ACL Announces New Boat's Name

How original.............

*RE: 'New boat's name*

Hi, Sam & Steamboating colleagues:
Sam's quote "How original" right on. No doubt a team [With a healthy consulting retainer $$] from the advertising, marketing realms sat for hours hashing that one out. "Yes, but, but, c'mon gang, the name has to have universal appeal so we can sell it," I hear.

CUNARD LINE, as Frank knows, sticks mostly to the traditional names for their ships. What's in a name? Plenty. All one has to do is thrumb through Capt. Fred Way's PACKET DIRECTORY to find more than one name appropriate. *Now, what possible names would any of you on this web have suggested? Well, what do I know?

R. Dale Flick
Coal Haven Landing, Ohio River, Cincinnati.

R. Dale Flick;25510 wrote: Hi, Sam & Steamboating colleagues:
Sam's quote "How original" right on. No doubt a team [With a healthy consulting retainer $$] from the advertising, marketing realms sat for hours hashing that one out. "Yes, but, but, c'mon gang, the name has to have universal appeal so we can sell it," I hear.

CUNARD LINE, as Frank knows, sticks mostly to the traditional names for their ships. What's in a name? Plenty. All one has to do is thrumb through Capt. Fred Way's PACKET DIRECTORY to find more than one name appropriate. *Now, what possible names would any of you on this web have suggested? Well, what do I know?

R. Dale Flick
Coal Haven Landing, Ohio River, Cincinnati.

With all due respect and steamboatin' affection. Come On Guys. There's going to be at least one boat back on the river, taking pax, and employing river rats. Do we REALLY want to start getting wrapped around the axle on what they call her? Yes, we're all aware that the DQSC was the best in the business with the best boats, best crew, best pax, best beds, best salad forks, best ..... well you get the idea. But if those of us who made our living out there can get over it and look forward to what is shaping up to be an exciting future for riverboats and steamboats alike, why be a buzz kill?

Just askin', ok? :O)

*All in a name*

Hi, Paul:
Good point and I assure you my 'smirky' comment was all in good humor. At this stage of the game, with boats going one by one, a little humor is needed. No offense to the new ACL boat in the works and I wish them well. I note also much criticsm of the new boat's preceived very high cruise rates appealing to a decided 'niche market.'

I'm now closer to 70 than even 60 and was in/around/involved with the naming of the then new MISSISSIPPI QUEEN assisting in some way Betty Blake's proposal to name the boat. And there were some pretty good ones at the time. Betty and the company mailed out detailed opinion surveys {How many here received one or so involved other than those working for the company?} on not only a new boat name but what amenities people would like to see built in. The name MISSISSIPPI QUEEN chosen above all as, "It represented for marketing a wide appeal with logo/brand name recognition." It went hand-in-hand with my university training in Public Relations, Marketing, Advertising on the G.I. Bill. Betty and I were also then fellows of PRSA {Public Relations Society of America}. I had an application form and stopped in one day handing it to her. She looked close, puffed her cig and said, "Yeah, I'll join. Good to 'network' as much as possible." Betty was a member until falling ill, dying of cancer.

I recall the surveys returned in time with the vast majority voicing NO need for the swimming pool on the top deck. "Free Access walk around decks" for passengers appeared in most. The "Food Offerings" predominated with strong good ole' American cuisine with a flare with wine listings reflecting American vinters. "Entertainmment" also mentioned as being ranging for all tastes. I could go on and on but won't at this point.

The names for the boat offered mentioned nearly every major U.S. city on the rivers or leading river personalities, U.S. Presidents. Others were somewhat hokey but taken in the good faith they were offered. I recall one being MARY LETHA after Capt. Mary B. Greene and Letha C. Greene, though out of the company and sold at the time.
Well, again, what do I know?

R. Dale Flick
Coah Haven Landing, Ohio River, Cincinnati.

While the name seems appropriate, I hope the other rivers don't feel slighted! (smile) I'm just disappointed that they didn't use my suggestion of American Pride following in the footsteps of American Star, American Spirit and American Glory.

Well, I enjoy dreaming up boat names. My vision of a cheap passenger boat ended up with the name Mossbottom Queen. I often ask people who have been on cruises the name of their ship. They usually don't recall... So who cares, so what?

However, when someone who was helping us with advertising suggested that we change our steamboat's name from Graceful Ghost to a more generic Texas Star, even our competition thought it was a dumb idea. From thence on, we did our own PR.

