Say "NO!" to Pixie Dust pins!

[wannab@dis]

Well let's take a look here.



This is a good point. The celebration does not have any meat and bones in it what so ever. All it is is just some contests and new pins. They could easily be doing this without all the pizazz of the celebration. When people go to WDW wondering what all of the celebration is about, and they find that its only just a contest and pins, they're going to be dissapointed. The 50th anniversary had meat and bones because they were adding new rides and shows.



This is true because that is all what the celebration really is and that's it. Its just narrowed down to a couple of small unexciting things. ( BTW, the "awfully misguided T-shirts is expanded upon in another part of the article if you were wondering what that was about. )

Let's face it folks, this whole thing is a cheap campaign to hopefully ( but not likely ) play off of the success of the 50 anniversary. Many people I've mentioned to about this who aren't Disney fanatics have also thought that the whole YOAMD sounds lame and uniteresting.

BTW, if you think Lutz is too negative, there is one heading in his article that states "the future is looking so bright, you'll need sun glasses!" So yeah, no more false accusations.

I read the article and again I will state that it was baseless. It's a bunch of gibbering by some cranky curmudgeon who is to self-centered to understand the premise.

No meat and bones... but a few contests and prizes, huh? Most people would be glad to get *anything* just simply by visiting the parks. Free pins, drinks, hats, t-shirts, meals, nights in the castle, trips of a lifetime? You're right... I'm sure people will be so disappointed.

I've already seen posts about people that like the new merchandise. Don't like it? Don't buy it. Who cares. But to imply the celebration is a "cheap campaign" because of the merchandise or freebies is ludicrous.

You walk up to any child in Magic Kingdom and hand them a pin or a hat and they will beam with joy and their family will NOT think it's lame and uninteresting. Give them a Golden Fastpass or a ticket to a private party and you just made their trip. The big prizes? Yep, they're happy.

Ever hear of "Disney Magic" -- this celebration is celebrating that magic. Not everything is about "new rides and shows" for a true Disney fan or a family on a vacation of a lifetime.

 

[imagineer boy]

Only a few lucky families will be getting those prizes.

Like I said, Disney could just have these things without wasting their money on all the pizazz and marketing for an event which is nothing more than just a couple of contests and free prizes. Its not good buisness.

 

[wannab@dis]

Only a few lucky families will be getting those prizes.

Like I said, Disney could just have these things without wasting their money on all the pizazz and marketing for an event which is nothing more than just a couple of contests and free prizes. Its not good buisness.

Last time I checked... a MILLION was more than a few.

The "pizazz and marketing" is the REASON for the event. To bring people to the parks and increase revenues. That IS good business. I'll also bet you that this campaign is costing them MUCH MUCH less than HCOE.

 

[kachow]

I guess I need a comparison to know what they SHOULD have done. What do they normally do in a year where there are no big events? And don't tell me the Epcot anniversary is big, because the general population doesn't care about that. You're not going to get the general public to come to WDW because of Epcot. I enjoy the park as much as anyone here, but that would have zero legs with the mass audience. I'm sure they'll have something going on at the park, but to mass advertise it would be a waste of money. They DO have new rides coming, some even during the promotion, so what else do they need to do? Make the giveaways more to your taste?

 

[imagineer boy]

The "pizazz and marketing" is the REASON for the event. To bring people to the parks and increase revenues. That IS good business. I'll also bet you that this campaign is costing them MUCH MUCH less than HCOE.

I consider that a scam. Promising people something special when all they get is some contest entries and pins. It will send away alot of unsatisfied people. Mark my words, this "celebration" won't bring in NEARLY the amount of crowds that the fiftieth did. There's just no appeal. I will be very surprised if it does.

 

[mousermerf]

Riddle me this...

If Epcot is an unknown park that no one cares about... Why does the update thread on the Nemo ride there have 7600+ views since monday? What about all the threads about the previews? Why is my bandwidth limit hosting those photos almost maxed out?

Why is Epcot the ONLY theme park at WDW to offer its own annual pass? The Epcot after 4pm pass still exists.. it's $130.

 

[Frank Stallone]

My favorite color is cowabunga

 

[mousermerf]

This is a WALT DISNEY WORLD fan site. This isn't exactly the target demographic of Disney's marketing team.

