FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. -- Renaissance Cruises launched an
advertising blitz in travel trade publications, "intended to
correct misunderstandings and lack of awareness that travel agents
have for Renaissance," according to the line's advertising agency.
The opening salvo, consisting of three two-page spreads with
each placement, appeared in at least five trade journals, including
Travel Weekly. The campaign comes as Renaissance continues to
introduce four new $180 million ships within a period of 12 months,
starting in December of last year.
At the same time, the line has been faxing agents low-ball
prices, including $1,299 per person, for a balcony suite on a
five-day Greek Isles cruise, including roundtrip air from New York
(Kennedy), six-night deluxe hotel package and all ground
transfers.
The trade campaign, estimated to cost about $1 million, came
after almost two years of open feuding between the Fort
Lauderdale-based cruise line and agents. Renaissance's public
relations representatives have told trade reporters that the line's
first priority is to market directly to consumers.
Agents have charged Renaissance with blatant bypass practices as
well as failing to pay customary industry commissions. But the
surprise Renaissance travel-media campaign is designed to make an
impact on agents, said Stan Harris, creative partner of Harris
Drury Cohen, the advertising agency also based here.
"We're going to shake up the travel agent community and change
some misconceptions," he said. "Renaissance is one of the best-kept
secrets in the cruise industry."
According to a press release issued by Bob Binder, senior
director of sales for Renaissance, "Travel agents need to know more
about Renaissance and its offerings, and that is especially true
for those agents who correctly position themselves as travel
counselors to their own clientele."
A Renaissance public relations representative said that neither
Binder nor any other Renaissance executive would be available to
answer questions of a Travel Weekly reporter, stating that "they
aren't ready to answer questions about the campaign at this
time."
The Renaissance trade advertisements are long on graphics and
short on the line's actual trade policies. However, one of the
advertisements indicates that travel agents are still doing
business with Renaissance. In fact, the copy states, "Travel agents
booked 50% more on Renaissance in 1999 than in any other previous
year."
The advertisement did not cite what percentage of Renaissance's
bookings the figure would represent.
Neither did Binder say in his press release whether Renaissance
was preparing to change its remuneration policy, which sets
commissions less than 10%. However, a phone call to the line's
reservations department indicated that their commission policy
hasn't changed.
For example, the commission on the $1,299 per-person Greek
Island cruises was quoted as $159 for the cabin. For a $3,000, per
person, Venice-Barcelona cruise, the commission for the cabin was
quoted as "about $499."
A reservationist explained, "We take off the air and the hotels,
and pay 10% on the cruise only."
Commented Hal Berns of Air and Sea Travel in Fort Lauderdale,
who also was the deputy chairman of ASTA's recently disbanded
cruise committee, "Agents need to be compensated adequately for
their time and effort in properly selling and handling a booking.
Any supplier that starts to take away compensation doesn't fly with
us."
Renaissance finds itself in the midst of an extraordinary fleet
build-up, in which it has ordered eight "R" class vessels of 684
passengers each, with delivery over a period of three years at a
cost of $1.44 billion.
Renaissance inaugurated the fourth entry, R4, at a ceremony in
nearby Port Everglades to which no agents or media representatives
were invited. R5 was delivered last month and will sail on its
maiden voyage from Athens to Istanbul on Feb. 12. The sixth and
seventh entries in the series also are slated to be delivered this
year.
Agents 'not interested in Renaissance' ads
Travel agents said the money Renaissance is spending on its ad
blitz will do nothing to change their minds about the cruise line
and would be better spent in paying higher commissions, eliminating
aggressive direct marketing to consumers and changing its no-refund
policy on deposits.
"We're not interested in Renaissance," said Jeff Abels, The
Travel Connection, Long Beach, Calif., and president of the Leisure
Travel Group consortium. "They've made it clear what their
strategies are and it looks like those policies are coming back to
bite them. We have plenty of other choices in small ship luxury
products."
Mike Caplin, president of the Coast Travel Group consortium,
Napa, Calif., called Renaissance's ad campaign "quite
puzzling."
"Do they think that this is some kind of positive [public
relations] that will make agents forget their policies? Are they
playing mind games with the industry?" Caplin said the only type of
ad campaign that would work is one detailing changes in Renaissance
policies.
Dave Parkinson, executive director of Travel Designs, Santa
Clara, Calif., said he believes the cruise line is undertaking the
ad campaign "because they realize they will have problems filling
their three new ships. The future doesn't look too rosy for them
without agents. But as far as I'm concerned they have to change
their refund policy before we would consider them as a
supplier."
"What a stupid idea," said Dale Colson, a cruise specialist at
Travelstar in Westport, Conn., after learning of Renaissance's move
to resume trade advertising. Colson said the company has done so
much to alienate travel agents that it will be difficult, if not
impossible, for the company to reestablish a relationship with
cruise sellers.
"I guess the ad[s] will not say, 'We're sorry and we want to be
friends again,'" said Colson. "If they're trying to woo the trade
back, that won't do it. Maybe they're noticing their ships aren't
as full as they used to be. Perhaps [agents] served a purpose after
all."
Keith Taylor, owner of Pelican Travel, Concord, Calif., said he
would recommend to Renaissance that the best strategy to attract
agents would be to send cruise line sales reps to agency offices to
personally meet and outline new, pro-agent policies.
"Just putting out this kind of advertising is not going to
work," he said.
Laura del Rosso and Brian Major contributed to this
report.