Bob Chapek named new Parks and Resorts Chairman

Sage of Time

Well-Known Member
Nor am I. There's a faint glimmer of hope that he can bring about some small changes of the guest experience.... like rebuilding the strategy of making life long, returning guests over squeezing their wallet in a vise... but Im not optimistic.
I'd be happy with just getting marketing that differentiates the parks. Make EPCOT, EPCOT. Make it different from the rest of the parks. Make brands that are different from all the others. Less synergy that relies on what they already have.

Just as an example.
 

PhotoDave219

Well-Known Member
I'd be happy with just getting marketing that differentiates the parks. Make EPCOT, EPCOT. Make it different from the rest of the parks. Make brands that are different from all the others. Less synergy that relies on what they already have.

Just as an example.

The idea of "OneDisney" was something that just came out of marketing and wall street buzzwords (IMO).... it was trendy. So they copied it, regardless of the consequences.

Then again I suppose they dont teach consequences in MBA classes.
 

Sage of Time

Well-Known Member
The idea of "OneDisney" was something that just came out of marketing and wall street buzzwords (IMO).... it was trendy. So they copied it, regardless of the consequences.

Then again I suppose they dont teach consequences in MBA classes.
Nope. Just that the consequence of HIGHER PROFITS FOR THIS QUARTER are vital.
Maybe he'll break the mold and find a way to do that without relying on the same old BS pixie dust method.
 

PhotoDave219

Well-Known Member
Nope. Just that the consequence of HIGHER PROFITS FOR THIS QUARTER are vital.
Maybe he'll break the mold and find a way to do that without relying on the same old BS pixie dust method.

Just so nobody is mistaken, I'm all for higher profits. I'm all for record-breaking profits every single quarter.

I just think there's a more effective way to do it over a longer term scale that brings much more satisfaction and enjoyment to the guest base as a whole.
 

hopemax

Well-Known Member
the frozen merch sure isnt moving, all that stuff is crammed into a shop in Animal Kingdom, and a outside cart, and of course in Norway and from what I have seen in all my visits no one is buying any of it, its getting bypassed and skipped over. It seems very overstocked. I think the fad is starting to fade. merch wise.

Well, at this point much of the merchandise selection is the same stuff they've had since the movie originally came out. Stuff that Frozen fans either already bought, or already rejected. And much of the "new" stuff is the same stock as the Disney Store, so people bought it at home. That's why I say what the parks are selling is lowest denominator and uninspired.
 

PhotoDave219

Well-Known Member
T H I S.

Well said, sir.

Those of us that have been dumped into the "doom and gloom" category, people are missing that we want the same thing everyone else does - we want the Walt Disney World resort to be the ultimate theme park destination with parks that blow everyone else's away. (Not to speak for @WDW1974 or @ParentsOf4 but I think they'd agree)

I think the best way of doing that is through long term investing and expanding in such a way where things are kept fresh and new and the existing classic attractions are kept in tip-top shape. Yes, quarterly numbers are important but the ultimate end goal is to attract new guests and KEEP THEM COMING BACK. Yes, its simple and yes, its basic drug dealer marketing but you always want them coming back. You want them hooked. You want them to have a fantastic time and feel they got a good deal for their money so they come back. You want the long con.

And to be fair, the 12-18 month promotions coming out of Parks and Resorts have been just horrid since YOAMD. Magical Gatherings was very nice and simple and it worked, especially on the heels of 100 years of magic. This whole "Show your Disney Side" just reeks of desperation.
 

Sage of Time

Well-Known Member
Those of us that have been dumped into the "doom and gloom" category, people are missing that we want the same thing everyone else does - we want the Walt Disney World resort to be the ultimate theme park destination with parks that blow everyone else's away. (Not to speak for @WDW1974 or @ParentsOf4 but I think they'd agree)

I think the best way of doing that is through long term investing and expanding in such a way where things are kept fresh and new and the existing classic attractions are kept in tip-top shape. Yes, quarterly numbers are important but the ultimate end goal is to attract new guests and KEEP THEM COMING BACK. Yes, its simple and yes, its basic drug dealer marketing but you always want them coming back. You want them hooked. You want them to have a fantastic time and feel they got a good deal for their money so they come back. You want the long con.

