How Much is Too Much?

First, I had trouble getting back into the BLOG for the last couple of weeks. Had changed my password and never wrote it down. OK, it's an "upper age moment!" It happens. It's in my password list now so I should be more consistent in posting.

So today I ask how much is too much? As a Professional Travel Consultant and CruiseOne Franchise Owner who specialises in Cruise Vacations, we have a very simple business philosophy and have since day one about 9 years ago - DO FOR OTHERS AS WE DO FOR OURSELVES.

To put another way, it's always about our client(s)! I had the privilege yesterday to speak to a new agent training class and this was the focus of the entire presentation I gave about how to be successful in building their new franchise business. Put the Client first!

But the cruise lines aren't make this easy. It has gotten to the point where every week they have another "SALE" and another "Best Offer Ever." They run promotions and offers (special pricing, on-board credit, or something) to attract new bookings. Why? Beause they have space to fill on a ship and of course it's for "New Bookings Only." Why do they have all this space available?

Let's think about this for a minute. The cruise line wants to get the space (cabins) on a ship sold. The earlier they are sold, the better off they would be since they could actually RAISE pricing when there is less availability for a particular sail date on that ship. It's supply and demand, not rocket science!

The bigger the supply (cabins available) and lower demand (people booked), you will have to lower the price or offer incentives to move the inventory (remember a cruise ship sail date can not sit on the shelf forever - once it sails, you can't sell more cabins on that sailing). On the other hand with less available cabins, they could get a higher price or at least not have to lower it and/or give away incenetives. This ain't rocket science, just pure logic.

I am not saying this to get people to pay more for their cruise - yes, the higher the price, the more commission an agent earns (if it happens to fall on the commissionable side of the pricing which lately is not happening anyway,. Increased pricing is in the non-commissionable side of the pricing - do you think we actually get paid on what you pay? No, on many sailings the portion of the pricing that is non-commissionable is higher than the portion that is. That's another whole topic for another day.)

Here's my point. Cruise Lines, wake up! Let's work together and protect the clients who do what we want and book early. Make sure they get the best deal. And if you have to run a "SALE", make it a real one - do it EARLY! And if you don't want to protect the customers, at least don't fight us agents who do. When we call you about these situations, just go ahead and give the customer who is already booked the offer - price or incentive - and we will all WIN. Your cruise line, your agent partners, and most important, OUR MUTUAL CUSTOMER!

Professional Travel Agents Deserve Some Respect!

Although I will normally try to come up with an interesting or relevant topic of information, today I want to "sort of vent" a little.

I received a call from a prospective new client late (and I mean late) last night. The lady was pleasant enough starting out - was interested in finding the best deal in Oct, Nov, or Jan since she was flexible on when she could take a cruise. This is a good thing - be flexible on your time frame for vacation and a professional agent will take the time to find the best deal (read this as pricing or value as the prices of cruises do vary week to week based on many factors.)

She did have a specific cruise line in mind as her past passenger level entitled her to a special discount when booking balcony cabins. So far so good! Without going into a long story (I've actually started this over twice), I spent the time looking at sailings during the 3 months and embarkation port she was interested in (this is 13 different sailing dates mind you) and found the weeks with the lowest pricing. I told her what the price would be, and then she wanted to know what I was going to "give her" for booking with me. I asked myself "When did I join E-Bay or become involved in running an auction?"

Why do people think they "deserve" something for booking with an agent instead of doing it themselves or booking direct? Especially after having the agent do the work they are too lazy or not capable of doing themselves!

Do people think that agents just arbitrarily make up the pricing of cruises? Then, they can or are willing to "negotiate" the price like car dealers, home remodeling contractors, or vacuum cleaner salesmen? Those type businesses can use inflated prices so they can "make you think" you got a "deal" with the "discounted" pricing or extras thrown in. How can they do that? Because you the consumer, are never told what the MSRP - Manufacturers Suggested Retail Price - actually is for that product.

