Do you get the feeling universal is one step ahead of Disney

[imperius]

That's not Universals fault that it just an example of how stupid the public can be sometimes. As far as park confusion is concerned, all the promotion in the world doesn't make the public any smarter. I have heard so many people looking for or commenting on things that the saw at Disney that were either in Universal or Sea World or Bush Gardens.

Disney didn't help by having Disney/MGM studios. Very few people are savvy about movie studios. The may like a movie but you never hear them say... That MGM movie was great. They don't really connect a movie with a specific studio. Having the Disney/MGM tended to confuse people that weren't fully versed on that stuff so when they heard Universal mentioned they just assumed it was in Disney. Not really lack of branding just lack of working knowledge. I suspect most of us fall into that category especially if we don't spend a lot of time in Theme Parks.

Yeah this has 0 to do with "lack of branding." Universal does great with that and Harry Potter. Tons of billboards, commercials, Comcast vans, and so on telling you where it is. It's just the general public is dumb.

 

[Willmark]

I don't know if they are ahead as I haven't gone yet (next trip we will). What Universal has done IMO is to get Disney of their butts as they had been sitting on from 2004-2012.

 

[Communicora]

Yeah this has 0 to do with "lack of branding." Universal does great with that and Harry Potter. Tons of billboards, commercials, Comcast vans, and so on telling you where it is. It's just the general public is dumb.

That's not how marketing works. If the public doesn't get your message, it's on you not them. The branding and marketing of their parks is something they could improve on. Disney has that nailed.

 

[Seabasealpha1]

The better question might be whether Disney has these train wrecks because they've been so complacent for some time up until recently...and to some extent even now...

They do seem to have some kind of hang up on IP's....which I find very annoying...

 

[Eric H]

Whether Universal is "ahead" of Disney is a matter of perspective I think. The entire Harry Potter experience is simply unbeatable in my opinion. Between the rides, the shops and the restaurants, it's an incredibly immersive environment. That being said, Disney as a whole has a more polished experience overall. Disney flows well from one area to the next while Universal just feels like a bunch of cool stuff tossed together.

I think if you have younger kids then Disney is a far better choice for you. Once the kids get a little older then there is not much appeal there anymore and Universal is a better option.