Why the surprise about Sales Pitches

[Wastegirl]

Off and on, here and in reviews I see comments about being hassled by sales pitches on HAL and I wonder why.

 

If you go to a talk put on by one of the stores, eg Mirabella, about Pearls - of course they are all going to be about selling you something. You'd be naive to think anything else. Spend money in the Spa and they will try and sell you products, that happens on land why should a ship be any different.

 

I know I am not a seasoned cruiser with only two under my belt and two more coming up, but I soon worked out that if you don't go to the shows put on by the shops unless you are truly interested in the product and don't bother with the Spa because you will get it cheaper on land, I don't get hassled at all.

 

Yes the wine waiter came round in the Lido selling tastings and packages, but it was all very low key and they soon left you alone if you weren't interested. Never got hassled about buying drinks, they were there if we needed them but once it was determined we didn't want one at the moment, we were left alone.

 

That is why I don't understand why people feel hassled, photographers on the gang plank and formal night, smile and say no thank you and walk around them, easy.

 

Maybe I am just one of those people who really has no problem avoiding sales people and they know it and leave me alone.

[sail7seas]

We have never felt hassled by sales pitches on HAL ships.

Then again, we don't go to the spa. I used to go to the salon but haven't had a manicure/pedicure aboard for a while now.

[FredT]

Guess I am just "gun shy" about pushy photographers... A bunch of bad experiences (on other lines) with photographers who would not take "no". It got so bad once on a NCL cruise that they would physically stop you and insist that you get your photograph taken on boarding. No photo, no gangway....

 

So if I get my hackles raised when seeing one.... please understand! :D

[TracieABD]

I think HAL does a great job NOT harassing their customers!:)

[cruz chic]

I've learned not to go to the spa on a ship because they do a lousy job. I never get a sales pitch at a spa here. How sad that just because you go to one it's ok to be hassled. Sorry but I don't get that.

[Linda&Vern]

The last few years we have been amazed at how laid back the photographers are on HAL. We shake our heads "NO" and they smile and go on their way. Have never had a problem. This past March we decided on one festive night to have a few shots taken ... the lines were so long we walked away and :rolleyes: didn't bother the photographers.

Edited December 10, 2013 by Linda&Vern

[SilvertoGold]

Agree that the HAL photographers are much more low-key now. Not a problem to say no, thanks and go on your way. We suspect that HAL got a lot of complaints and decided to rein in the photographers. We appreciate this a lot.

 

Some years ago it was difficult to avoid the embarkation photo: we had one photographer say it was mandatory. We kept going and he gave us a dirty look every time he saw us for the whole 14 day cruise. Sheesh!

 

As a result of what I read here on CC and a few of my own expereinces I avoid the spa completely now, even though I get one day complimentary as a 5 star. Nothing would spoil my day faster than a hardsell there.

[startwin]

I don't have a problem with photographers, or people in the shops. But the spa is ridiculous - you buy a session which de-stresses you and makes soooo relaxed (and it's not cheap) and then get the hard sell for products I don't want that just won't stop. So I don't go anymore.

[SilvertoGold]

I don't have a problem with photographers, or people in the shops. But the spa is ridiculous - you buy a session which de-stresses you and makes soooo relaxed (and it's not cheap) and then get the hard sell for products I don't want that just won't stop. So I don't go anymore.

 

Isn't this a dumb way for HAL to drum up business for the spa? Drive away the customers they do have with unrelenting hardsell. Of course, this is Steiner, not HAL, but it is on HAL ships. What are they thinking?

[RuthC]

If I attend a "seminar" sponsored by a shop, or the acupuncturist, then I have walked in to the lion's den on my own volition. Now that the photographers do take "No" for an answer, and don't block the path so much, at least that's better than it used to be.

 

But when I am paying good money for a salon or spa treatment, then that's different. The worker has no right to infringe on my relaxation. If I bring up the subject, then they should feel free to answer, but I should never be put in the position of paying to be hassled.

