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Has Princess had a personality transplant?


AlibearNS
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I love Princess, I really do. 10 wonderful cruises until our last, one-night on the Ruby, Vancouver to Seattle. I accept that things can go wrong, and as pointed out to me more than once by staff onboard, “it’s just an overnighter,” but I truly expected to have the same experience whether on one night, or the much longer cruises we generally do. The Ruby is (was) my favorite ship so perhaps that made things seem worse.

Anyway, this post is not about that, but about the agents’ attitude on the phone afterwards. I rang Captain Circle to ask about a missing cruise credit and how and when it would be applied, and the attitude from the start of the call to the end could only be described as passive aggressive to the point of rudeness. I couldn’t find a dedicated line, the number seemed to be the general one, and she didn’t put me through to anyone, so maybe agents wear all hats? I also noticed on my last few calls that there’s no background noise. Do agents work from home? I have no problem with that, but I do have a problem with lack of people skills and poor training. There was no survey at the end – believe me, I waited for it!

I wasn’t going to complain about the one night cruise, but the agent’s unnecessary rudeness pushed me over the edge so I ended up writing a lengthy email to customer relations about the cruise and rudeness of their staff. This made me feel really uncomfortable, like telling tales on a much-loved sibling for their own benefit. But the truth of it is we have two future cruise credits each, and right now feel disinclined to use them.

Edited by AlibearNS
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I'm sorry your trip turned out poorly -- even if it was for only one night.

I would imagine that it's hard to consistently nail service, food, etc. on a one-nighter. Even on a 7+ day cruise you may have one day where a bunch of things go wrong, or your wait staff/steward is off their game, or the food isn't prepared as well that night. But then you have 6+ other days where things were at least fine, if not great. On a one nighter, if things are bad they're bad, and if things are fine they're fine. There's no room for recovery.

I imagine too that these one nighters are difficult on the crew. Turnaround day tends to be the hardest day for the crew. And with a one nighter they get two hard days in a row.

As for the customer service staff, I don't know what may have transpired there. But with the background noise issue I do know that many call centers these days use noise-cancelling headsets. The group I help oversee includes our customer service department on 25 people. They all work onsite only. But they also all have noise-canceling headsets to ensure privacy and less distraction for our customers. So that's not something that I think should be relevant to whatever other concerns you have.

Edited by Dani24
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When did you call? Day of week, time of day? If you just called today note that it is a release day for new itineraries so probably a lot of temp staff on duty. Yes many of the "overflow" calls go to contract employees working from home or somewhere outside the call center (especially nights and weekends, but certainly yesterday and today as well). The better, more experienced Princess Vacation Planners work from home because they are on duty 10-12 hours each weekday with only one short break permitted. 

 

There used to be dedicated numbers for Captain's Circle (and still many references to them in the list of benefits) but they have been gone a while now. There is an online contact facility in the Circle Center of your account on the Princess website; that would be by far the easiest way to request a missing cruise credit be posted. I certainly wouldn't have been calling yesterday or today with such a trivial issue. For important issues always call during normal business hours Mon-Fri Pacific Time.

 

I don't know what any of this has to do with Princess' "personality" (and your encounter seems to evince a "personality lobotomy" rather than a "personality transplant"). It is simply cost savings in not maintaining specifically trained staff for different departments. The only training the "all agents wear all hats" policy requires is to rotely regurgitate what they see on their screen after looking up the topic of inquiry.

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It was 3 days ago I called; to be honest I didn't know about new itinerary's coming out today. Yes, I called between business hours. I guess I could have emailed the issue, but I did that once on another cruise line and never got a reply so I guess that influenced my thinking. Maybe a lobotomy may be more accurate, but not a word I'd like to use. To me, there's a recent sudden change to what I perceived as a trusted brand giving great service to the complete opposite. That's subjective I guess, based on my own experience.

And yes, it was only an overnighter - heard that a lot. But for us it was a last minute booking to celebrate our anniversary. I wanted it to be special.

I read on other social media of people getting rude agents on the phone, wondered if this is now becoming the norm. I hope not, hence my email to guest relations. The agent's attitude on the phone was so bad, it bordered on unbelievable. Whilst on hold, I was also filling in an online form for lost property that required my voyage number which I couldn't find on my card, or paperwork. I explained and asked her (whilst she was getting up my details), if she could tell me what it was. Answer: Captain Circle is NOT for questions like that! Ouch! Later in the call she barked a 3 digit number at me confusing me completely and then said, that was the voyage number I wanted so I guess she decided to give it to me after all. I did say thank you!

Yes, it does seem a little hasty to drop Princess altogether, I'm just wary of booking right now. I do understand how things can go wrong, especially on such a short cruise. Yes, the staff are working hard, but there's just no need to give attitude. It was so unpleasant. I was getting over it, but the phone call just made matters worse. I wondered if anyone else is getting agents with bad attitude?

