Carnival Australia CEO: How we are leading with customer data

CEO of the cruise company talks about the role data is now playing in customer engagement and what she expects of her CMO

Ann Sherry, Carnival Australia
Ann Sherry, Carnival Australia

Carnival Australia is increasingly looking to digital channels and data as ways of improving customer engagement, says its CEO, Ann Sherry. She chats with CMO about how the cruise company is meeting modern consumer demands.

As a CEO, my view of marketing compared to a few years ago… has changed significantly. Digital channels have transformed the way marketing works and how to reach customers.

The skills and attributes I expect my marketing and customer chief to have… are an understanding of the customer, an ability to be flexible, and a strong connection to the market. I also want the CMO to be innovative, digital savvy and a great communicator.

Our plans for investing marketing dollars in the next 12 months… will include a significant increase in digital spend. Although we find traditional media like TV and press still offers great returns, we’re including more investment in social media and non-traditional mediums to engage with guests and potential guests.

Digital channels are facilitating the way our company communicates and positions products and services… but they’re not just marketing channels. Facebook is now one of our major customer service channels, not just for marketing. Booked guests are encouraged to join a virtual ‘roll call’ for their cruise in order to meet other guests on the same cruise, and we have a dedicated team in the call centre to service all pre-cruise requests via social media. Our pre-cruise email program also provides booked guests with relevant information related to their cruise at the right time, such as what to pack and a reminder to check-in and book their on-the-shore tours.

We’re harnessing customer data… in several ways. The customer demographic for every cruise departure now is analysed to understand the type of guests on-board. The programming of on-board activity schedules are then aligned to suit the guest demographic for that cruise, ensuring a great customer experience.

Looking at customer segmentation data differently has also enabled us to identify new groups of customers in order to drive growth in new segments of the market. For example, we identified a segment of our guests who preferred shorter duration cruises as well as cruising with a group and that insight drove the creation of our Seabreak and Main Event itineraries.

We are developing a business culture that is focused on customer centricity… by regularly inviting customers to internal forums to share ideas and feedback, including at our annual conference. We have personified our target customer and everyone knows her profile, and we all use her to validate our work. We also have a ‘voice of the customer report’ that is reviewed by everyone in the business.

The best piece of leadership advice I’ve been given… is don’t be afraid to try and fail, but learn from your mistakes so you don’t repeat them. If I could only hire one brand new employee tomorrow… I would look for a revenue scientist. I’d want someone who is a master of data analytics and knows how to reach customers.

About the company:

Carnival Australia is part of the Carnival Corporation and was established more than 80 years ago. The company’s cruise liner brands include Carnival Cruise Lines, Cunard, P&O and Princess Cruises, which represent more than 80 per cent of the A/NZ cruise market. The company is hoping to hit its target of 1 million cruise passengers a year in 2015 and generated total revenues of more than $15.8 billion in the 2014 financial year, including $2.097bn in Australia and Asia.

This article originally appeared in CMO magazine, Issue 2, 2015. To sign up for a complimentary subscription to our print title or digital edition, please visit: http://www.cmo.com.au/subscribe.

More CEOs talk about the role of marketing and customer engagement

Follow CMO on Twitter: @CMOAustralia, take part in the CMO Australia conversation on LinkedIn: CMO Australia, join us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CMOAustralia, or check us out on Google+: google.com/+CmoAu

Join the newsletter!

Or

Sign up to gain exclusive access to email subscriptions, event invitations, competitions, giveaways, and much more.

Membership is free, and your security and privacy remain protected. View our privacy policy before signing up.

Error: Please check your email address.
Show Comments

Latest Videos

More Videos

More Brand Posts

What are Chris Riddell's qualifications to talk about technology? What are the awards that Chris Riddell has won? I cannot seem to find ...

Tareq

Digital disruption isn’t disruption anymore: Why it’s time to refocus your business

Read more

Enterprisetalk

Mark

CMO's top 10 martech stories for the week - 9 June

Read more

Great e-commerce article!

Vadim Frost

CMO’s State of CX Leadership 2022 report finds the CX striving to align to business outcomes

Read more

Are you searching something related to Lottery and Lottery App then Agnito Technologies can be a help for you Agnito comes out as a true ...

jackson13

The Lottery Office CEO details journey into next-gen cross-channel campaign orchestration

Read more

Thorough testing and quality assurance are required for a bug-free Lottery Platform. I'm looking forward to dependability.

Ella Hall

The Lottery Office CEO details journey into next-gen cross-channel campaign orchestration

Read more

Blog Posts

Marketing prowess versus the enigma of the metaverse

Flash back to the classic film, Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. Television-obsessed Mike insists on becoming the first person to be ‘sent by Wonkavision’, dematerialising on one end, pixel by pixel, and materialising in another space. His cinematic dreams are realised thanks to rash decisions as he is shrunken down to fit the digital universe, followed by a trip to the taffy puller to return to normal size.

Liz Miller

VP, Constellation Research

Why Excellent Leadership Begins with Vertical Growth

Why is it there is no shortage of leadership development materials, yet outstanding leadership is so rare? Despite having access to so many leadership principles, tools, systems and processes, why is it so hard to develop and improve as a leader?

Michael Bunting

Author, leadership expert

More than money talks in sports sponsorship

As a nation united by sport, brands are beginning to learn money alone won’t talk without aligned values and action. If recent events with major leagues and their players have shown us anything, it’s the next generation of athletes are standing by what they believe in – and they won’t let their values be superseded by money.

Simone Waugh

Managing Director, Publicis Queensland

Sign in