or something everytime someone posts on the Princess board?? :confused: You always seem to be one of the first to respond!! :)

 

Not questioning whether or not one can get better pricing - it is about whether or not this so called special offer is very good/or nice marketing procedures.

[Pam in CA]

Usually, these promos are very specific for a cruise and cabin categories. They may not apply to all cabin categories for the specific cruise. There are usually fine print and qualifiers. Without seeing the brochure you received, there's no way to tell. Also, I'm pretty sure some brochures are regional, i.e., the rates are offered to passengers from a specific part of the country.

 

These are pretty common marketing techniques so I don't get upset if I can't take advantage of them. As Toto said, I get better discounting from my TA so I don't pay attention to the brochures except to see if there is a cruise I'd be interested in.

[Toto2Kansas]

OMG Toto - does your phone ring or something everytime someone posts on the Princess board?? :confused: You always seem to be one of the first to respond!! :)

 

Not questioning whether or not one can get better pricing - it is about whether or not this so called special offer is very good/or nice marketing procedures.

 

I have a beeper. lol But that's just a bit of an exaggeration.............there are many posts I do not respond to and some I don't even read. ;)

 

To answer your question fully, as you say, it's a marketing tool. And as Pam says, the fine print usually knocks out most categories and sailings we would be interested in anyway. Many cruise lines do the same thing, it isn't just Princess. Doesn't bother me in the least. ;)

[toberman]

I have a beeper.

 

Though so !!

[toberman]

These are pretty common marketing techniques

 

Thanks Pam.. your beeper must go off at the same time as Toto's. ;)

Always respect your input too!!

 

Maybe I'm missing something.... to advertise a Bal for the price of a OV, when, in fact they just upped the price of the OV to Bal rates is common marketing practices?? Not that I would buy into it, but just seems a little off to me??

It did specify that the offer was limited to certain people in certain areas... do you think Canada in January might work?? :)

[Pam in CA]

One thing to remember is that the brochures are sent out and it takes a while for you to receive them; pricing can change in the week or two that it takes.

 

No, no beeper. An iPhone I keep with me. :) Toto usually gets an answer in before me, and it's usually more accurate and thorough. :)

[Nebr.cruiser]

The Princess brochures they send out are almost never a very good deal and they have all kinds of 'catches' and exclusions and iffy sales pitches, like the OV for the price of a Balcony that you mentioned.

 

Unfortunately, I think it is fairly common in the cruise industry and many other venues.

 

I remember years ago when we were shopping for a new recliner. We were writing down the exact prices and model numbers of the name brand we wanted. So we knew exactly the price of the model we wanted.

 

A few days later, the store advertised a half-off sale on all recliners. We excitedly headed for the store where we found that the exact same chair with a half-off tag. The only problem was that the non-sale price was now precisely twice as much as the half-off price.

 

In other words, the chair had been, say, $400 on Tuesday. On Thurs., when it was supposed to be half-price, the starting price was now $800 and the sale price $400. So it was really not a sale at all, just a ploy to get people into the store and make them think they are getting a bargain.

 

I'm not saying all cruise line rates are like this, sometimes you can actually get a deal, but to get the best rate you have to shop around and know what the real going rate is.

 

Apparantly a lot of people must just pay these brochure rates, or it wouldn't pay them to send them out. I have to bite my tongue in the MDR when people tell us they got such a great deal--Half Off!--or whatever--when I know almost every cruise is discounted that much right off the bat and that we paid much, much less, by doing a little research.

[PescadoAmarillo]

Our experience with those "balcony for the price of an OV" promotions is that, during the period of the sale, the pricer of the highest level OV (which is the price you have to pay to get the balcony cabin) is indeed hiked up. If you compare it to the next lower OV category, there is a huge difference. So, yes, it kind of is a "get an OV for the price of a balcony" promotion.

[Times Prince]

In general, there will always be someone who got a better deal, and someone who paid more. That's life. I compare it to buying stock. Right now the only one showing positive is my CCL stock.

 

We bit on one of those Balcony for the price of an Oceanview, and felt cheated when they dropped the OV price - it seems to me they should have honored the text of the offer, and given me the discount. Fortunately we had something else come up which resulted in cancelling the cruise, but that's the only time we've felt misled.

[Colo Cruiser]

Its like list price at the car dealer. :rolleyes:

It can always be beat by someone/somwhere.

[Pam in CA]

Its like list price at the car dealer. :rolleyes:

It can always be beat by someone/somwhere.

True. But unlike a car dealer, you can't haggle. :)