 

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There are always going to be bad days/moments. Doesn't matter who you are, or who you are dealing with. Nobody is perfect. As I mentioned, I help oversee a customer service department for a Fortune 500 company. We're considered the best in our industry. For the most part, our customer service is exceptional, and that is one of our core-most tenants -- to provide an exceptional customer experience.

 

That said, from time to time we see complaints that people post online about a bad experience with our company. I've even fielded phone calls myself from disgruntled folks. And, honestly, sometimes these people are looking for a fight, or making a mountain out of a molehill, or they're griping about a situation they caused (though, I don't treat them any differently, and am completely polite and empathetic, even if they're out of line -  I also know some people aren't so good at such diplomacy). 

Knowing the lengths we go to provide a good experience, and to rectify issues, it drives home that social media is NOT a true snapshot of reality. People rarely go on social media to say they had a great experience, and pretty much never go on to say their experience was fine/good/standard. Most of the people that feel moved to comment are pissed about something. Consider for yourself how often you feel so impassioned to make a dedicated post somewhere to share that something met your basic expectations. 

 

So if you have had 10 great experiences on Princess, and one subpar experience, you're still averaging 90% (which is still an A grade). I would chalk this experience up to A) maybe you caught people on an off day, B) a one day cruise isn't comparable to a 7+ day cruise (and thus you need to be realistic about your expectations), C) nothing can be 100% perfect 100% of the time. 

Certainly, address the poor customer service experience. Management should know when something wasn't right, so they can investigate and offer retraining or whatever is necessary to prevent it going forward. But with employee turnover, and shifting demands, accept that occasionally you're going to catch someone on the wrong side occasionally, and try not to let it influence you to make big decisions (such as swearing off a cruise line you've loved entirely) for a likely one-off.

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As others have said I would suspect that one day cruises are just not going to be the same.  Probably just the nature of the thing -- staff has to deal with embark/disembark in a 24 hour period and kind of hard to get in the groove I guess.  

 

I hate it when I get a bad attitude on a customer service call.  When I see that happening I usually just hang up and redial.  Just not worth it to me to deal with someone's bad mood.   

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But the staff should understand that some people may take a one night cruise just to see if they would like cruising, or that line.  If the staff looks at it as 'only one night' those people may never be back.  EM

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6 minutes ago, Dani24 said:

There are always going to be bad days/moments. Doesn't matter who you are, or who you are dealing with. Nobody is perfect. As I mentioned, I help oversee a customer service department for a Fortune 500 company. We're considered the best in our industry. For the most part, our customer service is exceptional, and that is one of our core-most tenants -- to provide an exceptional customer experience.

 

That said, from time to time we see complaints that people post online about a bad experience with our company. I've even fielded phone calls myself from disgruntled folks. And, honestly, sometimes these people are looking for a fight, or making a mountain out of a molehill, or they're griping about a situation they caused (though, I don't treat them any differently, and am completely polite and empathetic, even if they're out of line -  I also know some people aren't so good at such diplomacy). 

Knowing the lengths we go to provide a good experience, and to rectify issues, it drives home that social media is NOT a true snapshot of reality. People rarely go on social media to say they had a great experience, and pretty much never go on to say their experience was fine/good/standard. Most of the people that feel moved to comment are pissed about something. Consider for yourself how often you feel so impassioned to make a dedicated post somewhere to share that something met your basic expectations. 

 

So if you have had 10 great experiences on Princess, and one subpar experience, you're still averaging 90% (which is still an A grade). I would chalk this experience up to A) maybe you caught people on an off day, B) a one day cruise isn't comparable to a 7+ day cruise (and thus you need to be realistic about your expectations), C) nothing can be 100% perfect 100% of the time. 

Certainly, address the poor customer service experience. Management should know when something wasn't right, so they can investigate and offer retraining or whatever is necessary to prevent it going forward. But with employee turnover, and shifting demands, accept that occasionally you're going to catch someone on the wrong side occasionally, and try not to let it influence you to make big decisions (such as swearing off a cruise line you've loved entirely) for a likely one-off.

 

No disagreement.   The sad fact is with social media that one CSR having a bad day can have a very negative impact to an otherwise good customer service operation.  Bad experiences have a much larger multiplier effect that good ones.   

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As MANY have done on CC you should have hung up and called and talked with someone  else.    Captain Circle use to have a dedicated line.    No reason for a rep. to be rude.

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1 minute ago, Essiesmom said:

But the staff should understand that some people may take a one night cruise just to see if they would like cruising, or that line.  If the staff looks at it as 'only one night' those people may never be back.  EM

 

Yep, even 3 or 4 day cruises might fall into the same category.  Good point.   

 

Still, in reality I just can't see a one night as being representative of a longer cruise.   

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1 minute ago, Essiesmom said:

But the staff should understand that some people may take a one night cruise just to see if they would like cruising, or that line.  If the staff looks at it as 'only one night' those people may never be back.  EM

 

I'm sure most still give their best. But, again, off-days happen. And the crew is under heavy pressure already on a one day cruise, and they're human, so perfection cannot be expected. It helps our enjoyment of life to manage our own expectations and set them reasonably to the circumstances. People who expect too much are bound to be frequently disappointed.