The Kansas City Royals home page gets more hits a day than this website, but that doesn't mean people care about the Royals.

Well, the Disneyland website I hang out at also cares, and typically they don't care about anything at WDW.

They've also got several locals from Australia - who have noted on several occasions that Epcot is the only other Disney theme park besides DL and the MK to become a global icon.

 

[speck76]

Riddle me this...

If Epcot is an unknown park that no one cares about... Why does the update thread on the Nemo ride there have 7600+ views since monday? What about all the threads about the previews? Why is my bandwidth limit hosting those photos almost maxed out?

Why is Epcot the ONLY theme park at WDW to offer its own annual pass? The Epcot after 4pm pass still exists.. it's $130.

The after 4pm pass exists due to the vast amount of 3rd party shops and restaurants in the park (as in almost every shop and restaurant in World Showcase)

 

[mousermerf]

The after 4pm pass exists due to the vast amount of 3rd party shops and restaurants in the park (as in almost every shop and restaurant in World Showcase)

That people buy and use to enter Epcot.. after 4pm.. they wouldn't sell it if no one wanted it. Appears no one cares about getting into MK, MGM, or AK after 4pm 365 days a year to eat and shop.

 

[uglybug2005]

Riddle me this...

Why is Epcot the ONLY theme park at WDW to offer its own annual pass? The Epcot after 4pm pass still exists.. it's $130.

Because so many people just want to go there at night for dinner and fireworks and aren't interested as much in the attractions or in spending the whole day there multiple times a year.

The fact that there is a special pass for Epcot is not a reason that giving people anything for free is a bad idea.

 

[mousermerf]

...

 

[mousermerf]

So, we've gone from "no one knows about Epcot" to "Well, people just go to Epcot to hang out - but they don't do rides so they don't like the park" because there's a pass that only admits them to Epcot, that people do buy.

Yeah, people pay for a pass to only one park to visit just for the food because they don't like the rest of the park. That could be argued for a regular AP the way people use DCA as DL's "lounge" because it's essentially free, but you have to fork out money to just visit Epcot in this case. It'd make no sense to go if you didn't like Epcot.

 

[uglybug2005]

FYI, that "..." up two posts is Merf saying "You must really want that pin, huh?"

Not really... I'm not much of a pin person at all. It doesn't bother me to think that other people might be made to feel special or might get a special gift or token, though.
The snide comments about things being given away being some sort of scam, or underwhelming, seem to come from a selfish attitude that also may spawn the idea that one park has to be "the best" (or at least the others have no worth). Just as with Al Lutz creating imaginary battles between WDW and DLR, the battle to make Epcot's anniversary more important than promoting visitation to all of the Disney parks is a battle that exists only in the minds and message board posts of a few people with nothing better to worry about.

Disney is a business. The reason for any marketing campaign (including past campaigns centered around major anniversaries) is to get people to come and visit. This message of this particular campaign happens to be that WDW and DL are unlike any other vacation destinations because while you're there people (cast and guests) do things that are nice just to be nice. Those magical moments (which are reason enough to visit) are not only being emphasized, but there will be even more surprises, big and small. Everyone has a chance to win something, and that is exciting for most folks. Those who think getting a free meal, riding Pirates of the Caribbean with *real pirates*, or having a stranger walk up to you and say "Hi there, what you just did was very nice, and I'd like to give you a small token of thanks." is "cheap", "lame", "retarded", "stupid", or generally something horrible is either jaded and takes the magical guest experience for granted, or feels jealous of or threatened by the idea of others being made to feel special.
I thought I had made that opinion clear with earlier posts. Now I am sure that I am beating a dead horse (or at least one that is obstinant beyond all reason).

I have been reminded of the attitudes that caused me to leave the internet communities in the past, and I will once again retire from the boards because making magic in the real world is much more fun than arguing with a bunch of self-righteous, bitter, out-of-touch knuckleheads on the computer.
Congratulations, you are now free to bellyache about the horrible injustices heaped upon you by TWDC at large and the WDPR global marketing team. This has been my final post.

 

[askmike1]

Riddle me this...

