MrPromey
Well-Known Member
They like to talk about how they're just adopting industry norms when they do crappy stuff (like back when they started charging for resort parking before backing off when they realized people weren't dumb enough to accept that when they were already paying a crazy premium for the resort) but this kind of move is more like what they do in the cell industry (a group consumers so love, right?) where they change things around to make it difficult to compare prices either to previous pricing or those of competitors.It’s actually a miracle their attendance hasn’t dipped more than it has…now that I think about it the way you lay it out.
Unrelated story: anyone try to buy a car lately. I haven’t…but I talked to a few at work that have…and the feedback is all the same: “they’re nuts…they want 50% more than the price 2 years ago”
I get the same comment from some of the same people about wdw.
It’s no longer: “they’ll pay it…” that looks all refined and cosmopolitan
Now it’s: “let’s see if they’ll pay it?”
Back before he completely lost his mind, the creator of Dilbert, Scott Adams, coined the term confusopoly and it applies, here.
The problem with this strategy is it only works when people don't want to pay more but can afford to - at least for the long-term.
Disney's approach avoids the sticker shock of seeing the higher price with the idea that once people get there, they'll be forced into spending the extra.* Maybe they notice while they're there and are irked but feel like they have no choice or maybe they don't realize quite how bad it is until they get home and a month later, get their credit card statement.
In this situation, if they can afford it, they spend it and maybe that impacts their decision to go back again or maybe it doesn't. Someone like eliza61nyc for instance, may recognize Disney's doing something kinda shady but figures "I can afford it, I had fun - oh well."
But when people can't afford it, they either go and have a crappy time because they can't splurge for the up-charges and feel like they paid a lot for a bad experience* or they get home and realize how much trouble they're in for how much more they ended up spending than they intended to.
For these people, the economy may improve but that negative memory they have of their trip to Disney will be there forever. They are going to think a whole lot harder than that first group on if they ever want to go back.
*Remember, you can't pre-book G+ anymore so there's literally no way of even knowing what the price will be until the day of. Even for those that know they're going to want/need it there is no way to actually budget for it. You just have to go assuming you'll be willing to pay whatever it is that day.
**It's always been possible to pay more for a better experience at Disney but they used to go out of their way to ensure that it either didn't impact normal guests or that any impact was hidden. Now, not only do they not try to hide it, it feels almost like they want to use it as an on-the-spot selling point - "Feeling like a pleb? Click here to pay more now and step out of the common people's line! Want an even better experience? Click here now and come back tonight when the hoi polloi won't even be allowed in the park!"
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