And to be fair, the 12-18 month promotions coming out of Parks and Resorts have been just horrid since YOAMD. Magical Gatherings was very nice and simple and it worked, especially on the heels of 100 years of magic. This whole "Show your Disney Side" just reeks of desperation.
Again, agreed. I'm often lambasted for WOW HATING DISNEY SO MUCH when in reality, I'm just as much a fan of the place... I just want to see their modus operandi become better and more nuanced and more subtle than the desperate pixie dust crap we get now.

Unique things are cool.
 

BrerJon

Well-Known Member
And to be fair, the 12-18 month promotions coming out of Parks and Resorts have been just horrid since YOAMD. Magical Gatherings was very nice and simple and it worked, especially on the heels of 100 years of magic. This whole "Show your Disney Side" just reeks of desperation.

Disney has become an Ouroboros. What was once 'come to Disney because you'll experience things you can't anywhere else' has become 'come to Disney because you love Disney'.
 

Goofyernmost

Well-Known Member
Those of us that have been dumped into the "doom and gloom" category, people are missing that we want the same thing everyone else does - we want the Walt Disney World resort to be the ultimate theme park destination with parks that blow everyone else's away. (Not to speak for @WDW1974 or @ParentsOf4 but I think they'd agree)

I think the best way of doing that is through long term investing and expanding in such a way where things are kept fresh and new and the existing classic attractions are kept in tip-top shape. Yes, quarterly numbers are important but the ultimate end goal is to attract new guests and KEEP THEM COMING BACK. Yes, its simple and yes, its basic drug dealer marketing but you always want them coming back. You want them hooked. You want them to have a fantastic time and feel they got a good deal for their money so they come back. You want the long con.

And to be fair, the 12-18 month promotions coming out of Parks and Resorts have been just horrid since YOAMD. Magical Gatherings was very nice and simple and it worked, especially on the heels of 100 years of magic. This whole "Show your Disney Side" just reeks of desperation.
Surprisingly, I agree with what you are saying. What I do find to be, over the top, tedious is that constant need to be critical of absolutely everything. The credibility of the argument starts to get pretty cloudy. What I tried to do on my last trip was to blank out my preconceived notions and just observe. Not just what I saw, but, how I thought first timers were seeing it. I tried to disconnect myself from what WDW was or wasn't in the 80's because that really doesn't matter anymore. This is 2015 and 1980 is not returning, but, if we take a couple of seconds and really look at what is there, it is still pretty damm impressive.

If we don't take into consideration that fact that our favorite fantasy kingdom exists right in the middle of the real world, we cannot understand that things that happen in the real world will leak into our fantasy. We may feel that the creative concept was much better back then, but, we also have to understand that those days of Walt and the nine old men are gone and isn't likely to return. It took 1901 years in recorded time travel to get the one Walt Disney. Can we realistically expect another just 50 years after he left us?

Can we look at what is there and see something that visually is so much better. The buildings, although older, look better now then they did 40 years ago. We may not like what is inside them, but, aesthetically it is amazing. The landscaping, in spite of a few removed trees and, god forbid, different colored pavement is far more spectacular now then it was then. The character depictions (costumes) are of a quality now that they never came near back then.

That all said, I am not about to forgive them for empty past attractions, restaurants, etc. That is inexcusable and shows a real sense of leaders not only not being able to lead, but, having no clue as to what is psychologically important to the customer. (Guest is an unreal term, I have never charged a guest to come and see me.) The current obsession with Iger and his great cover up, the motive of which, if true, is nothing more then suggestive speculation. Even if true, if that is how business has to be done in China, what do we care. That is Iger and Company's quagmire. China is not the United States, but, I'm sure if anyone bothered to look deeply in business practices here, a whole lot of palm greasing happens as well.

