madelinerose Posted September 17, 2011 #26 Share Posted September 17, 2011 We refuse to use that or the other networking sites..... Your choice. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maxout Posted September 17, 2011 #27 Share Posted September 17, 2011 People on Facebook More than 750 million active users 50% of active users log on to Facebook in any given day Average user has 130 friends People spend over 700 billion minutes per month on Facebook This is why Hal is utilizing this resource. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare Copper10-8 Posted September 17, 2011 #28 Share Posted September 17, 2011 People on Facebook More than 750 million active users 50% of active users log on to Facebook in any given day Average user has 130 friends People spend over 700 billion minutes per month on Facebook This is why Hal is utilizing this resource. You hit that nail square on the head!:) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
madelinerose Posted September 17, 2011 #29 Share Posted September 17, 2011 People on Facebook More than 750 million active users 50% of active users log on to Facebook in any given day Average user has 130 friends People spend over 700 billion minutes per month on Facebook This is why Hal is utilizing this resource. You hit that nail square on the head!:) Bingo! ;) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bearnaise Posted September 17, 2011 #30 Share Posted September 17, 2011 Also, you can't just enter the sweepstakes on Facebook without a trace. You actually have to "Like" Holland America, which means that all your friends that receive updates to your page will get an update that you've "Like"'d HAL. It's not just marketing to existing HAL clientele who use Facebook, but also marketing to all their friends as well. For what it's worth, I did not enter the sweepstakes, not because I have any issue with Facebook, but particular because I did not want all my "friends" knowing that I "like" HAL. Some don't necessarily need to know that I'm spending my time and money cruising and others who disdain large ship cruising don't have to know that I've succumbed to the pleasures of mass-market tourism. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dewong2008 Posted September 17, 2011 #31 Share Posted September 17, 2011 HAL is a company. As a company, it must decide what advertising it chooses to use. Like it or don't like it is your choice, but they still have to make their own decisions. If you are a shareholder of the Company, by all means, go to the AGM and try to get management changed if you don't like they way they run the Company. Frankly, there are many types of advertising I don't like and many that I find amusing and that catch my attention. I, myself, choose the advertising that I take part in and so do other people. Give the companies, whether it be HAL or some other company, the right to choose their advertising. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sail7seas Posted September 17, 2011 #32 Share Posted September 17, 2011 I have a facebook account so I can see friends photos. I post nothing about myself to speak of and only go there maybe once in three weeks unless I know there are fresh photos I want to view. I have no interest in contests there or on HAL site either for that matter. By the time we would pay the taxes on a cruise we might win that we probably wouldn't want, not worth bothering. I understand HAL being actively involved on Facebook. Most major companies are getting on that bandwagon...... go where tyou'll fine he potential customers. :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
startwin Posted September 17, 2011 #33 Share Posted September 17, 2011 It's probably a good idea to have the contests on facebook and on HAL's website - but honestly how many people visit the website every single day? There would surely be people then who complain they didn't know about the contest until it was too late. How about if it goes out as a link with emails from HAL? I applaud HAL for keeping up with technology. My 77 year old sister just got her first computer and is heavily into facebook and skype! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
esther e Posted September 17, 2011 #34 Share Posted September 17, 2011 I posted this from HAL's news a few days ago: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1482455 Ooppss. Hanging my head. Guess I missed that!!! I am on FB because my kids and grands pushed me in and I kinda like it. I keep up with family times and various friends that I might not. But I guess I just glance because I never saw the contest. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
startwin Posted September 17, 2011 #35 Share Posted September 17, 2011 And another thing.... CC is maybe just 1% of cruisers. So having a roll call on Facebook is a great idea. I cruise with people who have never heard of CC and are not interested, but they sure use facebook. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
