Q&A with President Laura Hodges Bethge

[rmedistro]

4 minutes ago, wrk2cruise said:

She kept implying they are listening to the customer.  Who were all these customers who were looking for vaping in the Casino?  I do appreciate that they listened to the overwhelming majority who want no vaping in the casino.  

 

To me whomever they are listening to are not those "most loyal" customers they were talking to today.

 

I agree that it was well scripted to "address" the concerns sent in.  I particularly like the cover for the butler change.  The example given was tea at 3 pm.  It was several years ago they discontinued in-room tea service and you need to go to the Lounge for tea.   Yes they say it can be requested but you will be informed that tea is in the lounge.  I'm sure if you push.....    They also couched the change as elevated service.   Oh wait the upper suites aren't offered this elevated service.

 

Overall it was probably the best webinar they have done to date.  I'd like to see them do it 2-3 times per year to increase communication. 

 

I also wish they would form a focus group of us "most loyal" customers (or any of their customers) to run some of these changes by before implementation.

Do you really think cruise lines just blindly make business decisions that directly affect passengers?

[goofysmom99]

I'm glad I listened to this one.  Much better than some of the earlier ones.  I'm waiting for Part 2 = a focus group of "most loyal" customers that addresses the appalling downgrade in MDR food.  Deflecting that issue as subjective doesn't cut it for a menu that frequently has two entrees/night based on pasta (OVC "cuisine" in MDR).  Yup, definitely waiting for the food installment.

[D C]

11 minutes ago, rmedistro said:

Do you really think cruise lines just blindly make business decisions that directly affect passengers?

Depends on how you define "blindly".  

They've clearly made and implemented decisions when they either knew there would be an uproar, OR they made them NOT knowing there would be an uproar.  Neither speaks well for their understanding of their customer base. 

[wrk2cruise]

12 minutes ago, rmedistro said:

Do you really think cruise lines just blindly make business decisions that directly affect passengers?

 

Sure seems like it lately😀   I think we all realize the changes are mostly driven by cost savings to improve profits.

 

For vaping however I guess it was to attract new customers.  I will restate my question.  Who are these people they are taking direction from?   From my perspective it doesn't seem like it's their "most loyal" customers that they kept referring to.

[di T]

2 hours ago, Schmoe38 said:

If I recall correctly, the request for questions came out originally in an email format. Shortly thereafter, a second email came out indicating there had been an issue with the original submissions and could we kindly re-submit.

That’s what we received Elite plus and from the UK,first email then a second one mentioning there was an issue with the first.

 

[Jeremiah1212]

3 minutes ago, wrk2cruise said:

 

Sure seems like it lately😀   I think we all realize the changes are mostly driven by cost savings to improve profits.

 

For vaping however I guess it was to attract new customers.  I will restate my question.  Who are these people they are taking direction from?   From my perspective it doesn't seem like it's their "most loyal" customers that they kept referring to.

 

My first hand experience suggests that the typical customer is absolutely nothing like this vocal group of <30 CC posters. Listen to her comments about trying to ride the line between familiarity and trying new things. There's this little faction of a group that drops a nuke with any change. If you want a real pulse of what is going on and what is working, the only real source of truth is here https://www.sec.gov/edgar/search-and-access. 

[DaKahuna]

3 hours ago, Jim_Iain said:

 

I can only speak for myself but I nor any Zenith's I spoken to received a request for questions.

 

I'm happy that you are so satisfied with your cruises but many of us aren't  and after 23 years of exclusive traveling Celebrity I made my first non-Celebrity Cruise last week.    I have also booked a second non-celebrity cruise.

 

I only travel in suites so not concerned about potatoes

 

 I received two emails asking us to submit any questions we had.  I did submit a couple of them and although not called out by name, my questions were addressed.  

 

 Two things she addressed that I believer were answered incorrectly:

 

 1.  Canapes -  In the past we received these daily.  On our last sailing in an SS we did not receive them.  When I checked with the Retreat Concierge I was told they are only delivered upon request.  Laura stated that they were delivered the first day and you were asked when if and when you wanted to receive them. 