Now let's look at things in the business world that would be different now. If you were a young educated, bright person with or without a Masters Degree and you had to decide what was a solid business based on just financial facts, you would also see stuff that looks really good in the spreadsheet. They don't know about how much more inspirational EPCOT Ctr. was then as opposed to today, but, they would see that it is drawing in a whole hell of a lot more money then it did then and it doesn't appear to be letting up. Now, ideologically, we can shun that idea as being short termed all day, but, it isn't anymore solid then the spreadsheet. In fact, the spreadsheet would be more credible because apparently that change has not hurt Disney at all, but, has actually, on paper, enhanced it. We can talk about how terrible WDW has become until we are blue, but, as long as people come pouring through the gates at this rate, it will be ignored.

At any rate, there is hope that the message that they cannot remain stagnant forever has gotten through, just based on the current upgrading activity in all the parks, even to a small degree, in Epcot. Oh, and btw, Show Your Disney Side had a much more positive impact then we give it credit for. We may not like it or think it's lame (actually, I do like it) but, that doesn't automatically mean that it is good or bad.
 
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Goofyernmost

Well-Known Member
Disney has become an Ouroboros. What was once 'come to Disney because you'll experience things you can't anywhere else' has become 'come to Disney because you love Disney'.
That's why I always went and I can still experience things that I can't anywhere else.
 

BrerJon

Well-Known Member
What I tried to do on my last trip was to blank out my preconceived notions and just observe. Not just what I saw, but, how I thought first timers were seeing it.

I'm really going to try this on my next trip. On my last I made the mistake of doing Diagon Alley first, so ended up comparing everything in WDW to that, and it was also my first experience of MyMagic+ which seemed to throw obstacles in my way at every opportunity, so that didn't help either. But on my next trip there will be zero new to experience, and I'll be with a first timer, so I'm going to try to see the 'same-old' through new eyes, and also try not compare it to Universal as poor old Disney always comes off worse in that battle for me.
 

PhotoDave219

Well-Known Member
Again, agreed. I'm often lambasted for WOW HATING DISNEY SO MUCH when in reality, I'm just as much a fan of the place... I just want to see their modus operandi become better and more nuanced and more subtle than the desperate pixie dust **** we get now.

Unique things are cool.

I don't hate Disney.

I hate their attitudes. Meaning that they're no longer demanding to be the best. They're fine with "good enough".... And that's just not the Disney I was raised with.
 

PhotoDave219

Well-Known Member
Surprisingly, I agree with what you are saying. What I do find to be, over the top, tedious is that constant need to be critical of absolutely everything. The credibility of the argument starts to get pretty cloudy. What I tried to do on my last trip was to blank out my preconceived notions and just observe. Not just what I saw, but, how I thought first timers were seeing it. I tried to disconnect myself from what WDW was or wasn't in the 80's because that really doesn't matter anymore. This is 2015 and 1980 is not returning, but, if we take a couple of seconds and really look at what is there, it is still pretty damm impressive.

If we don't take into consideration that fact that our favorite fantasy kingdom exists right in the middle of the real world, we cannot understand that things that happen in the real world will leak into our fantasy. We may feel that the creative concept was much better back then, but, we also have to understand that those days of Walt and the nine old men is gone and isn't likely to return. It took 1901 years in recorded time travel to get the one Walt Disney. Can we realistically expect another just 50 years after he left us?

Can we look at what is there and see something that visually is so much better. The buildings, although older, look better now then they did 40 years ago. We may not like what is inside them, but, aesthetically it is amazing. The landscaping, in spite of a few removed trees and, god forbid, different colored pavement is far more spectacular now then it was then. The character depictions (costumes) are of a quality now that they never came near back then.

That all said, I am not about to forgive them for empty past attractions, restaurants, etc. That is inexcusable and shows a real sense of leaders not only not being able to lead, but, having no clue as to what is psychologically important to the customer. (Guest is an unreal term, I have never charged a guest to come and see me.) The current obsession with Iger and his great cover up, the motive of which, if true, is nothing more then suggestive speculation. Even if true, if that is how business has to be done in China, what do we care. That is Iger and Company's quagmire. China is not the United States, but, I'm sure if anyone bothered to look deeply in business practices here, a whole lot of palm greasing happens as well.