esther e Posted September 17, 2011 #36 Share Posted September 17, 2011 Ummm, I'm not naming names, but there is one poster on these two pages who "friended" me and I "friended." :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dewong2008 Posted September 17, 2011 #37 Share Posted September 17, 2011 And another thing.... CC is maybe just 1% of cruisers. So having a roll call on Facebook is a great idea. I cruise with people who have never heard of CC and are not interested, but they sure use facebook. I think that once people get used to there being a Roll Call on FB it will be used more often. I have not found it confusing to have two roll calls. I have talked to some very nice people on the FB roll call that are not part of CC and I am looking forward to meeting them in person. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScottishMaid Posted September 17, 2011 #38 Share Posted September 17, 2011 236,232 people like the HAL Facebook page. That's 36,000 more than a few weeks ago. Many have never cruised but are dreaming of being able to do so. 443,217 people like the Princess Facebook page, 292,337 like Celebrity. How many read cruise critics? 37 Facebook readers are on the Roll Call for my next cruise. Add their cabin mates and that could be more than the 50 total on the Cruise Critic roll call. Facebook and similar communications follow radio, TV, telephone, email, Skpe. Other modes of communication will appear. I'm glad I'll probably live to see them and I hope I'll be able to keep learning how to use them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Megsie1000 Posted September 17, 2011 #39 Share Posted September 17, 2011 To me this is sort of like any of the other marketing gimicks that companies come up with. You can choose to participate and have your name out there and be marketed to (and get some benefit in return), or you can avoid that and then you don't get the benefit. It's like the Target debit card. If you get it, you get 5% off your purchases at Target. The catch is that they now have your name and a list of everything you buy. They can market to you, they can keep valuable information on your demographic, etc. To me, it's worth the 5%, but I know for some it's not. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Candy Posted September 17, 2011 #40 Share Posted September 17, 2011 If you go to http://www.hollandamerica.com and scroll to the bottom of the page you will find a link for Enter to Win a Cruise. I imagine these contest offers appear right on HAL's home page from time to time. Nothing to join. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
liketraveling Posted September 17, 2011 #41 Share Posted September 17, 2011 I am a Facebook member (my younger family members more or less pushed me onto it), but do not access it very frequently. I don't know why HAL can't use BOTH methods for their contests - their own Web Page and Facebook. According to all that I read in business publications, the best way to attract the younger population is to use social networking media (Facebook, Twitter, etc.). Those of us who have sailed with HAL, tend to visit their web site periodically to dream about the next cruise. If HAL used both, they would keep all members of their potential market happy. That would definately balance things out! Because it seems lately they are alienating *sp their existing market and not attracting a new market. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
startwin Posted September 17, 2011 #42 Share Posted September 17, 2011 If you go to http://www.hollandamerica.com and scroll to the bottom of the page you will find a link for Enter to Win a Cruise. I imagine these contest offers appear right on HAL's home page from time to time. Nothing to join. Thank you Candy! Looks like HAL is taking care of everyone after all.:) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
USN59-79 Posted September 17, 2011 #43 Share Posted September 17, 2011 And another thing.... CC is maybe just 1% of cruisers. So having a roll call on Facebook is a great idea. I cruise with people who have never heard of CC and are not interested, but they sure use facebook. I would disagree with your numbers. In our upcoming cruise on Amsterdam we have over 100 roll call members - 8 or 9% of the passengers. When I checked the facebook numbers linked to the HAL webpage for our cruise there were five. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RetiredMustang Posted September 18, 2011 #44 Share Posted September 18, 2011 Wow, this thread almost makes me wish I had a clue what the heck you all are talking about. I don't Facebutt, I don't Twit and I don't YouBoob, or any of those other navel-gazing sites. About the closest I get to social nitwitting is ... um ... blogging on CC. A few CC'ers have asked to be my friend, and I've clicked the box "yes", but I have absolutely no idea what that means; it doesn't seem to make a blind bit of difference in anything. Sorry, you may call me old (I am), or conservative (I'm a troglodyte), or just someone who doesn't give a flying leap about what wild mis-synapses others want to share, but ... I don't care. I have a life. Dave Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