 2.  Her statement that there has been no changes to the menu's.  I have seen what I would consider changes to the menu's in Luminae. for example the change to the Daniel Boulud menu in Luminae.  Also I believe there has recently been a new menu for Luminae published as well as quite a few people mentioning the removal of certain dishes in the MDR.  Has there really been "No menu changes?" 

 

[di T]

10 minutes ago, goofysmom99 said:

I'm glad I listened to this one.  Much better than some of the earlier ones.  I'm waiting for Part 2 = a focus group of "most loyal" customers that addresses the appalling downgrade in MDR food.  Deflecting that issue as subjective doesn't cut it for a menu that frequently has two entrees/night based on pasta (OVC "cuisine" in MDR).  Yup, definitely waiting for the food installment.

Couldn’t believe the downgrading of the MDR menu on our cruises earlier this month,Same ship last September the food was as good as before the shutdown.

But we went to the buffet some nights and that seemed to have improved,Ate out at the speciality restaurants a few times and they were good but price seems to of climbed.

[rmedistro]

9 minutes ago, D C said:

Depends on how you define "blindly".  

They've clearly made and implemented decisions when they either knew there would be an uproar, OR they made them NOT knowing there would be an uproar.  Neither speaks well for their understanding of their customer base. 

X understands their customers. They also understand customer churn when implementing changes. The newer E class ships are designed to attract new customer segments.  There is a big niche between NCL/RCL type ships and high end ships.

X will continue to run near capacity on E class sailings. I imagine the next class will be similar to E, continuing to expand the upper middle class offerings to 40+ couples that don't want floating amusement water parks.

[Beachlover1989]

We've sailed on M-, S-, and E-class ships.  FWIW, we much prefer the S-class ships.  I loved some of the new things about Apex in August, but many of the venues were extremely, uncomfortably crowded much of the time.  So much so that we were unable to see shows in the Club, attend events in Eden, watch the band in the Martini Bar area, and even just sit and have a nice drink in the Retreat Lounge. I haven't watched the webinar yet, but it would have been interesting to hear if their new ships will address some of the overcrowding.

[DaKahuna]

2 minutes ago, Beachlover1989 said:

 I haven't watched the webinar yet, but it would have been interesting to hear if their new ships will address some of the overcrowding.

 

Overcrowding was not one of the topics discussed.

 

[bikerunner]

12 minutes ago, Jeremiah1212 said:

 

My first hand experience suggests that the typical customer is absolutely nothing like this vocal group of <30 CC posters. Listen to her comments about trying to ride the line between familiarity and trying new things. There's this little faction of a group that drops a nuke with any change. If you want a real pulse of what is going on and what is working, the only real source of truth is here https://www.sec.gov/edgar/search-and-access. 

Thank you for stating what does not seem obvious to many.   

[zitsky]

58 minutes ago, Jeremiah1212 said:

 

My first hand experience suggests that the typical customer is absolutely nothing like this vocal group of <30 CC posters. Listen to her comments about trying to ride the line between familiarity and trying new things. There's this little faction of a group that drops a nuke with any change. If you want a real pulse of what is going on and what is working, the only real source of truth is here https://www.sec.gov/edgar/search-and-access. 

I’m the little guy here.  Only occasional cruiser in Aqua just getting into Sky Suites.  I went to business school after working in IT customer service so I know a snow job when I hear one.  Marketing was my favorite class.  

 

No changes to Aqua despite many comments here?

 

People complain too much?  I’m not happy to have booked my second SS and been told that yes, I lost my dedicated butler.  I’m a customer who could be much more frequent but taking perks away doesn’t motivate me.

Edited September 26, 2023 by zitsky

[thebutlerdidit]

1 hour ago, DaKahuna said:

 

 Two things she addressed that I believer were answered incorrectly:

 

 1.  Canapes -  In the past we received these daily.  On our last sailing in an SS we did not receive them.  When I checked with the Retreat Concierge I was told they are only delivered upon request.  Laura stated that they were delivered the first day and you were asked when if and when you wanted to receive them. 

