Repeat Cruisers - I’m curious what you think

[delo4]

So, I was reading on another thread about DCL not “caring” about their repeat cruisers. The posters I read, seem to indicate that DCL would rather market to new cruisers versus the repeat ones. On the one hand, they really don’t have to market to repeat cruisers since we have already tasted the kool aid. On the other hand, do they or should they appreciate those that are loyal to the brand?

I have been sailing exclusively with Disney since 2000. I have some thoughts on the subject, but was curious what other repeaters think??

 

[71 Truck]

To my wife and I it is about the service and the quality of the Disney cruise line. The cast members are incredible.
We have no children and we have been on eleven cruises in the last 18 years. We have number twelve later this year. It has gotten to the point when we get on the ship we always see a cast members we know. We are always well taken care of.
As far as Disney doing thing for its repeat guest I have posted some of my ideas about better discounts in other posts but Disney does not have to. People just keep coming back.

 

[Mickey of the Villages]

It would be foolish to think that DCL does not care about such a large and important category as repeat cruisers. My guess (given how many silver and gold Castaway Club lanyards I see) is that repeat cruisers are an important market for DCL. We may have tasted the Kool Aide but there are plenty of places for you to spend your vacation dollar (cruising or otherwise). Although I believe Disney feels repeat cruisers are important there are a lot of important things for them to balance. In the end this may mean some beloved institutions fall by the way side frustrating repeat cruisers. And, given the demand for their product, it may mean that not much deference is given to repeat cruisers.

 

[dad of 3 addicted to DCL]

I can see where the 'not caring' voices are coming from. Honestly, the CC is...not. Yeah, it's nice to get a free Palo, but beyond that?

Our experience is very different. I remember bustling about the Magic before we left on cruise #6 (doing Dad stuff) and a CM greeted me with a big smile before chirping, "Welcome home!" Yeah. Disney has an expensive product, I get it. Not everyone can afford it. I get it. In our country, they're allowed to charge what the market will bear in order to make a profit for their shareholders. Perks...stink. no free wifi, no drink packages or comps.

That's not why we cruise Disney. We cruise for the CM chirping, "Welcome Home." Massive feels

 

[pixiedustedme]

DCL treats all guests well, regardless of their number of previous cruises. We're happy with that. The incentive to repeat is the quality of the cruise rather than gimmicks.

 

[LittleMissMagic]

I feel like I know the thread you're referring to, and probably my post specifically. https://www.disboards.com/threads/a...ible-adjustments.3749315/page-2#post-60611199

I would like to clarify that I did not mean that DCL "does not care" about repeat cruisers. Absolutely, they care. They care about quality and satisfaction for all guests. What I meant is that when it comes to marketing, repeat guests are not a priority. They would rather invest marketing in recruiting new cruisers, rather than creating an enticing and competitive loyalty program.

And with that, I'd venture to guess that you've been cruising with Disney since 2000 (I have, too - but also on 4 other cruise lines) because you enjoy the product, not because they're pulling you back with all of the amazing loyalty incentives.

 

[Tasmen]

We keep coming back to Disney because of the service and, as someone already pointed out, the feels. Not once have I felt unappreciated when taking a Disney cruise. I think they do care but also realize what a premium product they have.

 

[delo4]

I feel like I know the thread you're referring to, and probably my post specifically. https://www.disboards.com/threads/a...ible-adjustments.3749315/page-2#post-60611199

I would like to clarify that I did not mean that DCL "does not care" about repeat cruisers. Absolutely, they care. They care about quality and satisfaction for all guests. What I meant is that when it comes to marketing, repeat guests are not a priority. They would rather invest marketing in recruiting new cruisers, rather than creating an enticing and competitive loyalty program.

And with that, I'd venture to guess that you've been cruising with Disney since 2000 (I have, too - but also on 4 other cruise lines) because you enjoy the product, not because they're pulling you back with all of the amazing loyalty incentives.

It wasn’t actually your post specifically, I saw a couple of posts on the thread about the new ships and I was curious about the larger repeat population’s thinking.

Yes, you are right, I do not cruise with them because of the benefits of being platinum. We cruise because we love the product. I do think however, that in the earlier years, more attention was paid to those repeat loyal customers. There used to be many more incentives than currently offered. However, that may have more to do with how many platinum cruisers there are, rather than caring or not caring about those repeat guests. I currently have 4 cruises booked, so I’m not going away, even if all the perks are gone, but it still is nice to feel appreciated for being loyal to the brand.