Now let's look at things in the business world that would be different now. If you were a young educated, bright person with or without a Masters Degree and you had to decide what was a solid business based on just financial facts, you would also see stuff that looks really good in the spreadsheet. They don't know about how much more inspirational EPCOT Ctr. was then as opposed to today, but, they would see that it is drawing in a whole hell of a lot more money then it did then and it doesn't appear to be letting up. Now, ideologically, we can shun that idea as being short termed all day, but, it isn't anymore solid then the spreadsheet. In fact, the spreadsheet would be more credible because apparently that change has not hurt Disney at all, but, has actually, on paper, enhanced it. We can talk about how terrible WDW has become until we are blue, but, as long as people come pouring through the gates at this rate, it will be ignored.

At any rate, there is hope that the message that they cannot remain stagnant forever has gotten through, just based on the current upgrading activity in all the parks, even to a small degree, in Epcot. Oh, and btw, Show Your Disney Side had a much more positive impact then we give it credit for. We may not like it or think it's lame (actually, I do like it) but, that doesn't automatically mean that it is good or bad.

I'm actually looking forward to going back after a hiatus. I want to be able to walk around with that wide eyed but what I meant of somebody who has never experienced it before… I miss the magical feeling the place would give me.

And I want that back.
 

hpyhnt 1000

Well-Known Member
And to be fair, the 12-18 month promotions coming out of Parks and Resorts have been just horrid since YOAMD. Magical Gatherings was very nice and simple and it worked, especially on the heels of 100 years of magic. This whole "Show your Disney Side" just reeks of desperation.

I'd even throw YOAMD into that horrid mix. Terrible decorations, completely pointless reason for its existence, and an arbitrary system where only a select few actually experienced what the celebration was about. But separately, notice how all of the most recent promotions have put the onus on guests to do something?

Celebrate Today - What thing are you going to celebrate at a Disney park?
Let the Memories Begin - Use Disney parks to make memories!
Show Your Disney Side - Use a stupid hashtag or post an Instagram pic of you doing something Disneyish.

And to add insult to injury, all of these fake "celebrations" came at a time when there were actual REAL milestones to celebrate at WDW. Epcot's 25th anniversay, Animal Kingdom's 10th, MGM/Hollywood Studios' 25th - these have all happened in the last 7 years. These were real things to celebrate and all they got was a day where you could buy a limited edition pin, some overpriced cupcakes, and watch a few fireworks get tossed into the sky.
 

The Visionary Soul

Well-Known Member
You all seem to fail to realize that the problem isn't in the marketing celebrations themselves, it's the fact that they continue to be marketed after you are already at WDW. There is absolutely no reason to see anything to do with "Show your Disney side" inside WDW. That money would be better spent to market other Disney related brands like Marvel or ABC. The bottom line is that unless it is a "year" based celebration like 2000 or 25th Anniversary or 100 Years of Magic, there should be no additional marketing once you are already in the parks. In fact, I remember people being extremely angry when they had decorated the monorails in Tinker Bell barf for the Year of a Million Dreams. It was just a waste of money.
 

Goofyernmost

Well-Known Member
I'm actually looking forward to going back after a hiatus. I want to be able to walk around with that wide eyed but what I meant of somebody who has never experienced it before… I miss the magical feeling the place would give me.

And I want that back.
This may sound lame, but, it is simply a matter of downplaying the negative and just enjoying what you see, not comparing it. As an individual, I like to feel that I can be objective about what I like and dislike and focus mostly on what I like. It's not like I have any personal power to change anything anyway and I think that can be safely said about just about everyone one of us.
 

Sage of Time

Well-Known Member
I don't hate Disney.

I hate their attitudes. Meaning that they're no longer demanding to be the best. They're fine with "good enough".... And that's just not the Disney I was raised with.
You keep saying the truth, tonight. I don't hate them, either. Far from it. I am a fan. I will probably always be a fan. I want to see them do great.
 

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