 2.  Her statement that there has been no changes to the menu's.  I have seen what I would consider changes to the menu's in Luminae. for example the change to the Daniel Boulud menu in Luminae.  Also I believe there has recently been a new menu for Luminae published as well as quite a few people mentioning the removal of certain dishes in the MDR.  Has there really been "No menu changes?" 

 

I caught these, too. I couldn’t believe that she said it was false, there have been absolutely no changes to the main dining menu.

 

Did she say that during cookiegate they actually sold 100 cookies per day? All of that negative press for $200 per day? I find that so amusing. Maybe I heard wrong! 

Edited September 26, 2023 by thebutlerdidit

[jelayne]

1 hour ago, DaKahuna said:

 

 I received two emails asking us to submit any questions we had.  I did submit a couple of them and although not called out by name, my questions were addressed.  

 

 Two things she addressed that I believer were answered incorrectly:

 

 1.  Canapes -  In the past we received these daily.  On our last sailing in an SS we did not receive them.  When I checked with the Retreat Concierge I was told they are only delivered upon request.  Laura stated that they were delivered the first day and you were asked when if and when you wanted to receive them. 

 2.  Her statement that there has been no changes to the menu's.  I have seen what I would consider changes to the menu's in Luminae. for example the change to the Daniel Boulud menu in Luminae.  Also I believe there has recently been a new menu for Luminae published as well as quite a few people mentioning the removal of certain dishes in the MDR.  Has there really been "No menu changes?" 

 

I the canapés referred to were the canapés for Aqua and Concierge class.  These originally were delivered to each cabin whether you wanted them or were in the cabin. Then on some ships it morphed to fill out a form, or only delivered if you are in the cabin and more recently not available on some sailings. 

The afternoon cart of canapés, sweets, coffee that formerly showed up every afternoon stopping at all suites was discontinued pre pandemic and replaced with the afternoon tea, coffee, canapés in the Retreat Lounge.  

[DaKahuna]

4 minutes ago, thebutlerdidit said:

Did she say that during cookiegate they actually sold 100 cookies per day? All of that negative press for $200 per day? I find that so amusing. Maybe I heard wrong! 

 

 That is exactly what she said.  100 cookies each day.  
There was no mention of cookies not being available at Cafe al Bacio as has been reported here on CC either. 

 

[hankandteri]

1 hour ago, Jeremiah1212 said:

 

My first hand experience suggests that the typical customer is absolutely nothing like this vocal group of <30 CC posters. Listen to her comments about trying to ride the line between familiarity and trying new things. There's this little faction of a group that drops a nuke with any change. If you want a real pulse of what is going on and what is working, the only real source of truth is here https://www.sec.gov/edgar/search-and-access. 

I tend to agree that this board isn’t representative of the broad customer base for Celebrity, but it’s not a tiny band of angry villagers storming the Miami HQ with torches and pitchforks either.

 

I believe our roll call for next month’s cruise on Silhouette has upwards of 200 participants. That’s a significant chunk of the passengers who will be aboard, and I’m sure plenty of others are watching without participating. Some of us are chronic posters, but there are also plenty of lurkers here and on other social media sites who are digesting the discussion without chiming in.

 

Despite what some may think, X can ill afford to alienate or take for granted a sizable chunk of their most engaged customers, and I think they are beginning to realize that. 

 

 
 

 

Edited September 26, 2023 by hankandteri

[NutsAboutGolf]

2 hours ago, Jeremiah1212 said:

 

My first hand experience suggests that the typical customer is absolutely nothing like this vocal group of <30 CC posters. Listen to her comments about trying to ride the line between familiarity and trying new things. There's this little faction of a group that drops a nuke with any change. If you want a real pulse of what is going on and what is working, the only real source of truth is here https://www.sec.gov/edgar/search-and-access. 

 

When there's outrage here on CC, 99% of the time, we're a tiny sliver of what's happening over on that other social media site over in multiple groups which have groups by ship, their own roll calls, etc.  Cookiegate wasn't a product of CC, those groups already dubbed the cookie for a fee "cookiegate" before it was even mentioned here on CC.  The same goes with the MDR double cheeseburger (RIP!).