[Wakepatrol]

What's the big deal with the photographers? It takes an 1/8 of a second to snap your mug and you keep moving.

[igraf]

Now if we could just get rid of the retina-zapping photo flash umbrellas all around the atrium on formal nights....

 

igraf

 

 

 

 

...Now that the photographers do take "No" for an answer, and don't block the path so much, at least that's better than it used to be. ...

[donaldsc]

Guess I am just "gun shy" about pushy photographers... A bunch of bad experiences (on other lines) with photographers who would not take "no". It got so bad once on a NCL cruise that they would physically stop you and insist that you get your photograph taken on boarding. No photo, no gangway....

 

So if I get my hackles raised when seeing one.... please understand! :D

 

Seems simple with regard to photographers. Make a funny face. Stick out your tongue. Give them the finger/ Stick your fingers in your ears and wiggle them. Even carry a card that says "this ship (use the ship's name) sucks". Carry a high intensity flashlight and aim it at the camera lens.

 

Any of these things will ensure that they will not take photos.

 

Also, if I am walking somewhere and am physically restrained by a photographer (it has never happened to me as they seem to understand the word 'no'), take put a pad and report them to ship security.

 

I will bet that they get put off before the next port.

 

With regard to the spas, I do not do spas. However, if I did, I would tell the person doing the treatment that I do not want them to try to sell me ANYTHING and if they do, their tip will drop to zero. I imagine that that should do it.

 

DON

Edited December 10, 2013 by donaldsc

[nana51]

I have never been pushed to buy anything. I had a spa package last cruise and it was not pushed. I got a massage and was not pushed to buy anything. the photographer never bothered us at all. I never felt I had to go out of my way to avoid them.

[Wakepatrol]

Seems simple with regard to photographers. Make a funny face. Stick out your tongue. Give them the finger/ Stick your fingers in your ears and wiggle them. Even carry a card that says "this ship (use the ship's name) sucks". Carry a high intensity flashlight and aim it at the camera lens.

 

Any of these things will ensure that they will not take photos.

 

Also, if I am walking somewhere and am physically restrained by a photographer (it has never happened to me as they seem to understand the word 'no'), take put a pad and report them to ship security.

 

I will bet that they get put off before the next port.

 

With regard to the spas, I do not do spas. However, if I did, I would tell the person doing the treatment that I do not want them to try to sell me ANYTHING and if they do, their tip will drop to zero. I imagine that that should do it.

 

DON

 

I think I read your book

"How To Spend A Vacation"

[Krazy Kruizers]

We have never felt hassled by the sale pitches on HAL.

But then again we are not interested in attending the first day offers by the salon, or going to any of the gem seminars, etc.

[sapper1]

The only time the photographers seem to impede the flow of traffic is on embarkation. We never have our photo taken then and it would be appreciated by us and others who just wish to board the ship, if HAL were to have a second line for those who wish to bypass the photo op. As it stands now, everyone has to wait in a photo line and then firmly decline to be photographed. It slows down the boarding process.

 

In the spa, at the first sign of selling, I just say I am not interested in buying any product.

 

Generally speaking though, I am not bothered by sales pitches around the ship. A polite "no thank-you" will send the seller on his/her way. They don't seem to apply any high pressure.

[Wakepatrol]

Now if we could just get rid of the retina-zapping photo flash umbrellas all around the atrium on formal nights....

 

igraf

 

 

How about the guy in crocs and a tracksuit,he needs to go as well:)

[1of4]

We had no issues on our last HAL cruise except for the spa, which I learned to never go to again. I WON two treatments by filling out ballots on embarkation day. This was our first HAL cruise so what did we know.

 

Well we know better now. I don't know if it was the "free" treatments that was the cause of the major sales pitch...that went on for 3 days or that I am a wimp.

 

The second treatment they tried to bill me $70 for and denied that we had received a phone message saying it was free and we had won. That was until I asked why then, when I booked it and again when I showed up for it and said I was there for the foot and leg treatment I had won did they "let me away with it" but still denied I was right.

