COMMUNICATION: Who Wants Cell Service At Sea???

[AAAAmerican]

Serendipity1499,

If anyone wants to know how the passengers feel about any and every subject, he has only to read 1,500 Guest Comment Cards on every ship every week. If he wants to get really serious, he then adds additional questions designed to get direct responses on a particular subject:

 

"How did you like the new Cellular Telephone Service?"

"Please rate the new Leisure Dining Program."

 

Just like on this board, cruise line passengers are rarely shy about giving a very frank and relatively anonymous response.

 

I believe that there is no better market research than asking several thousand people who have just paid for and experienced your product, to tell you exactly how they feel about it.

 

 

A Marketers Dream audience...:D

[HeatherInFlorida]

..IMO Market Research can be skewed any way they want it to be..;)

 

.............. Betty

 

Betty, you are so right about this.

 

As far as the Questionnaires on the ships, they don't give a realistic perspective unless they also take the non-responders into account. Perhaps Mr Muzz can give us a perspective on that.

 

On the ships we've been on they have to offer up all kinds of prizes and incentives to get people to fill them out.

 

I'm just going to guess that generally only one person from a party of 2 responds (if they respond at all). So if we were to assume 1000 rooms and you get 500 responses, the balance either were euphoric about the entire cruise and can't be bothered or they were miserable and can't be bothered.

 

So who decides which it is?:) How many people have posted right here how miserable their cruise was and when asked if they complained onboard, they replied "no".

 

But I don't think anyone will argue that generally people are more apt to fill out time consuming questionnaires if they're unhappy than if they're happy.

 

Unless you're me and basically always do what you are asked to do. That's another problem altogether:o .

 

In the end, the questionnaires are only as good as the manner in which the questions are asked and the number of people who respond. So I would guess that we won't get a true feeling about people's reaction to cell service at sea until it's well established and it becomes a "grin and bear it" situation ... like so many other things.

[BruceMuzz]

Heather makes an excellent point.

Although response rates vary by ship, season, itinerary, and cruise line, the general rule is a 75% response rate with comment cards.

 

Again, Heather is very insightful on how the responses work.

Someone who is not happy is far more likely to complete a comment card than someone who is completely satisfied. As a result, the overall results on comment card comments and ratings tend to be more negative than positive. This actually works in the favor of the cruise line, as it tends to emphasize problems and highlight shortcomings, while ignoring things the cruise line does well. It is all fine and good to hear that you are wonderful - but far more helpful to find out what your customers think you are doing wrong.

So, generally speaking, comment cards cause negative aspects of the cruise to appear even more serious than they really are. Just a few people complaining about something they do not like on the cruise can make it appear that nobody likes it. That's why it is even more surprising that the cruise lines did not receive any appreciable number of complaints about the new cell phone towers on their ships.

Every week I read about 1500 comment cards on the last night of the cruise. When I finish, I am ready to slash my wrists. Everything is negative, negative, negative. It "appears" that this cruise was the worst on record. Everyone seems to be completely dissatisfied with their experience.

 

This also explains why Cruise Directors are always trying to get everyone to fill out their comment cards. Higher response rates always result in higher ratings and more positive responses. They want that silent 25% of passengers who had a great time and have no complaints to tell somebody about it. Those higher ratings and increased positive responses result in bonuses and promotions for quite a few employees onboard.

[HeatherInFlorida]

................That's why it is even more surprising that the cruise lines did not receive any appreciable number of complaints about the new cell phone towers on their ships.

...................

 

I think the jury should stay out on this until it all really takes hold. People aren't used to it yet. The reaction will be based on how many people take advantage of the service over time. If the availability isn't misused, it won't bother me either:D ... and that's saying something!!!

 

As for questionnaires, I always fill them out and my comments are generally 95% positive. Having worked it Customer Service a good part of my life I know it's a pleasure to come across positive comments.

 

And I won a wonderful Holland America bag for my trouble!!!:)