In those scenarios, you are not dealing with the Manufacturer or Owner of the product, but are dealing with a "retail" seller who bought the product from a local distributor, who bought the product from a regional distributor, who bought the product from a wholesaler, who bought the product from a rep who might actually work for the manufacturer. Guess what, everyone gets to make up their own pricing along the way and add a profit to it. Then the person who has the store you buy from has to make a profit and also makes up their own pricing. They can put on a "SALE" and say the regular price is $xxx but they are discounting it X %. Guess what, they made up the regular price, and then offer a discounted price to what they want to sell it for to get their profit margin and make it sound like a good deal.

Well guess what! Cruise Lines do the same thing. They put out a brochure price (the MSRP) and then run various promotions or discounted pricing from that MSRP. But there is a difference!

You know what the brochure or MSRP price is for that cruise but it is still the owner of the product - the cruise line - that determines at what discounted price their product can be sold to the consumer at, either by themselves or by authorized agents. The agent is only a rep to handle the reservation on behalf of the cruise line! But the agent, who is paid by the cruise line by commission, is responsible for then handling everything for their customer before booking (doing the research to find the best deals and value and right product for the customer), after booking but before sailing (making sure payments are made in a timely manner, answering questions, help with pre-cruise registration, documents, and much more). For doing all the work, the cruise line offers the agent a pre-determined commission based on the pricing of the cruise that they, the Owner of the product set.

And guess what folks, the agent does NOT get paid their commission on everything you actually pay. Sometimes more than half of the price you pay is "non-commissionable" to the agent. The agent though, has many expenses to stay in business and to be able to provide their customers with the service they expect and more importantly, deserve.

Asking the agent to "negotiate" and discount the pricing the cruise line sets, is the same as asking the agent to pay for part of your cruise out of their pocket (it comes from the commission they earn) but then, the customer still expects to be able to get the same service they would normally would for being the "customer." Would you be willing to do the same job you have now if your boss asked you to work for less money? Then why would you ask an agent to do that? I haven't figured this out yet but it happens all the time. It's like going into a restaurant and telling the waitress "the diner down the street sells their hamburgers for the same price so I want to negotiate the price of one if I am willing to eat here."

As a Professional Travel Agent and Franchise Owner, I take great pride in the service, and many times, above and beyond service I, or my agents provide to our customers. We hope our customers come back to us again and again because of this "extra value" we provide and are willing to do even more extras for that loyalty (we have an exclusive Client Loyalty Program for our regular and repeat clients).

We continuously spend our time (and money) to learn as much as we can and gain more knowledge to help you make wise decisions for your vacation and to be sure you get the best pricing and value offered by the cruise lines.

If this extra service and information is not important to you, then do the research yourself and book with online websites or direct with the cruise lines. But wasting an agent's time to do research and asking them to then "negotiate" pricing is just wrong. The cruise line will not do it with you (in fact, most cruise lines now do not allow agents/agencies to discount or negotiate the prices they set) but there are agencies, especially the "online" sites that still will. Eventually, they may lose their "booking privileges" with that cruise line and since they can't do business with them, you are the one who will suffer!

If you find an agent/agency willing to "negotiate" pricing and then book with them, or book direct with a cruise line or an online website somewhere, don't call us to complain when you have problems later on getting in touch with them (they might be out of business, or do not return phone calls even when they are supposedly open). We cannot help you (and yes, we get many calls from people who have booked elsewhere looking for our help) nor will we. You found a "deal" and now you have to live with it.

We agents deserve a little respect for what we provide and the ones who don't think so should go find another line of work. I love what I do but never said I was a non-profit business.

Note: to learn about our Client Loyalty Rewards Program, and what extras we offer to our clients, go to http://arichman.cruiseone.com/travel/cruise_articles/display_editorial.do?edOid=1611791767.

Cruises for Family Reunions

Why does a cruise make sense for a Family Reunion? Simply put, it is the only way I know that everyone in the family can participate where it is affordable for everyone.