If Epcot is an unknown park that no one cares about... Why does the update thread on the Nemo ride there have 7600+ views since monday? What about all the threads about the previews? Why is my bandwidth limit hosting those photos almost maxed out?

You don't get it do you? The internet Disney-geeks (that make up this and other sites) make, at most, 5% of the resort's visitors. These are the people who will visit the parks whether they were run by Walt Disney himself or Al Gore. These are NOT the people they target with celebrations. The people they target are the other 95% who want to go on a vacation but are unsure where to go.

 

[imagineer boy]

You don't get it do you? The internet Disney-geeks (that make up this and other sites) make, at most, 5% of the resort's visitors. These are the people who will visit the parks whether they were run by Walt Disney himself or Al Gore. These are NOT the people they target with celebrations. The people they target are the other 95% who want to go on a vacation but are unsure where to go.

While I'm a Disney fan, I do know about teh general public's wants in a theme park. And I know for a fact that very few people at all will care about going to Disney for free pins.

 

[wannab@dis]

While I'm a Disney fan, I do know about teh general public's wants in a theme park. And I know for a fact that very few people at all will care about going to Disney for free pins.

You're really showing your level of intelligence. You have absolutely no idea how marketing strategies work and your drivel about "pins" is getting old. Let us know when Disney hires some high school kid to run their marketing dept to replace their inept professionals.

 

[wannab@dis]

FYI, that "..." up two posts is Merf saying "You must really want that pin, huh?"

Not really... I'm not much of a pin person at all. It doesn't bother me to think that other people might be made to feel special or might get a special gift or token, though.
The snide comments about things being given away being some sort of scam, or underwhelming, seem to come from a selfish attitude that also may spawn the idea that one park has to be "the best" (or at least the others have no worth). Just as with Al Lutz creating imaginary battles between WDW and DLR, the battle to make Epcot's anniversary more important than promoting visitation to all of the Disney parks is a battle that exists only in the minds and message board posts of a few people with nothing better to worry about.

Disney is a business. The reason for any marketing campaign (including past campaigns centered around major anniversaries) is to get people to come and visit. This message of this particular campaign happens to be that WDW and DL are unlike any other vacation destinations because while you're there people (cast and guests) do things that are nice just to be nice. Those magical moments (which are reason enough to visit) are not only being emphasized, but there will be even more surprises, big and small. Everyone has a chance to win something, and that is exciting for most folks. Those who think getting a free meal, riding Pirates of the Caribbean with *real pirates*, or having a stranger walk up to you and say "Hi there, what you just did was very nice, and I'd like to give you a small token of thanks." is "cheap", "lame", "retarded", "stupid", or generally something horrible is either jaded and takes the magical guest experience for granted, or feels jealous of or threatened by the idea of others being made to feel special.
I thought I had made that opinion clear with earlier posts. Now I am sure that I am beating a dead horse (or at least one that is obstinant beyond all reason).

I have been reminded of the attitudes that caused me to leave the internet communities in the past, and I will once again retire from the boards because making magic in the real world is much more fun than arguing with a bunch of self-righteous, bitter, out-of-touch knuckleheads on the computer.
Congratulations, you are now free to bellyache about the horrible injustices heaped upon you by TWDC at large and the WDPR global marketing team. This has been my final post.

Don't let anyone around here run you off. This board needs more people that understand that Disney is in the business of making money and not in the business of just making a few diehards happy. Thanks for your post.

 

[imagineer boy]

You're really showing your level of intelligence. You have absolutely no idea how marketing strategies work and your drivel about "pins" is getting old.

I'm taking marketing class as a matter of fact. I know very well how marketing stratagies work, and this YOAMD is quite possibly the most poorly drawn out marketing stratagy ever to come out of Disney.

Let us know when Disney hires some high school kid to run their marketing dept to replace their inept professionals.

There you go again...

 

[wannab@dis]

I'm taking marketing class as a matter of fact. I know very well how marketing stratagies work, and this YOAMD is quite possibly the most poorly drawn out marketing stratagy ever to come out of Disney.



There you go again...

Sorry to break it to you, but you'll learn it sooner or later - but not in school.

The real world and the classroom are rarely equivalent.