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My pet peeve about customer service call centers:  

 

"We are experiencing longer than normal wait times due to high call volumes".  

 

Yeah, yeah, yeah.  Just tell me how long and leave it at that.    😀

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17 minutes ago, Dani24 said:

Certainly, address the poor customer service experience. Management should know when something wasn't right, so they can investigate and offer retraining or whatever is necessary to prevent it going forward. But with employee turnover, and shifting demands, accept that occasionally you're going to catch someone on the wrong side occasionally, and try not to let it influence you to make big decisions (such as swearing off a cruise line you've loved entirely) for a likely one-off.

I totally agree with everything you say. It was just the one experience after the other that upset me. Companies do need to keep on top of this as yours do, else bad attitude spreads. I've seen that in the workplace. Maybe it was because it was "just an overnighter" and an individual agent having a bad day. Thank you for your comments.

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2 minutes ago, Dani24 said:

 

I'm sure most still give their best. But, again, off-days happen. And the crew is under heavy pressure already on a one day cruise, and they're human, so perfection cannot be expected. It helps our enjoyment of life to manage our own expectations and set them reasonably to the circumstances. People who expect too much are bound to be frequently disappointed.

 

I like the attitude you describe and agree that the crew is under heavy pressure.  Unfortunately, the folks EM describes may not  have any experience to set expectations.   Kind of a rock and hard spot I guess.     

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20 minutes ago, ldubs said:

I hate it when I get a bad attitude on a customer service call.  When I see that happening I usually just hang up and redial.  Just not worth it to me to deal with someone's bad mood.   

 

I love this! It shall be my strategy in future. At the time I'd been on hold for an agent twenty minutes and I was terrified she was going to hang up on me! Apart from the credit issue, I needed that voyage number.

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We had a small $$ issue on our last voyage, which we discovered about a month after disembarkation due to credit card cut off dates. I e-mailed Princess in the morning with a question. Much to my surprise Princess called me around 4pm Pacific time. They solved the issue without any undo questions or discussion. We were surprised. 

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We too have been given the runaround,called twice in ref, to a 15 night cruise, filled out survey left e mail pls 2 phone numbers Only to get No response.WE are booked on a 28 nt,If things don't change B by princess.

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The ships keep getting built and the people keep filling the ships. No one line will miss any particular passenger. 

Sleep around a bit, you might find some other line that meets your needs for now. 

Edited by neverbeenhere
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5 hours ago, ldubs said:

My pet peeve about customer service call centers:  

 

"We are experiencing longer than normal wait times due to high call volumes".  

 

Yeah, yeah, yeah.  Just tell me how long and leave it at that.    😀

I am also peeved at that automated response. If I get the same message every time I call, how it is "longer than normal wait times". If this is the normal number of calls and they cannot answer them in a timely manner, they should have more reps manning the phones.

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5 hours ago, AlibearNS said:

 

I love this! It shall be my strategy in future. At the time I'd been on hold for an agent twenty minutes and I was terrified she was going to hang up on me! Apart from the credit issue, I needed that voyage number.

You probably could have got the voyage number by checking on line for the itineraries for your particular ship.

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We were on the same one day cruise. Everything was a little harried, but we found the cruise to be fine. I was actually quite impressed with the food and service. 

 

We probably wouldn't go on a one day again, but not because Princess did anything wrong. I just found getting to the cruise in Vancouver and then getting home from Seattle was more trouble than one day on the ship was worth.

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11 hours ago, Aus Traveller said:

You probably could have got the voyage number by checking on line for the itineraries for your particular ship.

As could the customer service rep.  SERVICE, right?  Some folks simply are not wired with a servant's heart and thus the concept of grace is a vague, elusive concept.  Perhaps Princess could recruit stateroom attendants for these positions.

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23 hours ago, AlibearNS said:

I also noticed on my last few calls that there’s no background noise. Do agents work from home?

Sometimes .... I had a barking dog in one. Asked if she was home, she seemed ill prepared to answer questions, & maybe needed to let the dog out. She said yes / dog needed out so I hung up. Called my PVP on Monday - simple question / easy answer. Nothing against people working from home but FOCUS

Edited by Ombud
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11 hours ago, RMMariner said:

We were on the same one day cruise. Everything was a little harried, but we found the cruise to be fine. I was actually quite impressed with the food and service. 

 

I was on it as well. It had its good and bad points. But overall I think it was batter than last year's Ruby one-night. 

 

As for call centers, I'm an intelligent person so when I do need to call I'm usually way ahead of them and frequently know more. I try to avoid call centers if at all possible. I find travel businesses (cruise, airlines, hotels, etc.) particularly difficult because there seems to be a huge disconnect between how landslide people (call centers) think things work and how the air/sea/whatever-side operations people actually do things. And given that, call center people rarely understand the actual problem because they really don't know the product as actually delivered.

 

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