Check out this great recap of the Vh1 Best Cruise Ever, shot and edited by Cole Cassell, featuring photos from Will Byington:

Vh1 Best Cruise Ever Recap

Enjoy the long weekend folks, we’ll see you next week!

-Steve

We couldn’t afford traditional advertising (TV, Radio, Print, Billboards etc) for our events when we started in 2002, so we believed our best alternative was to build a strategy of blowing people’s minds with “world class” service. We felt that “great service” would result in our guests coming back and bringing friends with them.

We quickly realized that you can only hold the door for people so well and be so nice on the phone and it appeared that we could only demonstrate that we were committed to being the best in the world at delivering excellent service when a crisis presented itself. After a few crisis scenarios occurred, where we were against the wall and managed to battle through it, we discovered that we were causing most of the crisis by not preparing properly.

It was a true dilemma and we actually considered preparing less so something would occur and our guests would witness us go to the ends of the earth to solve it. We determined that we would all die from stress if we took that path.

Our Three Approaches

Last week, we celebrated our 24th full ship charter and our 105th day at sea as a company. Even though we prepare much better than we did before, it doesn’t always go as expected.  I found myself face to face with a guest this weekend and as they were talking, I was assessing which type of opportunity this was going to be.

It usually comes down to one of three approaches:

1. We screwed up and it was time to “Make It Right”
2. We weren’t clear and there was a need to “Hold the Line”
3. Things were going as expected but there was an opportunity to go “Above & Beyond”

In our experience, all three present unique opportunities to create a raving fan.

Making It Right

Our philosophy on “Making It Right” is to apologize for not doing what we said we would do, correct the situation and request an opportunity to do something for them to let them know we are committed to exceeding their expectations. Last week, we accidentally delivered a guitar signed by Kid Rock to the wrong cabin. When we realized our mistake, we apologized profusely and assured the guest we would be more careful in the future.

There was only one guitar so while we had to get the guitar into the hands of the rightful owner, we were able to get an event poster autographed by Kid Rock for the guest who had errantly received the guitar.

Holding The Line

“Holding the Line” is probably the most challenging one for us. It usually involves a guest questioning a policy and us defending it. A common “Hold the Line” opportunity lately is defending our position on not offering guests who purchase the nicest cabins on the ship special privileges. Something about the way society has trained us to treat customers who buy our most expensive products differently, contradicts the laws of communities.

It usually ends up being a great opportunity to share our philosophy on why we don’t endorse the acronym “V.I.P.” How can we build a community where everyone feels equal and celebrated if we acknowledge a certain group differently?

Above and Beyond

Going “Above and Beyond” is the most fun for me by far. On the Kid Rock Cruise, bad weather forced us to change our destination from Grand Cayman to the Bahamas. This was of no consequence to anyone except for the couple who had planned on getting married in Grand Cayman and had family flying to be a part of it. We set out on a mission and enlisted Carnival and Kid Rock to assist us in getting this nice couple married. They not only got married in the Bahamas, but Kid Rock posed as the “Best Man” (see above).

Not sure what they had planned for the Grand Cayman ceremony but I am pretty sure this topped it.

I believe that the way you handle these opportunities defines you as a company and a person. Sometimes when I’m in a situation with a guest, I remind them that if we did everything perfect; you would never get to know us.

So the next time you end up in one of these scenarios with us, just know that we are anxious to show you what we are made of.

Andy

Sixthman TV is back!

If you’ve been on a Sixthman event in 2010, you probably had the opportunity to slap hands with with a Sixthman employee while walking on board.  Ever wondered how this process came about?  Well, wonder no more!

Sixthman TV – Evolution of the High Five

Happy Friday everybody!  Catch you on the flip side.

-Steve

Want to have new Sixthman articles and videos delivered to your inbox? Sign up to receive regular updates via Email or RSS Feed!

We’re back! We survived!

The first half of the 2010 cruise season is in the books.

In case you missed out on all the action while we were out at sea, here’s a look back at all the blogs that were written:

• I Was Wrong… – By Tiffany
• Attention Up-And-Coming Whipper-snappers! – By Calli
• House Guests - By Melissa
• Memory Lane – By Becki
• The 50s and 60s are Back! – By Mike
• Malt Shop Memories – Starting Day 2 – By Lisa
• Malt Shop Memories Day 1 – How We Doin? – By Steve
• The Season Finale – By Steve

Next week the Sixthman blog will return to our regularly scheduled programming, and this Friday we’ll be back with the next episode of Sixthman TV!

