Thought Exercise: CROWN & ANCHOR® SOCIETY

[CHart]

These are just some random thoughts on the loyalty program. Do you ever feel Royal will move to more of a revenue-based system from points (nights) status today? Most if not all other reward programs I know of have moved to that including all the airlines. But then again, the reward program on the airlines is more of a bank and almost a larger business than flying people. I am not sure how it would work or if you would get multipliers depending on your status and then X amount of points after each sailing that would move you to the next level. It would be interesting if you could earn points that could be redeemed for cash value onboard or free cruises. Almost like the casino program $5/10 spent equals 1 point and you could redeem 1000 points for $100 onboard credit or 2500 points is a free drink package for a cruise up to 10 nights etc. Not saying that has to be the exact value but it would be an interesting thing to start trying to get people to spend more money onboard/generate revenue. 

What are everyone else's thoughts on the CROWN & ANCHOR® SOCIETY? Do you think there will be revenue-based changes? 

[Matt]

21 minutes ago, CHart said:

Most if not all other reward programs I know of have moved to that including all the airlines

I would point out that's to entice business travel, which is the top way hotels and airlines make money. Cruise ship travel doesn't have much of a business component.

[steverk]

I hope they don't make it into a revenue model.  I like it just the way it is 

[smokeybandit]

Agreed. It's a true loyalty model instead of a pay-for-play model the airlines have (and as noted they have it that way for a reason).

[Carlos A.]

What would you think if RC followed DCL with this policy: https://disneycruise.disney.go.com/faq/castaway-club/membership/?

"To remain in the program, Castaway Club Members must book or sail on at least one eligible cruise within 5 years of their last Disney voyage."

[WAAAYTOOO]

2 minutes ago, Carlos A. said:

What would you think if RC followed DCL with this policy: https://disneycruise.disney.go.com/faq/castaway-club/membership/?

"To remain in the program, Castaway Club Members must book or sail on at least one eligible cruise within 5 years of their last Disney voyage."

I actually think this is the way to go.  Status for life (and marrying/matching status) is what has gotten them into this situation.

[Doug_Texas]

As we’ve aged our C&A status is one the main reasons we sail on Royal as much as we do.  RCL has the best loyalty program at sea.  Back in the day RCL used to give you 1 cruise point per sailing.  They shifted to 1 (or 2) per day at sea to differentiate types of cruises.  Tweaks might happen but there should never be any thought of following mis-managed Disney into any area of change.
 

I wonder in RCL ever thinks about mirroring the matching benefits on Celebrity (yes, I’m aware of the current match program - not good enough).  I’m a D+ who will never make Pinnacle.  If I got my 5 drink coupons per day I might make a permanant shift to Celebrity freeing up cabins on RCL for families with kids.   

[Noskill]

40 minutes ago, Carlos A. said:

What would you think if RC followed DCL with this policy: https://disneycruise.disney.go.com/faq/castaway-club/membership/?

"To remain in the program, Castaway Club Members must book or sail on at least one eligible cruise within 5 years of their last Disney voyage."

I love this idea.  It's not hard to achieve for most and would allow for a reset on those with status who are not using it.

[smokeybandit]

52 minutes ago, Carlos A. said:

What would you think if RC followed DCL with this policy: https://disneycruise.disney.go.com/faq/castaway-club/membership/?

"To remain in the program, Castaway Club Members must book or sail on at least one eligible cruise within 5 years of their last Disney voyage."

This makes perfect sense. If RC is rewarding you for your loyalty, you have to maintain your loyalty.

[DoomSlayer]

9 minutes ago, smokeybandit said:

This makes perfect sense. If RC is rewarding you for your loyalty, you have to maintain your loyalty.

I mostly agree, but feel that stipulation should be on cruises with the RCI family, not be specific to one cruise line.

[smokeybandit]

7 minutes ago, DoomSlayer said:

I mostly agree, but feel that stipulation should be on cruises with the RCI family, not be specific to one cruise line.

 

I'd agree, though I wonder how much crossover there really is between the brands

[Doug_Texas]

I am stunned that cruisers on RCL think zeroing out your C&A account after an inactive period makes any sense at all.  Carnival VIFP points never expire, NCL Latitudes points never expire.  My daughter cruised a lot until she got married, she hasn’t cruised in 7 years as she has had 4 children.  She is looking forward to cruising again.  Zero out her points and chase her off to Carnval?

[Happy Cruisers]

I remain quite puzzled why anyone would make a vacation decision over C&A loyalty benefits.  For us, it's a nice kicker against another mass market line if we happen to be in the mood for a cruise vacation and if Royal is a serious option where we're looking to go on that cruise vacation, but it is by no means compelling as between one line or another or one type of vacation or another.  Resetting my loyalty account balance after X years if, you know, I hadn't been a loyal customer during that time, wouldn't impact my decision making vis a vis a mass market cruise line.  