Edited September 26, 2023 by NutsAboutGolf

[Ken the cruiser]

What I find fascinating is that PCL, NCL, and HAL are adding perks to their All Included packages to entice potential cruisers to cruise with them while X is cutting them. I wonder why that is? 🤔

 

But OTOH I guess X feels they’re getting enough folks booking their cruises so they don’t need to entice them with extra perks. In fact they continue to cut them. That is great news. I hope it continues to work for them.

[zitsky]

1 minute ago, Ken the cruiser said:

What I find fascinating is that PCL, NCL, and HAL are adding perks to their All Included packages to entice potential cruisers to cruise with them while X is cutting them. I wonder why that is? 🤔

 

But OTOH I guess X feels they’re getting enough folks booking their cruises so they don’t need to entice them with extra perks. In fact they continue to cut them. That is great news. I hope it continues to work for them.

I’d speculate they have enough Zeniths and upper suite pax giving them so much money that they don’t care about the rest.  Just keep them happy.

[NutsAboutGolf]

2 hours ago, D C said:

Depends on how you define "blindly".  

They've clearly made and implemented decisions when they either knew there would be an uproar, OR they made them NOT knowing there would be an uproar.  Neither speaks well for their understanding of their customer base. 

 

Or they have the "what can we get away with?" mindset.  It's quite bold of RCI to ask people if they'd pay a fee for pizza as its very an inexpensive food item for them to make

Edited September 26, 2023 by NutsAboutGolf

[JaneStarr]

48 minutes ago, thebutlerdidit said:

I caught these, too. I couldn’t believe that she said it was false, there have been absolutely no changes to the main dining menu.

 

Did she say that during cookiegate they actually sold 100 cookies per day? All of that negative press for $200 per day? I find that so amusing. Maybe I heard wrong! 

Plus the 20% tips 😆 

[rmedistro]

11 minutes ago, hankandteri said:

I tend to agree that this board isn’t representative of the broad customer base for Celebrity, but it’s not a tiny band of angry villagers storming the Miami HQ with torches and pitchforks either.

 

I believe our roll call for next month’s cruise on Silhouette has upwards of 200 participants. That’s a significant chunk of the passengers who will be aboard, and I’m sure plenty of others are watching without participating. Some of us are chronic posters, but there are also plenty of lurkers here and on other social media sites who are digesting the discussion without chiming in.

 

Despite what some may think, X can ill afford to alienate or take for granted a sizable chunk of their most engaged customers, and I think they are beginning to realize that. 

 

 
 

 

But they can. And they will still fill sailings to capacity.  The small group of dissenters here think they are representing what the rest think. They aren't. There's a poster that has mentioned canopies a dozen times. 90% couldn't care less about canopies. We're the next generation of X. The stuffy over expecting last generation will move on. We're going to divide our cruises between VV and X. No or few kids, and fewer stuffy oldies every x cruise going forward. I've met some great people on X, they are too busy living to waste reading the drive here. I'm joining them, not you. I thought CC would be informational. Nope, just drama.

[NutsAboutGolf]

1 hour ago, zitsky said:

I’m the little guy here.  Only occasional cruiser in Aqua just getting into Sky Suites.  I went to business school after working in IT customer service so I know a snow job when I hear one.  Marketing was my favorite class.  

 

No changes to Aqua despite many comments here?

 

People complain too much?  I’m not happy to have booked my second SS and been told that yes, I lost my dedicated butler.  I’m a customer who could be much more frequent but taking perks away doesn’t motivate me.

 

If we didn't complain, we'd have vaping, no pillow chocolates at all, no free cookies in the cafe, the dinner buffet would be only 7 items, and the complimentary prime rib and ribeye would have been permanently replaced by the double cheeseburger

[TeeRick]

3 hours ago, sunlover33 said:

I am elite and was asked to submit questions. I can assure you my questions were strongly focused on  the points of discontent and concerns that have been discussed here many times. 

I was not being too serious