One of my favorite topics.
Disney loyalty program is terrible. Quite possibly the worst for passengers of any loyalty program.
1) The program pits new customers against loyal customers for booking some of the best experiences, from itineraries and shore excursions to onboard activities. Yes, this is a perk for those who sail often, but Disney should provide these opportunities for everyone. Preferential booking has zero cost to
DCL and due to the restricted availability a lot of people like it. That's why they offer it. I think it is awful.
2) Using number of sailings rather than number of nights is outright silly. Yes, the per night cost is higher, but people book these back-to-back at discounts and get double credit for the same folks who book a more traditional seven night vacation. Again, favoring those who have the money to pay vs. families that are just trying to have a good vacation. Couple that with the longer trans-Atlantic and Panama Canal cruises, which while popular are not full sailings, and you have a bad decision made worse.
3) Not enough tiers. As was mentioned in the original post, there should be at least two more tiers, especially when they get the new ships.
My recommendations.
Add the two tiers the original poster suggested, but convert to number of nights, not sailings. DCL knows how many nights everyone has sailed, just convert it. If someone drops a level as a result, grandfather them in at their current level, but earning the next level requires them to make up the lost ground first.
Change the loyalty program from providing early bookings and instead offer a loyalty boarding order along along a special loyalty level booking number. Shorter hold times for those who have higher status (yes, this is easy to manage through very mature call center management software). This would still give customers preferential treatment, but anyone who choose to book early can. OK, I'll give you the early booking windows for new cruise dates, but not the early bookings for the sailing (e.g. shore excursions, specialty dining, etc.).
I like the other suggestions from the original post, but would add a "laundry credit" for the top tier. One free bag during the sailing or something like that at the full service laundry.
We are Gold right now and there just isn't much of an incentive to get to Platinum.