MS open Saturday or Sunday, what ya think?

[Scott H]

Just sitting here wishing I could call MS to change a reservation, Thinking it would be nice if they were open.

I know there would be additional cost to us the members, but would be nice.

 

[tinkgrl]

Scott,

I think that one Saturday a month wouldn't be a bad idea.

Ms. Sparrow aka Allison

 

[kathleena]

I'm not willing to pay for it. Waiting until Monday is fine.

How about they are open just for those who want it and they can pay an additional fee when/if they use it - kind of like extra T&T or cleaning. That way if you don't have to use it, you don't have to pay?

 

[Mary Anne]

I'm thinking that 11 and 7 months prior to peak periods, Like Christmas, Easter, Food and Wine, it should be open on a Saturday/Sunday at the appropriate mark, like they did for the special Disney Cruise. They opened on a Saturday just to book that. Probably 75% of the year it is OK to have to wait till Monday but those peak periods I think have some extra time for booking.

Remember, that the MS times have been set the same since the beginning (somebody feel free tocorrect me if I am wrong). Now that there are more DVC hotels and more members, I think they should adjust somewhat.

Oh and online booking would be wonderful.... dreaming I know.

 

[Doctor P]

Yes, but use a 1-900 number only with a $10.00 per minute charge to recoup not only the cost of the service but recoup some other expenses, LOL.

 

[OneMoreTry]

I would be all for weekend hours!! I work long hours and have lots of other responsibilities during the week. It's difficult for me to find time to call. How about just Sat am? Or else stay open TWO or THREE nights per week instead of just one??

Don't tell me to email or fax. It ain't as good and you know it. (Sorry, getting a little defensive.)

I would settle for real time online access. How about just online CHAT?? That would work.

For those of you afraid of the one or two dollars it would add to your annual dues, you must not believe in karma.

 

[zcasper]

I second the online reservations.

Honestly, this isn't that hard to do. Don't get me wrong, I know it is not a trivial thing to do. I used to run a credit union's IT department and we had 30,000 members and we had an online banking system. It integrated with out back-end system in realtime and was very nice.

We probably paid $75,000 to get the system up and running and then $10,000/year to maintain it.

We depretiated our system over 3-5 years (3 years for hardware and 5 for the software). That would leave the cost right around $28,000/years (depreciation + maintenance).

If there were 90,000 members, we're talking less than $1/year to put a similar system in place. Sign me up - I'll put it in place if they want me to.

Now, there may some risks involved. Not finding an appropriate system that would integrate with Disney's system come to mind. But that's what consultants are fow. This may double, or even triple the cost.

I can still swing $3/year.

Where am I wrong here?

Zach

 

[lisareniff]

Yes! Open on Saturday!

I don't understand why it would cost that much more?? ...assuming you had enough more then enough calls during the 5 days. You would have the same call volume just spread over 6 days instead of 5. Yes, you would have to pay for heat and electricity for an extra day.

But... online would be better yet!!

 

[lisareniff]

OK, I just thought of a negative...
I would then have to call on Saturday for a day-by-day ressie! Now we get Sat. & Sun. off!

 

[DrTomorrow]

IMHO, the vast majority of DVC owners do not have the need to contact MS on weekends. There are just a few situations - 11/7 month windows on "busy weeks" and last minute / emergency changes - where immediacy is important. I'd support a 1-900 number that charged just enough to cover the extra costs.

As to zcasper's comment - well, we've bandied this about before (no shortage of us techie-types here on the DIS ) and, sadly, it just ain't as easy as it sounds. Not only is there the issue of integrating with other Disney systems (CRO, WDW-DINE, etc), but there's the incredibly complex set of transactions that need to be supported in an easy.to.use interface. The obvious set of variables: resort (including windows), room-type and date isn't too bad, but factor in that some folks have multiple contracts, need to specify that banked and/or stressed points be used, want to have linked reservations, transfer points to other accounts, etc., and it gets complex. Not intractable, but complex. Finally, there's the "whose gonna use it" factor. Yes, we here on the DIS are, by defintion, computer-aware, but can the same be said for most of the 90,000 owners? And even many DISers still like the comfort of talking to a human when making ressies, be it for DVC, air tickets or dining. Don't get me wrong; I'd LOVE it - just like I love CaskBill's DVC Planner. I just don't see it happening that quickly, particularly considering that DVC doesn't even seem to be able to handle simple tasks like mailing confirmation letters of newly made reservations....

Be well!

 

[kathleena]

I don't understand why it would cost that much more?? ...assuming you had enough more then enough calls during the 5 days. You would have the same call volume just spread over 6 days instead of 5. Yes, you would have to pay for heat and electricity for an extra day.
QUOTE]

Doesn't matter about the 6 days - it won't necessarily spread out. Would decrease call volume Monday the most, as weekend callers are mostly just calling on Monday. Maybe some effect on Friday, but the other days I can't see any effect at all. I'm certainly not going to think - hey it's Wed, but I can call Sat so I'll wait........

And to be open on Sat means more IT to support the staff at MS - usually expanded hours for a business partner means more work for other business partners too.

Of course, just my opinion here. Still think it's more expensive - staff, overhead, everything.

 

[DebbieB]

I second the online reservations.