*RE: 'Names/PR at work*

Hi, Lexie & Steamboating colleagues:
Lexie, you were right doing your own PR work. "Press agents...word spinners...idea doctors...propaganda," often applied to the somewhat foggy profession of PR practioners stemming from earlier days of advertising. Most in PR began in news press work or advertising. "Getting our side of the story out...damage control...sales/marketing...imaging" often applied. PR consultants often come at a high price One Pentagon 'word spin' I heard recently linked to air strikes in Lybia avoided the terms "weaponry...rockets etc." applying "Unique capabilities." Wall Street another example.

The profs at U.C. broke PR down in areas for either 'target/niche' markets or the general population. 1. Audience negative. 2. Audience positive. 3. Audience neutral/uncommitted. Advertising/PR practioners in government, business, media, publications, education etc. will spend endless hours around tables with 'Power Point' carefully scanning each letter, word, sentence, punctuation mark reading aloud to smooth out the message and the desired intent. Many good at their jobs as are the professional 'bean counters' we read so much about here. Betty Blake's PR billing statements broke all down to her hours, materials, photos, phone calls, consultation etc. PR, like law, can come with a rate up to $350, $500 per hour or more. It's around us all the time. Betty's work with the AVALON and DELTA QUEEN here focused on the then emerging concept of 'nostalgia' and it paid off well. Well, what do I know?

R. Dale Flick
Coal Haven Landing, Ohio River, Cincinnati.

Dale - That is absolutely correct. For someone who has been involved with Sales, Marketing and PR for the last quarter century, I can assure you that it is a correct assertion to make.

One of the things that I do in my freelance PR job is design campaign literature for political candidates. I don't know how many times I've had to read Frank Luntz "Words that Word" when designing literature, and how many candidates want to change the wording because they don't understand the way that voters receive those concepts.

Unfortunately for the steamboat industry, most of those consultants have never been aboard a vessel, nor do they understand the rich history and traditions that are associated with the river. Therefore, they don't understand why you would need to keep your previous name and go for something generic. A good PR person should also understand the marketplace of their clients. Most of the Madison Avenue ad guys fail to recognize this.

One of the first unwritten rules in sales and marketing is to be authentic. You have to be yourself, and your product has to reflect the values of the company (or the company's owners). Too many today go for the high glitz and no substance approach. Avoid these kinds of people at all costs.

The QUEEN OF THE MISSISSIPPI has reached a new milestone in her construction. Looks like the hull and the first three decks are done in this picture. I am impressed with the lines of her bow. Just wish they had pics of her stern to show us at this point. Looking forward to more construction pictures as they become available!

New sternwheeler reaches construction milestone

?

Where do you see the 3 decks? All I see is a bow section on wheels in the picture from that link/

LOL MOSSBOTTOM QUEEN! Lexie I LOVE that name! As soon as I read that I had visions of the old days up in the wheelhouse of the DQ with you between the sticks slapping your knee bent over laughing so hard at the names we would pick out for boats and the nicknames we would give people like the watchman we called "questions" and a certain Capt. we called cheese burger and well....."stuff like that".

I would post a copy of the brochure if I could find it. The captain's name is
Capt. E. Gotripp. And it goes on from there.

*ACL wins Alaska cruise contract*
Hi, Steamboating colleagues:
TRAVEL WEEKLY arrived today in a business E=Mail announcing that AMERICAN CRUISE LINE [ACL] has been awarded a contract to operate in Alaska's Glacier Bay National Park. The Guilford, Conn. based small-ship line offers 7 and 11 night cruises commencing in 2012. National Park Service rangers and Native Cultural interpreters will be on each cruise to provide narration and insights along with spotting wildlife. ACL also plans Juneau, Alaska to Seattle roundtrips. No listing of cruise rates in this report. ACL moving ahead with gusto.

Those of you who've cruised/visited Glacier Bay know of its pristine wilderness with glaciers down to the water. In the past environmental concerns sufraced over the impact of large liners, funnel gases, disturbing the wildlife, prop turbulence in the narrow fjords. With warmer earth temperatures many glaciers have 'migrated' back up the valleys compared to what I saw in 1974 and again in 1997, but still a fantastic sight.

R. Dale Flick in northern Michigan.

Well, at least the name doesn't start with M. Travis, that site won't come up for me.