Let's think about this. The larger the family, the more age groups and economic situations within the family. Family reunions could be at one of the family member homes for a day, but can everyone in the family provide what would be necessary to do that? Probably not. Most of the family members either do not have the large home nor the time to do what it takes to make sure everyone has a good time.

A reunion could be scheduled at a resort but, what type of resort? Resorts are either going to be moderate, inexpensive, or luxury when it comes to facilities and pricing. Can everyone in the family afford the luxury resort? Probably not. Do the family members who are able to afford the luxury resort want to spend time at the inexpensive resort with less facilities, less entertainment options, less things to do that most of the family members can afford? Maybe, but again, probably not.

A cruise is really a floating resort. Every ship has a wide variety of entertainment options on board and things to do when in port. There are luxury accommodations and budget accommodations on the same ship. Everyone can stay within their own budget, do what they want (or what they can afford to do), and yet the family can still plan activities and dining together without putting a burden on the younger, less affluent family members.

Using a cruise specialist who understands the ships, the ports of call, and how to make the family reunion a huge success, should be the first step in planning your next family reunion. Give our team a call and I'll bet that a cruise will become the first choice for your families next gala get together. 1-866-887-4477.

The Hardest Question to Answer

In the almost 9 years of being a professional agent specializing in booking cruises for folks, there is one question I am constantly asked that I find the most difficult to answer. This question normally comes from "first time cruisers" or those who have only been on a couple of cruises.

The question is "What is the best ship or cruise line?" All the cruise lines advertise how they are the best which is not much different from any business in any industry. So how does one know the answer to this or who to believe?

Well, IMHO, there is no "Best" ship or cruise line! There is however, something that is probably best for each individual, every time they are looking to plan a cruise vacation! And each time it might be different.

Itinerary, departure port, date of departure, type of accomodation, who is going on the trip, and of course, pricing or as I like to say - value. All of these things have to be taken into consideration to make a good decision.

I think it is a good idea for people to try different cruise lines early on in their cruising experience. We did that ourselves as our first 5 cruises were on 4 different cruise lines. This way we learned about the "personalities" of the different cruise product out there and yes, all the cruise lines do have a different type of personality (or put another way, energy level.)

The basics are the same for all of them - food, entertainment, choice of accomodation, and visiting new places or going back to those that were enjoyed in the past. And of course, one of our favorite things on any cruise is just being out on the open seas.

Do we have our personal favorites now? Sure we do! Part of it has to do with the "perks" we get as a past passenger with that particular cruise line but mostly, it is because we choose, based on our experience, the ship and/or cruise line we enjoy the most and that fit our personality. Does that mean we will not go on other lines? Of course not!

We're the same as you. Each time we plan our own trip, we take into consideration the variables mentioned above - itinerary, departure port, and value etc.

So when you call us to plan a cruise vacation and ask "What is the best cruise line or ship", we will ask you questions and sometimes make recommendations that you did not think of. Our job as your Personal Cruise Consultant is to help you make that good decision so you have a great experience and get the best value each and every time.

You don't have to follow our recommendation (or your favorite agent's reccomendation even if not us) but with over 50 personal cruises now, on many cruise lines and ships, numerous other ship tours and training sessions, traveling to many different destinations, (sometimes the same destination on a different product), and knowing that we know if we do right by you this time, you'll come back to us next time, it just might be worthwhile to try something new. You just might be pleasently surprised.

Promotions and Marketing - Cruise LInes and Other businesses

All businesses seem to run promotions which is fine, but they run them constantly. In fact, many times, it is the same thing packaged differently with a new name. Yes, I realize this is "marketing" and the purpose of marketing is to get people "into the store" or to pick up the phone as the case may be and to sell the companies product. I'm fine with that and even do it myself (our Secret Word Game, our Client Loyalty Rewards Program, our monthly bonus rewards point offer, etc.)

Whatever happened to the "good old days" when it was truly a "sale" when it really was a special deal?