Honestly, this isn't that hard to do. Don't get me wrong, I know it is not a trivial thing to do. I used to run a credit union's IT department and we had 30,000 members and we had an online banking system. It integrated with out back-end system in realtime and was very nice.

We probably paid $75,000 to get the system up and running and then $10,000/year to maintain it.

We depretiated our system over 3-5 years (3 years for hardware and 5 for the software). That would leave the cost right around $28,000/years (depreciation + maintenance).

If there were 90,000 members, we're talking less than $1/year to put a similar system in place. Sign me up - I'll put it in place if they want me to.

Now, there may some risks involved. Not finding an appropriate system that would integrate with Disney's system come to mind. But that's what consultants are fow. This may double, or even triple the cost.

I can still swing $3/year.

Where am I wrong here?

Zach

DVC is more complicated than you think, it's not like booking a regular room. Many members have multiple contracts with different use years, different resorts. Then you have borrowing, banking and points transfers. Member Services sometimes messes it up, can you imagine if members were doing it themselves? Many members do not have a good understanding of the points system. I was talking to a member services cm once when I was in FL and she said so many people lose points because they don't understand the system.

I would be in favor of staying open later on a couple nights per week but I think Saturday and Sunday would increase dues too much.

 

[jarestel]

I'm afraid I'd have to nix this idea too. I don't see the "bang for the buck" for most members, though I'm sure a small percentage would find this useful. The current e-mail ressie request is available for those who can't call during regular hours, and there really isn't a need ( just a desire ) for immediate confirmation in most cases, so it's a viable alternative to calling. I've used it before and it works fine.

We keep hearing that on-line booking is coming, so maybe that's the way to go. It doesn't really matter whether all members feel comfortable enough to use it or not, because the phone lines will still be in operation for those who end up in a multi-car pile up on the information superhighway. For those members who ARE able to navigate the highway, it will be like having their very own diamond lane.

 

[tjkraz]

Now, there may some risks involved. Not finding an appropriate system that would integrate with Disney's system come to mind. But that's what consultants are for.

So THAT'S what consultants are for!!

Seriously, though, I have to agree with the others who say that this is a little more complicated than it seems. Your post seems to imply that DVC should be able to dig-up and integrate some already-designed application to run the program. I don't think that's the case at all.

There are a lot of different variations to account for--people with multiple contracts, multiple Home resorts, multiple Use Years, banking points, borrowing points, transferring points, real-time integration with resort inventory, and so on. DVC has already said we will have SOME functionality by the end of the year, although the concensus seems to be that it will be limited to viewing current account info. Functional improvements will follow.

While the Internet is nothing new and there really isn't a good excuse for not having a system in place now, I think they made one big mistake: they totally ignored the Internet until about 12-18 mos ago. If they had started working on a system 4-5 years ago we'd probably be able to make on-line reservations now.

 

[bobbiwoz]

So far, I guess they've only been open on Saturdays for Members Cruises call in day.

I would vote for Saturday hours, I would use them.

Bobbi

 

[zcasper]

While the Internet is nothing new and there really isn't a good excuse for not having a system in place now, I think they made one big mistake: they totally ignored the Internet until about 12-18 mos ago. If they had started working on a system 4-5 years ago we'd probably be able to make on-line reservations now.

I understand everyone's statement here. I wasn't trying to oversimplify DVC's systems or policies but rather demonstrate that the costs would not be tremendous for the membership. Yea sure, I glossed over some big issues, but in today's society, control/monitoring of your assets via technology is almost a must.

Honestly though, I cannot think of another large business that does not perform some portion of their business over the Internet. Except DVC.

It sounds like tjkraz is right - they should have started 4-5 years ago like everyone else did.

Zach

p.s. Does anyone know if other timeshares have online bookings? How about Marriot's?

 

[Caskbill]

I don't think most members know just how large MS is. From discussions with staff I know they typically run 60 - 80 people answering phones. And during busy periods they'll have over 100 people manning the phone lines.

Let's just say we want 80 MS personnel on a Saturday. Assume they make $10.00/hour (I have no idea), so a Saturday is time and a half, or $15/hour. On top of that there's additional matching social security funds of about $1.12/hour. Throw in extra utilities for electricity, water, etc and perhaps we're up to $17/hour per employee. If 80 people worked 8 hours on a Saturday, it would cost us as members approximately $10,880 for the day.

And even with that, we'd hear people complain they're only open 8 hours, and not open at 7:00 pm on a Saturday night.

Now over time they would figure out the total daily manning requirements, but when you take 5 days worth of calls and spread them out over 6 days, you more often than not would just get more idle non-productive time, basically less efficiency.

Five days a week is just fine.

As to the question of on-line reservations, as has been discussed on this board in the past, such a system for DVC is considerably more complex than any on line banking system. DVC did announce that by December this year they will have the on-line reservation checking system. You will be able to log on, check your point balances, check your reservations, etc. It will be static only, that is you can see what's there. It will not be dynamic meaning you cannot actually do anything such as make a reservation. But who know, at least it's a first step.

 

[JudithM]

I'm not willing to pay for it. Waiting until Monday is fine.

I agree wholeheartedly! I am not willing to pay for it either.

 

[NMW]

I'd vote for Saturdays. Weekdays are busy with running my kids to school/preschool, etc. It would be nice to call MS on a Sat morning.

 

[lllovell]

Sales is open on Sat