 

Never, ever again.

[sun~]

The photographers, spa staff (Steiner), "shoppies" are all employees of concessionaires. They are not employed by the cruise line. They really push to make money. Some staff are less pushy than others.

 

A firm no will usually stop them from bugging you. From what a gather about the Steiner girls is that they pay them a pittance and are forced to sell products. Needless to say the turnover is apparently very high. It must be very unpleasant for them to constantly push sales. I won't use the spas on board for that reason, I would rather have a relaxing experience at my regular spa :). I never buy the photos.

[RuthC]

The only time the photographers seem to impede the flow of traffic is on embarkation.

This seems to have improved in recent years. I now find that there is a path around them when embarking, and they no longer seem to block the gangway when you're trying to go ashore; they are a little more off to the side.

 

Where it does become a problem is trying to get from a lounge to the dining room on formal night. The photographers are set up right in the direct path through, and expect you to stop and wait, or go around the longer way, when they are setting up and taking a shot.

This can become problematic for those with mobility problems. When every step is painful, you don't want to take extra steps to "just go around". I have a friend with Parkinson's, and he has trouble sometimes getting started walking, but once going, it's hard to stop. Those photo placements don't help.

They could be in an obvious place, while still off to the side, not interrupting the flow of traffic.

[sapper1]

The photographers, spa staff (Steiner), "shoppies" are all employees of concessionaires. They are not employed by the cruise line. They really push to make money. Some staff are less pushy than others.

 

A firm no will usually stop them from bugging you. From what a gather about the Steiner girls is that they pay them a pittance and are forced to sell products. Needless to say the turnover is apparently very high. It must be very unpleasant for them to constantly push sales. I won't use the spas on board for that reason, I would rather have a relaxing experience at my regular spa :). I never buy the photos.

 

I would avoid the spa if possible but we tend to take longer cruises and I have artificial nails that need to be done every two weeks. I just bite the bullet and go.

 

They get annoyed with me because I won't fill out a medical history form and just write "no issues of concern" on the form. I have been getting my nails done every two weeks for twelve years now and am not about to start listing all medical problems I have ever had. On the Prinsendam they were going to deny me service until they saw I really was going to walk out. Steiner does not need my medical history. I can't believe the women who sit there and fill in the forms.

 

I think the reason they want the information is so they can target their product pitches. The Prinsendam spa is the only one where the nail tech phoned our cabin at ten o'clock at night to "discuss" the procedure she would do the next morning. I said I just want a nail fill and I didn't know what there was to discuss.

 

The next day she talked me into trying a superior type of nail treatment that would not cost any more money. Then, two weeks later when I went back for a fill, she said that since she forgot to tell me there would be an extra charge for fills on this superior type of treatment, she would not charge me.

 

I had a hair colour booked but decided it could wait until I got home so I cancelled it. The aggravation factor in visiting the spa just wasn't worth it.

 

It's too bad things have to be that way as I really enjoy my spa days at home and they should be relaxing on vacation too.

[1of4]

....They get annoyed with me because I won't fill out a medical history form and just write "no issues of concern" on the form.

 

I think the reason they want the information is so they can target their product pitches.

 

....It's too bad things have to be that way as I really enjoy my spa days at home and they should be relaxing on vacation too.

 

 

You know Sapper, I think you are on to something. I can't for the life of me understand why I filled out all those forms and the sales pitch was targetted to hit between the eyes....sob story and kinship included.

 

I learned my lesson the hard way and I will not be doing it again.

[sapper1]

You know Sapper, I think you are on to something. I can't for the life of me understand why I filled out all those forms and the sales pitch was targetted to hit between the eyes....sob story and kinship included.

 

I learned my lesson the hard way and I will not be doing it again.

 

It's good to see others get the same impression because sometimes I start to think maybe I'm just being crabby and contrary and I'm the only person who gets annoyed.

[Typhoon1]

The Steiner spa employees are probably the worst of the high pressure sales people. HAL should have them tone down their rhetoric.