-Steve

Dear Malt Shop Memories Cruisers –

Because Sixthman is a culture of accountability, I’ve got to hold myself accountable for the following presumption:

I thought you would be in bed by Midnight. Every night. Without fail.

Way to go above and beyond proving me wrong.

I’ve experienced shows from musicians that my Grandma Evelyn use to tell me about when I was little, danced in the disco with a nice couple from Michigan who just wanted to teach me a couple steps, laughed along with Lesley Gore’s great words of advice in the Q&A session, enjoyed reliving some of your favorite memories from your childhood, helped give you the Prom that some of you never had, introduced you to some of your teen idols face to face, and experienced this event through the eyes of a group of people I surely won’t be forgetting anytime soon.

This experience has made me a better staff member, more appreciative of the music by which all of today’s music was founded on, challenged me to think beyond what we’ve done and go a step beyond into what we will eventually become as a company, and given me the greatest gift of being able to connect with a generation that I had not really had any sort of grasp on before.

It has been a pleasure, Malt Shop Cruisers. Your stories, laughs, genuine feedback, and desire to become a community that we can be a part of is something I respect and am so happy I was a part of this year. Welcome to the Sixthman family. I can’t wait to see you again soon… with better ‘50s and ‘60s dance moves. Promise. Hold me accountable.

Thanks for the memories,

-Tiff

This is a guest post from Sixthman team member Calli, head usher on board the Malt Shop Memories Cruise.  Take it away Calli!

I have had the distinct honor on the Malt Shop Memories Cruise of being the head usher along with the incomparable Dave Scruggs in the Main Room, which basically means that the Paris Lounge has become my home away from home for the last four days. We’ve had a center floor seat for all of our headlining shows and it has been utterly fantastic!

The music that was produced in the 50s was so good and so much of it is dear to my heart having grown up with a mother and grandmother who played these oldies all the time. While cleaning the house, while running errands, or during our family dinner parties. My personal favorite was always Ricky Nelson. Sadly, he passed way too early.

I want to talk a little bit about Little Anthony and the Imperials.

I’ve seen this show twice now, once on Friday and once again last evening. I’m not exaggerating when I say that this man “brings it” like no other artist I’ve seen on any of our cruises. He is 70 years old. Thing about that for a moment. I’ve been singing his praises in our nightly staff meeting over and over. If you are a young artist working on honing in on and perfecting your craft, get thee to an Imperials show, stat. Watch how it’s done. Watch someone who’s been doing it since the age of 15 who still brings every bit of his heart and soul on a stage.

A lot of our staff have gotten to usher in the Paris Lounge each night, but we’ve been doing rotating shifts so many of my teammates haven’t gotten to see this performance. I decided after he ended his show last evening (with a version of a Police song that dare I say, wipes the floor on any other artist that has performed it) that I’m going to get on the radio tonight alert all staff to come to main room and watch this final number. Being that he is closing down the Paris Lounge on this cruise, this may be the last time any of us has the opportunity to see it. I can’t think of a better way to go out.

I am more of a fan of the Imperials now than I ever was before. This live show is a sight to behold and a true honor for any music fan. So whatever you’re doing tonight Sixthman Staffers, at 10:50, get your fannies to the Paris Lounge, stat.

You can thank me at the staff meeting.

-Calli

The Carnival Inspiration is beginning to feel like a home away from home, like your vacation house. Even though you spend just a few weeks out of the year there, you know where everything is, see familiar faces and get the same excited feeling every time you plan a trip back. This year we brought some new visitors to our vacation home, the Malt Shop Memories Cruise! And like a good host, especially one entertaining on vacation, we wanted to show our company the best time we’re capable of showing them.

Bringing a new guest into your home always has a fair share of exciting and anxious feelings; almost like the emotions you feel when you meet your new roommate freshman year. You hope you get along. You hope you have things in common. You hope you meet their friends and create a bigger group of friends. You hope you create memories that will last your lifetime.. You ultimately hope you were what they were hoping for. I REALLY hope we did this for our new friends this week and that they’ll go home with excitement and stories to share.  And most importantly I hope they leave us wanting to come visit us again, wanting to be our roommates’ sophomore year.