What does impact my loyalty is discrete service by a disciplined staff who value my limited time, and, frankly, an overall high end experience.  And come to think of it, that's probably the compelling reason why I have exactly 0 cruises booked with Royal right now - that's just not the game they're looking to play - fine, of course; there are plenty enough other options for us. 

[tonyfsu21]

1 hour ago, Happy Cruisers said:

I remain quite puzzled why anyone would make a vacation decision over C&A loyalty benefits.  For us, it's a nice kicker against another mass market line if we happen to be in the mood for a cruise vacation and if Royal is a serious option where we're looking to go on that cruise vacation, but it is by no means compelling as between one line or another or one type of vacation or another.  Resetting my loyalty account balance after X years if, you know, I hadn't been a loyal customer during that time, wouldn't impact my decision making vis a vis a mass market cruise line.  

What does impact my loyalty is discrete service by a disciplined staff who value my limited time, and, frankly, an overall high end experience.  And come to think of it, that's probably the compelling reason why I have exactly 0 cruises booked with Royal right now - that's just not the game they're looking to play - fine, of course; there are plenty enough other options for us. 

I am quite puzzled why someone wouldn’t?? What keeps us loyal is the D+ benefits which happen to be the best in the business IMHO. 

[CrznTxn]

1 hour ago, tonyfsu21 said:

I am quite puzzled why someone wouldn’t?? What keeps us loyal is the D+ benefits which happen to be the best in the business IMHO. 

Agreed. With our C&A status we save hundreds of dollars on each cruise which allows more savings towards another. We have friends who only sail on Carnival due to their reward status and we mostly (95%) sail on Royal due to ours.

[cruisellama]

10 hours ago, CHart said:

These are just some random thoughts on the loyalty program. Do you ever feel Royal will move to more of a revenue-based system from points (nights) status today? Most if not all other reward programs I know of have moved to that including all the airlines. But then again, the reward program on the airlines is more of a bank and almost a larger business than flying people. I am not sure how it would work or if you would get multipliers depending on your status and then X amount of points after each sailing that would move you to the next level. It would be interesting if you could earn points that could be redeemed for cash value onboard or free cruises. Almost like the casino program $5/10 spent equals 1 point and you could redeem 1000 points for $100 onboard credit or 2500 points is a free drink package for a cruise up to 10 nights etc. Not saying that has to be the exact value but it would be an interesting thing to start trying to get people to spend more money onboard/generate revenue. 

What are everyone else's thoughts on the CROWN & ANCHOR® SOCIETY? Do you think there will be revenue-based changes? 

Similar to how the credit card incentive works for OBC.   I thought that might work to boost on-board revenue, as you mentioned, maybe you get 1 point for every $1000 spend on-board.   It could be attractive for those on the cusp of a new loyalty tier.    Celebrity awards loyalty points for participating in "Power-up" activities.   Taking quizzes on cruise line related marketing activities, participating in webinars, or booking certain cruises can allow you to pick up 1-10 points depending on the activity.  It was spawned during COVID to keep people engaged.   It's been scaled back, but they're still offering power up point opportunities.   I mentioned revenue point boosts for on-board sales (as you suggest for RCL) to Celebrities Captains Club VP, and she didn't say it was a bad idea and worth looking at.  But that's Celebrity and they run a different type of program.  I don't think that's in RCLs DNA, but seems like it could influence spending behavior if C&A points can be had.

[CHart]

I am a person who typically looks for one brand. I am a loyal Marriot Titanium member, AA Platinum and now Royal Gold took my first 2 cruises this year, 3 booked next year. I don't look at other companies when traveling unless the price is very high for the area/event.

I feel that I am going through the ranks quickly with Royal without generating a ton of profit for them. I will be diamond by my 6th cruise (3 years).  I have been lucky in the casino and have made several hundred dollars this year and managed to book 3 comped sailings.  I guess the hope is they generate the income via Casio since I am not paying for the rooms. 

This idea is nothing more than a way to see how people would feel about something to generate more onboard spending.  Glad to see other people's viewpoints. I think the biggest thing is when everyone is a priority, no one is. It would be interesting to see the age demographics and statistics when it comes to the status levels.

I wonder if there is a theoretical level of profitability per passenger they have and how it reflects per level. If someone is Diamond do they get the drink package or only use the free drinks? Could they start offering a 50% off unlimited drink package or free mocktails package vs 4 free drinks a sailing? Would it generate more revenue or less?

I hope things don't move to revenue-based earning but I have a feeling since it is a lifetime and no "points" to devalue like hotels, airlines, and credit cards (more points needed to redeem compared to today's redemption rate) there may be something added to help keep up generating more review and inflation value. 

[twangster]

I don't think the program is broken, it is doing exactly what it is intended to do, motivate repeat bookings.  