 

[tinkerone]

I have a friend who worked in the shops on DCL. I was told that they like the new cruisers because they are the ones who spend the most money on average. They are the ones who don't know when or if they will be back so they purchase the t-shirt, the hoodie, the cup, the purse. The sales dwindle with each cruise someone takes, they already have enough mugs, shirts, purses. The more you sail the less you spend. I know myself, I might browse the shops but I'm purchased out. There might be a new hoodie, t, purse but I already have enough, don't need anymore, so I understand what he means. Also, he says DCL loves the 3/4 night sailings for much the same reasons. Its all about making money and they make more on new cruisers apparently.
Before anyone jumps in and says not true, I always buy things, I'm just repeating what was said by someone in sales on the ships. Plus, its on average and not everyone fits this category.
This is only one reason DCL would prefer the new cruisers. They don't need to give repeat cruisers incentive, we just keep coming back. ​

 

[DIS_MIKE]

My servers on the Fantasy were not as good as on the Dream but they still kept saying Welcome Back and made me feel happy to be back. I went from Carnival to Disney so it was a massive difference lol. I still have yet to try RC but Disney is just so good that I keep wanting to come back. I love the throwback feel to the ships celebrating the good 'ol days of sailing.

All things considered...do I feel they don't care about repeat cruisers? They wouldn't have silver/gold and platinum status if they didn't care. It's a great incentive to keep people coming back to get those little perks and gifts. Sling bag needs to be changed though. It's been the same gift for two years.

With three new ships coming...I am very optimistic and DCL knows the demand for these ships and part of that is how loyal their repeat customer base is.

 

[clten]

If you remember, the different levels were introduced right when they announced (or maybe closer to started to build) the Dream. I'm sure that was done as they were more than doubling their capacity and wanted to encourage repeat cruisers as well as new cruisers to fill the old ships and the new ships. I thought they might revamp their plan now when they are looking at adding a lot more capacity again - but who knows if they think they need to encourage return cruisers or just think we'll be there anyway.

Corporate-wise, I don't think DCL does much to reward repeat cruisers. They don't really have to and I don't expect much from them. However, I think it is the crew that passes out that extra magic. I know when you do back-to-back, it is the crew that adds excitement of you being there on the second leg. When we come back to the Magic (the ship we sail the most), it is crew we have sailed with many times that make us feel more than welcome and part of "the family". And when we are on the other ships, the crew we've interacted with on previous cruises do the same. That level of service is why we come back. Now, DCL corporate may have a hand in that - they are master marketers of course - so I always assumed that each time a crew member swipes my card, a record is created that I've interacted with that crew member and the next time I sail, they give those crew members a heads up that I'm coming back (along with my picture on file!). This may or may not be true but however the crew makes the magic, that's a much bigger part of why we keep sailing DCL than what Castaway Club gift is left in the stateroom for us.

 

[_auroraborealis_]

I think one consideration is how infrequently they update the shows.

 

[Disney_Life84]

We cruise Disney because it's Disney! We have never and will never cruise with any other cruise line. Reason being because no other company has the impeccable service that Disney offers. There are a few perks with each club level, however, I do agree that there could be a bit more for loyal customers. That said, even if they took away their club levels, we would still cruise with them. I also agree with what another poster said about the stage shows. The shows are amazing, however, there are only so many times you can see the same show. Disney is the best!

 

[71 Truck]

I posted earlier but wanted to do a little update.
We have been on on seven, seven day cruises on the Fantasy since late 2014.
I have noticed over the last couple of cruises we have done the ship was not full, it was noticeable. There were a lot of empty tables in the main dinning rooms and the ship it self did not seem as crowded.
Disney does offer discounts to Canadians, military members, certain cruise itineraries and of course Florida residents. Disney also does some real great deals for current and retired cast members. We have a friend who is retired from Disney and they were on our last cruise. They had a very good cast rate for a seven day cruise.
My wife and I are DVC members and used to book using points(I know this is not the best use of points). Back when we started cruising point were a good deal for cruises but not so much over the last few years.
We are Florida residents and found we could do Florida resident rates or on board place holder for better deals.
With that said I think Disney is having a hard time filling the ship during certain times of the year.
As far as what I think Disney could do for Cast Away Club Members this is part of what I posted in another thread to better reward Club members.

