Royal Caribbean International is already optimistically looking ahead to a recovery from the fallout of the Covid-19 outbreak.
And it wants the travel advisors who book many of their cruises to share its optimism.
"Let's think positively and be focused on the recovery," Vicki Freed, senior vice president of sales and trade support and service for Royal Caribbean, told more than 2,000 travel advisors on her weekly webcast on Wednesday. "What are we all going to do to manage this difficult time but then come out of it stronger than ever?"
Freed drew on history to give them encouragement.
"The good thing about Americans, we have short memories," she said during her hourlong "Coffee Talk" webcast, which she has promised to have every Wednesday during the coronavirus crisis. "People after 9/11 said they'll never fly again, and the aviation industry became a strong industry. And yet we all go through TSA, and we didn't have to do that prior to 9/11, and those types of things will happen in the cruise industry, where you will see that we will all step up our game even more."
These are the types of conversations that are happening between cruise lines and the travel advisors who are responsible for a large chunk of their bookings. It's a symbiotic relationship between the two groups. An ASTA survey of more than 1,060 advisors in December showed that 33.6% of their annual sales came from cruise bookings, more than all-inclusive resorts and packages.
Now that cruising, along with the greater travel industry, has come to a standstill, the cruise lines and travel advisors need each other even more. Cruise lines have suspended operations for at least the next three weeks, and advisors are seeing a drop in bookings and a rise in cancellations for cruises later this year that haven't yet been canceled.
Carnival Cruise Line had its own webinar for more than 3,000 advisors on Thursday also to reassure them of how important they are to the industry (the webinar was a paid partnership with Travel Weekly).
"We're going to count on each other to get out of this mess on the other side and go back to providing millions of people great vacation options -- and obviously get everyone back to work and making money and living their lives," said Adolfo Perez, the line's senior vice president of global sales and trade marketing.
Right now, though, cruise ships are returning to home ports or negotiating with other ports for berthing space. A few have had passengers and crew members test positive with coronavirus, which has made some ports turn them away.
But Freed said she doesn't think the cruise industry should be blamed for the outbreak that has gripped the world.
"This is more of a global world event versus a travel industry event," she said.
Freed said advisors should spend this time accomplishing what they haven't been able to during peak periods, such as propping up their social media presence or taking classes at Royal Caribbean University, the company's online travel advisor training program.
During the Q&A part of the webcast, advisors asked how they can attract people back to cruises once they start operating again.
Freed's advice: Reach out to clients who are experienced cruisers.
"They know this is a speed bump in the cruise industry and life in general," she said. "They are going to be the easiest people to win back."
She said that Royal Caribbean will be offering affordable rates in the fall.
"Now, if you've got people sitting on the fence and never thought they could afford a cruise, our pricing is very, very attractive because we want to make sure that our ships are full, that our crew is well compensated and taken care of with guests to serve," she said.
But she does not think it's the time for advisors to give clients a hard sell.
The key, she said, is to maintain a relationship with them even if they're not yet ready to book a cruise.
She suggested they not just communicate via email but pick up a phone every once in a while. That, she said, is more memorable.
"Email is a tool. It is not a relationship builder. It's a monologue." she said. "A dialogue, a phone conversation, is a two-way conversation."