When a program is successful isn't a sign that it must change.  It's a sign that is has been designed properly.

If it isn't broken, it doesn't need to be fixed.

[tonyfsu21]

13 minutes ago, twangster said:

I don't think the program is broken, it is doing exactly what it is intended to do, motivate repeat bookings.  

When a program is successful isn't a sign that it must change.  It's a sign that is has been designed properly.

If it isn't broken, it doesn't need to be fixed.

The C&A program is excellent and so is the suite program. Both are arguably the best in the industry. The casino program is broken and needs so be fixed and that’s something I think most players would agree with. I would also like to add the IT department and customer service are a dumpster fire that needs to be extinguished. 

[twangster]

4 minutes ago, tonyfsu21 said:

I would also like to add the IT department and customer service are a dumpster fire that needs to be extinguished. 

CFO folks never will fund IT based on a better potential experience.  Their position is… We are making billions, why put money into IT?   That won’t help us make more money.   

Until the system crashes and it costs them money, IT will be minimally funded.   Look at Southwest.   Same philosophy.   

[GatorCruiser]

Well I can tell you without equivocation, Royal is making a ton of money off me and my pursuit of diamond plus. Once we hit it , we’ll check out celebrity. 

[tonyfsu21]

15 minutes ago, GatorCruiser said:

Well I can tell you without equivocation, Royal is making a ton of money off me and my pursuit of diamond plus. Once we hit it , we’ll check out celebrity. 

With Liberty at the helm, he will keep dangling that carrot. I wouldn’t be surprised if he pulls a fast one and adjusts the tiers to level the playing field. Fortunately we are deep into D+ so I don’t think Liberty or his cast of characters can impact us. 

[Rackham]

9 hours ago, CHart said:

I wonder if there is a theoretical level of profitability per passenger they have and how it reflects per level. If someone is Diamond do they get the drink package or only use the free drinks? Could they start offering a 50% off unlimited drink package or free mocktails package vs 4 free drinks a sailing? Would it generate more revenue or less?

I hope things don't move to revenue-based earning but I have a feeling since it is a lifetime and no "points" to devalue like hotels, airlines, and credit cards (more points needed to redeem compared to today's redemption rate) there may be something added to help keep up generating more review and inflation value. 

When the drink vouchers were first introduced, every tier receiving them had one less per day to use (i.e. Diamond received 3 instead of 4). Royal upped the daily count to its current amounts during the first year in place. Along with posters on multiple boards saying they either don't use all of their vouchers per day or using them on things like canned soda and bottled water, the drink vouchers don't really cost Royal that much*. Even ordering premium cocktails which are covered (up to $14) the cost to Royal is measured in dollars; maybe $3 or so at the most in ingredients. Yet when people are discussing the benefits, it's always $56 in drink savings every day of the cruise for Diamonds, rarely is it how much savings are actually applicable for most. And many Diamond and up still buy a drink package of some sort based on form postings. Thus, I don't think Royal will be eliminating this benefit simply because people seriously overestimate how much the vouchers are worth, but it generates serious excitement towards climbing the C&A ranks. There used to be frequent posts asking how can someone climb the ranks faster and cheaper because DRINK VOUCHERS!

* A post I made back in October about Royal's voucher costs. 

 

[steverk]

1 hour ago, GatorCruiser said:

Well I can tell you without equivocation, Royal is making a ton of money off me and my pursuit of diamond plus. Once we hit it , we’ll check out celebrity. 

Keep in mind that diamond, diamond plus and Pinnacle all status match as elite. Therefore,  if you are diamond and want to sail celebrity,  you might as well just do that. There isn't any advantage in waiting for diamond plus. 

[GatorCruiser]

7 minutes ago, steverk said:

Keep in mind that diamond, diamond plus and Pinnacle all status match as elite. Therefore,  if you are diamond and want to sail celebrity,  you might as well just do that. There isn't any advantage in waiting for diamond plus. 

Good point , at present we are diamond and on schedule to cross D+ after spring break 2025 cruise. I understand tier matching with celebrity but I just want to get to D+ before spending money elsewhere 

[smokeybandit]

1 hour ago, twangster said:

If it isn't broken, it doesn't need to be fixed.

That seems like it'd make for a good American colloquialism, especially if you add in poor grammar.

[smokeybandit]

1 hour ago, twangster said:

CFO folks never will fund IT based on a better potential experience.  Their position is… We are making billions, why put money into IT?   That won’t help us make more money.   

Until the system crashes and it costs them money, IT will be minimally funded.   Look at Southwest.   Same philosophy.   

Last time I looked RC had a ton of IT jobs open. So they're at least trying.

Then again the reason so many jobs are open could be part of the problem.

[karl_nj]

1 hour ago, smokeybandit said:

Last time I looked RC had a ton of IT jobs open. So they're at least trying.