Before I get to cruise lines, here are a couple of examples (I will not mention company names but you might figure out who they are:

1) A supplier of eyeglasses, ready in about an hour, always has a sale - Free Frames, Free Lenses, 30, 40, 50% off both - and every time we go in to get new glasses, the final price is always about the same.

2) A clothing store constantly has "Buy 1 at regular price and get one or two free. All suits 50% off" Bottom line - the total of the items seems to be about the same.

3) Furniture is a prime example of the overuse of the word "sale" IMHO. "30% off our regular price!" the ad might say but did you know that the "regular price" is an arbitrary number the store set, not the MSIP (manufacturer's suggested retail price). They have never sold the item at the "regular price" and never will. If they want to say 50% off, then they make the "regular price" higher and when they take the 50% off, the bottom line price will be the same as when they take 30% off the "regular price."

4) Cruise Lines - Free Air, 2 for 1, free upgrade, Cash Back, etc. but is anything really free? Let's face it - promotions are simply to sell space on a particular sailing (s) that might be hard to fill anyway. Brochure Rates are like Rack Rates in hotels. It is extremely rare that anyone ever pays those prices or that the item/space is sold at that price; like furniture's "regular price. Wishful thinking? Possibly. But something to run a promotion from to make it sound soooo good, probably.

With cruises, everyone will be entitled to some type of promotional price. Yes, there are some prices that require a type of "qualification" such as past passenger, regional (live in a certain state or region), Sr., and some others that do offer special lower pricing for a limited time, but if you get "hung up" on a promotional piece because of what it says in LARGE PRINT, and you don't read the small print at the bottom of the ad, you may actually miss out on something worthwhile by not using a reputable agent. You see, they almost always say "select sailings" and "from" and "capacity controlled".

What is:

• "Select sailing?" It is a date of sailing that is harder to fill the ship than most others.
• "From" always refers to the lowest type cabin category and/or undesirable location on the ship
• "Capacity Controlled" means that maybe there is only one at that price (usually more but could be one.)
• "2 for 1" is used in conjunction with the brochure rate.
• "FREE Air" - is it really Free? Many times we find the cabin price is higher than another "rate code" or promotion to offset the cost of air.

Remember TANSTAAFL - there ain't no such thing as a free lunch.

As an agent, always trying to get the best value (notice I said value not just price), for our client and knowing how to interpret the various "rate codes" and promotions to find the best deal for them, these constant promotions really do become a challenge for myself and other agents so they must really be confusing to the consumer. Is that what the cruise lines want?

I think what they really want is to keep their ships full and use this type of constant "special deal marketing" to accomplish and reach the goal. Does it work? It does! Ships go out full. But unfortunately, the industry has gotten so "entrenched" in the price, they forget to "sell" the value.

Sometimes there are many different "rate codes" on a particular sailing. but guess what, the bottom line is the same for all of these codes. Why not eliminate the confusion and just price the product what you want to sell it for. Then if you want to run a special promotion, it might really be special and attract new business. Will this happen? Probably not with some rare exceptions.

I just wanted to get this off my chest but I'm realistic enough to know it will not change. So, we will continue to do what we've done for over 8 years - research, analyse and come up with the best pricing and value we can for clients at the time of booking and fight the cruise lines if they actually lower pricing later on through some other "promotion."

This topic has become relevant and a confusing time due to one cruise lines current promotion. I will not name names but trust us to give you the best advice and honest assesment and to find you the best value when you book your cruise vacation with us. I say value not price because sometimes we might recommend something that costs a little bit more but gives more value, and other times, we have actually tried to explain why booking at a lower price or category makes more sense and is actually better value. That's our job as your advocate when you are our customer.

One last point - our promotions as mentioned above, DO NOT cost you any more but are truly some EXTRA value for a specific time period for a specific reason. When they are over, they are over.

St. Thomas Random Shooting Incident

The media once again has to tie a random, senseless act of violence that occurred in St. Thomas, with the cruise industry. Why? To sell advertising?