"As far as additional rewards on top of what Disney already offers Cast Away Club members, they might think about 5% off future cruises for Silver,10% off future cruises for gold and 15% off future cruises for Platinum without having to do an on board booking/placeholder. They might also want to look at similar discounts for on board shopping."

If Disney is having a hard time filling the ships now( and this is just my opinion) what do you think it will be like for them when they bring on three new ships.

 

[dclpluto]

DCL gets more money from newbies.
First they won’t have the 200 dollar on board credit.
Second they won’t get the welcome back gift. 1.95
Third they won’t get the bottle of junk.
45 cents.
Fourth they will have lots more of Disney photos.
Fifth their souvenirs will be a lot higher.
Sixth they will have to pay for palo instead of platinum getting it for free.
Seventh gold and platinum gets 10 percent off at the stores.

 

[kiford]

They would rather invest marketing in recruiting new cruisers, rather than creating an enticing and competitive loyalty program.

Based on the number of repeat cruisers, I'd say that they don't need to invest in a loyalty program. The reason other cruise lines have loyalty programs is to stop them jumping ship (no pun intended). If you don't need to provide incentives to keep people cruising your ships, why do it? Other cruise lines have many more ships they have to fill whereas DCL has a more limited product. Once they launch the new three ships, we'll see what happens but it will largely depend, I think, on the itineraries. If they just continue to do Caribbean and Bahamas with three new big ships, I think that they will have a harder time consistently pulling in repeat cruisers since a lot of repeat cruisers get bored with the same ports. I know that I do although, admittedly, our last Caribbean cruise was mainly to spend time with friends, enjoy the ship more, and we only got off on the one port we'd not been to before.

But the main reason I don't think that DCL is only interested in new cruisers is that it's expensive to acquire a new customer regardless of your industry. I keep reading that repeat cruisers/repeat WDW guests spend less per trip but I'm not sure I believe that. While you may spend less on souvenirs, it seems likely that you might start to upgrade your cabin level once you know what you like and what's on offer (or a more expensive resort at WDW). You may spend more on tours and other upgrade/upsell features once you've done the usual things. We certainly do. Of course, Disney (DCL & WDW and other properties) will never tell us whether repeat guests spend more or not.

Based on the offers and mailings that I get, I suspect that they are using their massive data store to market in a more targeted way rather than blanket marketing to all repeat guests. I used to get WDW offers for value resorts at times of year we don't visit. In the last few years, we've been mainly getting offers for deluxe resorts (where we stay) for times of year that we typically visit. Could be coincidence, but I would generally expect this type of behaviour from a large company that has a lot of my past history. We don't get many special offers from DCL given that they typically don't need to do this at the current time with their limited capacity, but we do get notifications and other mailings and I will say that it's tempting every time I open one. At this point, it's our availability that's the issue but once we're retired, I may be taking more cruises and the lack of loyalty incentives will have no bearing on our decision.

That's not why we cruise Disney. We cruise for the CM chirping, "Welcome Home." Massive feels

Very well put. I remember a CM on our 3rd or 4th cruise saying that to me and I recall turning to DH and saying "Wow, that's a really corny thing to say", *pause*, "I like it". Now I just sigh happily when I hear that at WDW or on a DCL cruise. It's a silly thing, but it feels real to me - being home is how I feel when I walk into the lobby of the BC and smell that familiar smell or when I walk onto the Magic.

 

[bumbershoot]

Reason being because no other company has the impeccable service that Disney offers.

From experience, I disagree completely, absolutely, and totally.

 

[_auroraborealis_]

We have never and will never cruise with any other cruise line. Reason being because no other company has the impeccable service that Disney offers.

If you've never cruised another line, how do you know this as a fact?

 

[Baduist]

DCL is still a small business in Disney terms.

It makes sense to focus marketing efforts towards new customers at this point until they have enough people hooked, and then add marketing towards repeat customers.

I’d expect that to happen in 5 years or so.

 

[jlynch924]

We cruise with DCL because we are creatures of habit. We know the ships and can rely on knowing that the experience will be of a certain caliber. We love the “welcome back” greetings from cast members.
The perks for repeat cruises are meh. We did enjoy the one Gold reception we went to before they changed the rules and held those only for 8+ nights. We typically cruise 6 or 7 nights.