startwin Posted September 18, 2011 #45 Share Posted September 18, 2011 I would disagree with your numbers. In our upcoming cruise on Amsterdam we have over 100 roll call members - 8 or 9% of the passengers. When I checked the facebook numbers linked to the HAL webpage for our cruise there were five. I've found that the facebook roll call feature is catching on. It took awhile but now people know it's there. And I still believe that CC represents a very miniscule percentage of the total number of passengers. CC is a great site, but it's not for everyone, and I had done 4 cruises before I found it!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bepsf Posted September 18, 2011 #46 Share Posted September 18, 2011 That folks are cutting themselves off from a certain aspect communication because they find it "Creepy", "Unnatural" or have privacy fears (a fixable issue with the use of privacy settings) Sounds an awful lot like folks who were afraid of such modern conveniences as electricity, telephones and automobiles hundred years ago. (Remember how they said automobiles would be the ruin of nice young women?) I don't pay much attention to the HAL contests on Facebook since I only have so much vacation time anyway... ...but I do enjoy seeing the updates about the crew, photos of where the ships are at any given time, and notices regarding fare sales - not just from HAL but other lines such as Crystal, Oceania and Cunard - as well as fare sales from my favorite airlines and special deals for hotels. I find it also a great way to stay in touch with friends I've meet aboard ship over the years and share photographs once we return home. I even enjoy the posts from Carnival's Senior Cruise Director, John Heald - and I've never met the man! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
g-didi Posted September 18, 2011 #47 Share Posted September 18, 2011 Facebook is everywhere. HAL would be remiss (IMO) not to be a part of it. If you want to enter that particular contest - join Facebook. If you dont want to join Facebook, then you cant enter. Terms and conditions come with everything! Is it really that big a deal? Is HAL on Facebook really alienating (someone else's word) their existing customer base? I read how many people LOVE HAL, but some are questioning HAL because of a Facebook contest? Seems a bit fickle. All they are trying to do is grow their business and IMO its a good move. Maybe the Roll Calls will grow over time, but surely let them try it first. CC isnt the be-all and end-all of the cruising world - I say that respectfully. As a new poster I find this site a tad intimidating when I read some of the replies folks get. A Facebook page may actually encourage people to partake a bit more in online discussion in a less intimidating place. I dont see how that can be bad. Social networking is here to stay. You can join or not, but just cos you dont like it, doesnt mean it shouldnt exist. From a FB user and Twitter account holder! (And I have my privacy settings on high BTW!) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bippie Posted September 18, 2011 #48 Share Posted September 18, 2011 I recommend that you consider two things: 1. Set up a free email account for junk mail and use that email address when signing up for things on the Internet. Your main account can be shared among friends and trusted companies. 2. Go ahead and set up a facebook account using that junk email address. Send or accept NO friend requests. I did this and I don't get involved with all of the socializing on Facebook. Instead, I use it to enter contests, get free/discount coupons offered by companies, and following a few companies where I have an interest. This was you can lurk on Facebook without having to post or read personal information from others (unless you want to). Facebook will be with us for a while for markerting purposes. Something (probably Google) will replace it in the near future. You can ignore it if you want but I'd rather use it to my benefit and get into the contests and receive the offers from businesses. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bippie Posted September 18, 2011 #49 Share Posted September 18, 2011 A separate though - don't let HAL's Facebook participation alienate you. As g-didi just posted, HAL has to do this. Facebook is just another advertising outlet. Think of it as HAL running a print ad in a magazine you don't care to read. Why should you care as long as HAL provides an alternative means of entering contests? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bippie Posted September 18, 2011 #50 Share Posted September 18, 2011 Sorry - I thought of one more thing. If you do create the Facebook account, you'll have to "like" a company before you can enter their contest or print coupons. Afer you enter the contest, you can "unlike" the company if you no longer wish to see its postings in your newsfeed. (Google for instructions on how to unlike a company - it is very simply if you know where to look for the unlike link. A picture is worth a thousand words.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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