Then again the reason so many jobs are open could be part of the problem.

Didn't they layoff everyone during the COVID shutdown?

Not that their IT was great pre shutdown.

[Doug_Texas]

3 hours ago, twangster said:

CFO folks never will fund IT based on a better potential experience.  Their position is… We are making billions, why put money into IT?   That won’t help us make more money.   

Until the system crashes and it costs them money, IT will be minimally funded.   Look at Southwest.   Same philosophy.   

When it comes to IT the goal is to enhance the customer experience while reducing cost.  For example, providing easy MDR linking and table preferences (not linking for Cruise Planner purchases) would enhance the customer experience while eliminating hundreds of phone calls with customers on hold.  Multiple efforts can reduce staffing requirements.  I think RCL IT is much better than NCL but improvements can still be made. 

[Mike n Ky]

On 12/23/2023 at 7:20 AM, GatorCruiser said:

Well I can tell you without equivocation, Royal is making a ton of money off me and my pursuit of diamond plus. Once we hit it , we’ll check out celebrity. 

Likewise. We will hit D+ when we get off Symphony 2/7 and already have a sailing booked on Celebrity. I am sure we will continue to sail on RC but we are branching out.

[Mike n Ky]

There is no perfect solution to any loyalty program but one thing I haven't understood is the basic points on RC. You can book the cheapest cabin on the ship, pay maybe half the cost of a balc and get the same points. Unlike suites there are no additional benefits/perks on board.

[tonyfsu21]

18 minutes ago, Mike n Ky said:

There is no perfect solution to any loyalty program but one thing I haven't understood is the basic points on RC. You can book the cheapest cabin on the ship, pay maybe half the cost of a balc and get the same points. Unlike suites there are no additional benefits/perks on board.

It probably wouldn’t be a wise business decision to penalize the many families who save endlessly to book an interior cabin. I happen to agree with the points per night system as it stands. If you want to shell out suite level money then the 2 points per night is fair. 

[CHart]

I guess that is part of the question. Having a 2 layer system where the dollars spent also equate to something. An additional thing where you spend $xxxx and you get an extra point or you can redeem spend for discount similar to the credit card they have.

[Rackham]

4 hours ago, Mike n Ky said:

There is no perfect solution to any loyalty program but one thing I haven't understood is the basic points on RC. You can book the cheapest cabin on the ship, pay maybe half the cost of a balc and get the same points. Unlike suites there are no additional benefits/perks on board.

Without knowing the Royal's internals, the goal of any loyalty program is customer retention. Royal needs people booking interiors just as much as balconies. So if someone enjoys interior cabins, Royal wants them booking them early and often with the company.  Suites and solos receive an extra point per night in recognition of the significantly higher fares associated with them.

With that said, I wouldn't be surprised if long term Royal's loyalty program adopts Celebrity's tiered point system based on cabin category. 

[twangster]

21 hours ago, Mike n Ky said:

There is no perfect solution to any loyalty program but one thing I haven't understood is the basic points on RC. You can book the cheapest cabin on the ship, pay maybe half the cost of a balc and get the same points. Unlike suites there are no additional benefits/perks on board.

Royal is a mass market cruise line and RCI is the lowest line in the RCG family.   They are keenly aware of the competition, Carnival, NCL and MSC.   
 

it would be odd for a mass market cruise to break from the competition and do something different.   

[HeWhoWaits]

On 12/23/2023 at 8:20 AM, GatorCruiser said:

Well I can tell you without equivocation, Royal is making a ton of money off me and my pursuit of diamond plus. Once we hit it , we’ll check out celebrity. 

You get Elite status on Celebrity with Diamond (same as Diamond Plus and Pinnacle). Why wait for D+ to check it out since there's no additional benefit?

[foxrunner]

On 12/23/2023 at 9:10 AM, Rackham said:

Thus, I don't think Royal will be eliminating this benefit simply because people seriously overestimate how much the vouchers are worth, but it generates serious excitement towards climbing the C&A ranks. There used to be frequent posts asking how can someone climb the ranks faster and cheaper because DRINK VOUCHERS!

 

 

Please factor in the fact that some people don't purchase the drink packages because of the loyalty drinks. That does cost them quite a bit. I agree with Twangster it isn't a broken system. If most cruisers on a ship are new to cruising Royal needs to find ways to retain them. The current market will change and when it does the loyal members will keep sailing. I don't gamble outside of my freeplay, so I don't know if the Casino program is problematic. I do hear a fair number of folks saying the combination of the Crown & A. drinks and Prime drinks have led them to no longer purchase the drink packages. 

[GatorCruiser]

5 hours ago, HeWhoWaits said:

You get Elite status on Celebrity with Diamond (same as Diamond Plus and Pinnacle). Why wait for D+ to check it out since there's no additional benefit?

We just want to hit the D+ milestone before spending money elsewhere.