The most unfortunate and sad incident in St. Thomas where a young 14 yr old girl was shot a killed in St. Thomas by a shootout in a neighborhood became news because she was a passenger on a cruise ship.

These stupid and senseless acts of violence take place almost every day in cities and towns across America and other parts of the world. In many cases, the story would be a "30 second" blip on the local news (if that much). The fact that she was on a cruise ship has no bearing on the incident itself. The family was not even on an excursion sold through the cruise line. This family could just have easily been in St. Thomas having arrived by plane. Would the airline be tied into the story? I seriously doubt it!

The cruise line has halted excursions to a very popular beach temporarily and this is an overreaction IMHO. It was an incident in a local neighborhood, had nothing to do with that beach, nothing to do with a cruise ship, but was just "one of those unfortunate things and someone being in the wrong place at the wrong time."

So before you think it is "not safe" on a cruise ship and passengers just get killed, look around your hometown. Do you have a police force? Why? Because things happen and they are not all good! There are criminals, and stupid people everywhere, and the police in most cases can only react AFTER the fact, not before, to apprehend the perpetrator and charge them with the crime.

St. Thomas is one of the most popular ports of call and will continue to be so. I personally look forward to going back for the shopping. Great bargains on things my wife likes and a big savings compared to the prices in the stores here.

The Norwegian EPIC arrives in Miami

So what's new in cruising today? The new NCL Epic arrived in her new Homeport of Miami, FL on Thursday and left on her maiden Caribbean Voyage on Saturday. This totally unique 153,000 gross tons, 4,100 passenger floating resort is the first new ship to homeport in Miami in several years. She is a World Class entertainment destination to be sure!

• Blue Man Group will be a regular show and exclusive to the Epic.


• With the only "big top" at sea, Cirque Dreams and Dinner presents a one of a kind interactive dining experience with music, mayhem, and acrobatic imagination.


• Legends in Concert, the original and world's greatest live tribute show is featured for the first time at sea in over a decade along with The Second City improvisational comedy troupe.


• Add to that Howl at the Moon, the greatest rock 'n roll dueling piano show that encourages audience participation and NY based Slam Allen Band playing down-home blues in the Fat Cats Jazz and Blues club.


• Another cruise ship first is the SVEDKA Ice Bar which originated in Sweeden. 17 degrees and everything - bar, stools, and all is made of ice. Yes, they will supply a coat and hat. Small cover charge includes two signature drinks.


• The Epic Plunge - an Aqua Park with the only tube slide and largest bowl slide at sea; extreme rock-climbing on a 33 ft high, 64 ft wide rock climbing wall with rapelling wall too; 6 lane bowling alley, sports deck with plenty of athletic activites possible.


• For the kids, 3 spearate venues and Nickelodeon at Sea (TM) offering Nickelodeon themed family entertainment including character meet and greet.


• And don't forget the food with 20 different dining venues

This is an amazing ship and truly a destination unto it's own. We look forward to sailing on her in October for our annual company conference.

To learn more, see pictures and view videos, you can go to http://epic.ncl.com/. But don't book there. Call us at 1-866-887-4477 to see if we have some special promotions, group space or value adds for the date you are interested in (and we also have all the cruise line promos available and get you the Sr., union, military, or other special rates you might be entitled to.)

Another reason to book with CruiseOne - Richman, O'Hare and Associates is our exclusive Secret Word Game where you can win a very unique prize just by telling us the current Secret Word (you need to subscribe to our newsletter - Cruise Newz & Views - to learn the Secret Word of the month. You can subscribe by sending e-mail to subscribe@askusaboutcruising.com with your name.)

We also have our exclusive Client Loyalty Rewards Points program - you earn points on every cruise you book with us on any cruise line. YOU can earn from $25 - $200 in on board credits (details on our website www.cruiseone.com/arichman in the From Your Cruise Specialist section .

Most important, our team is dedicated to providing exceptional service, expertise and help in choosing the perfect cruise vacation for you! We knkow if you book with us once, you will come back to us again and again.

Have a great day!