Tomorrow is Sunday, our last day on Malt Shop Memories Cruise 2010, we’re over the “getting to know you” part, and ready to spend the day with some great new friends before packing up the house. What a vacation we’ve taken together! Here’s to awesome houseguests and the luck of getting roommates that have the potential to be friends for life.

From Little Anthony and Frankie Avalon to Gino Monopoli and The Fireflies, the performers on Malt Shop Memories are taking our guests back to a time of innocence and youth. I got to witness the nostalgia at Lesley Gore’s show in the Candlelight Lounge last night.

It was Lesley’s first show on the cruise, and the room was so packed that we had to close doors and monitor the capacity for fire safety reasons. People were standing in every corner of the lounge trying to catch a glimpse of a star from their childhood. She played her biggest hits, “Judy’s Turn To Cry,” “It’s My Party,” and closed with “You Don’t Own Me.” At the end of “It’s My Party,” she had the entire room singing along with her. It was one of those unparalleled moments we love on Sixthman cruises.

After the show I talked to a guest who said she had grown up listening to Lesley’s music. She said, “You always felt like she must have a spy at your school because she was singing about exactly what was happening to you.” It made me realize that these guests don’t just LIKE all this music, they LIVED it. It’s deeply personal to them; they want every chance they can get to see the artists perform the songs that were the soundtrack to their lives.

We are changing times and venues for the artists to help folks do more and see more, and it’s making them happy. I love that we are able to give our guests the best vacation possible, and now that we’re learning more about our Malt Shop Memories cruisers, we can make next year’s event even better, and help people relive their formative years.

Who was the most poignant artist from your childhood?

In case you haven’t heard yet, there is a new member to the Sixthman team:  Malt Shop Mike.

Malt Shop Mike is a blast from the past and has taken over the ship as a “greaser.”  He joined the team on Thursday as the ship set sail and “regular” Mike transported back to the ’50s & ‘60s.

Today was Sock Hop day on the Malt Shop Memories Cruise and everyone was dressed up.

Just before the sock hop got started, everyone was up on Lido Deck watching the hula-hoop contest.  I seriously cannot believe how long people can hoop for!  We finally had to make folks show us their best dance moves, while still hula-hooping, or they would have gone ALL DAY!  Our host, Jerry Blavat, helped pick a winner and then kicked off the sock hop, spinning those great oldies.

EVERYONE was dressed up!  Poodle skirts and saddle shoes were everywhere (even on a guy).  And the rest of the “greacers” joined Malt Shop Mike with their slicked back hair, rolled up jeans, and leather jackets.  It was full tilt boogie up on Lido!

This crowd absolutely loves to dance!

Not only do they love to dance, but they are really good at it too!  They put my generation to shame (I’m 25) when it comes to impressing your girl and twirling her around the dance floor.  I stood there with envy watching couples immediately look 50 years younger as they danced together.  The ‘50s and ‘60s were alive again.  The dancing continues until early hours of the morning in the Doo Wop Disco or anywhere there is music playing.

There is nothing I enjoy more than 2000 people having the time of their lives.

The Malt Shop Memories Cruise is a first time event for Sixthman and Time Life, and having the opportunity to WOW a new community of people and welcome them into their new family is a special thing.  I’m so excited to see what the next couple of days bring, but for now I’m going to join my new Sixthman family in sunny Cozumel.

-Malt Shop Mike

There’s two things that are very apparent here.  1.  As Steve said, this is definitely a Sixthman cruise.  2. This has become a bit of a family reunion not only for him, but for many of the Sixthman team.

Why this is apparently a Sixthman Cruise:

We pride ourselves on bringing together like-minded communities to have one amazing experience.  And the Malt Shop Memories Cruise is awesome.  Seeing all these people relive the memories of their teenage years through music is a site for sore eyes.  The apparel is spot on.  The dance moves are sweet.  The smiles are endless.

Why this is apparently a Sixthman Family Reunion:

If you’ve met us you know that our generation isn’t well represented here, but our parents definitely are.  So, we were able to invite them on a cruise where they get to experience all that we do.  They get to enjoy the music, and we get to know that they are proud of us and the work we do.  In fact, one specific Sixthman employee (Becki) was told by her parents that they were enjoying themselves so much that all her childhood sins were forgiven.

So, Sixthman makes miracles.  That’s right miracles.  One amazing experience for 2,000 people.  And Becki was forgiven her sins.  And there were a lot of sins people.

-Lisa