Test Track Live Chat with Imagineer

[HMF]

He is listed as a WDI non-employee, so he is working under a project contract as a Show Producer.

They are out-sourcing Show Producers now? sigh!

 

[PeoplemoverTTA]

MAt what point do they stop insulting our intelligence? It was a classic political operation of talking through questions, ignoring them, and sticking to a script all the while answering absolutely nothing.

I'm really surprised they continue to market these as live chats. Several posters are correct: previously-written canned responses are cut and pasted to "answer" questions that are seemingly close. Why not write a regular ole press release -- sorry, blog post -- called "Q&A With a Test Track Imagineer," and plug in the responses that way? The current joke of a format is insulting.

Rizzo factor indeed.

 

[lazyboy97o]

I'm really surprised they continue to market these as live chats. Several posters are correct: previously-written canned responses are cut and pasted to "answer" questions that are seemingly close. Why not write a regular ole press release -- sorry, blog post -- called "Q&A With a Test Track Imagineer," and plug in the responses that way? The current joke of a format is insulting.

Rizzo factor indeed.

One has to wonder how exactly it is decided whose name will be attached to these chats. Is it just part of the duties now with certain job titles? Do Imagineers draw straws and the short straw gets stuck with his name attached?

 

[Alektronic]

They are out-sourcing Show Producers now? sigh!

It happens a lot more than anybody knows.

 

[PeoplemoverTTA]

guys, the parks blog is part of disney's public relations strategy. the reason you're getting vague responses is because all this is supposed to do is build anticipation towards the test track reopening, not necessarily give you any real information.

as a guy with a lot of experience in this matter, i can tell you that this one place a PR executive can control the message. that's why blogs have become such a popular part of PR campaigns over the years. a chat like this isn't any different than anything disney posts on their facebook page or tweets through their twitter account. it's all vanilla language with no substance. temper your expectations any time you see something happening through the parks blog.

Unfortunately, as a PR professional with a decade of experience, and one who currently manages blogs and multiple social media presences for international companies, I can say that their PR strategy (at least for Orlando) is woefully outdated and their implementation is largely inept. In a time where companies are more engaging (and in some ways, transparent) than ever, including plenty of Fortune 500 companies, Disney is behind the times. They are missing out on an opportunity to build an even stronger fan base that visits the parks more frequently than ever. The covert, propaganda-driven, payola-laden, "they'll take the message we hand them" crap is old-school, shady PR (and is why many people still see PR people as "spin machines"). It just doesn't fly today.

That being said, I am seeing a slight amount of engagement on the official WDW Twitter handle (generic responses to people, but still, better than the total lack of interaction that plagued the account until the past few months). Also, the DCA_Today handle is really getting people excited out in Anaheim. A few weeks back, my sister tweeted to them that she was on her honeymoon. She asked if they had any DCA-specific recommendations for them (she hadn't been to DCA since 2006). They told her to meet them in the park, where they gave them free "glow with the show ears," took their picture and completely made their day. One small thing, integrating real interaction with in-park experiences. At least some part of Disney PR seems to get it...

 

[Alektronic]

One has to wonder how exactly it is decided whose name will be attached to these chats. Is it just part of the duties now with certain job titles? Do Imagineers draw straws and the short straw gets stuck with his name attached?

Maybe that is part of her job being the Assistant to the Project Manager.

 

[flynnibus]

They are out-sourcing Show Producers now? sigh!

It's not outsourcing when you hire people as contractors instead of regular employees. Hiring people on contract is often far more desirable for both parties...

 

[baymenxpac]

Unfortunately, as a PR professional with a decade of experience, and one who currently manages blogs and multiple social media presences for international companies, I can say that their PR strategy (at least for Orlando) is woefully outdated and their implementation is largely inept. In a time where companies are more engaging (and in some ways, transparent) than ever, including plenty of Fortune 500 companies, Disney is behind the times. They are missing out on an opportunity to build an even stronger fan base that visits the parks more frequently than ever. The covert, propaganda-driven, payola-laden, "they'll take the message we hand them" crap is old-school, shady PR (and is why many people still see PR people as "spin machines"). It just doesn't fly today.

That being said, I am seeing a slight amount of engagement on the official WDW Twitter handle (generic responses to people, but still, better than the total lack of interaction that plagued the account until the past few months). Also, the DCA_Today handle is really getting people excited out in Anaheim. A few weeks back, my sister tweeted to them that she was on her honeymoon. She asked if they had any DCA-specific recommendations for them (she hadn't been to DCA since 2006). They told her to meet them in the park, where they gave them free "glow with the show ears," took their picture and completely made their day. One small thing, integrating real interaction with in-park experiences. At least some part of Disney PR seems to get it...

yes, completely agree.

WDW has the typical approach of 5-7 years ago, where they mistake popularity for an air of...i want to say infallibility. it's this idea that, "hey, we don't have to really tell you anything, because you'll come to the parks anyway." in truth, that idea couldn't be more counter-intuitive. if they were more transparent and forthcoming, they'd be more likely to elicit more excitement for upcoming projects.

plus, i'm not sure if you agree @PeoplemoverTTA, but in my opinion, the voice of both WDW's blog and their social media channels seem very so refined it has the opposite effect. it comes off borderline childish, which opens up pandora's box to a whole other topic i'm passionate about. yet i digress...

 

[Buried20KLeague]

I think the thing on the marquee is a melted Jelly Belly.

 

[flynnibus]

Unfortunately, as a PR professional with a decade of experience, and one who currently manages blogs and multiple social media presences for international companies, I can say that their PR strategy (at least for Orlando) is woefully outdated and their implementation is largely inept. In a time where companies are more engaging (and in some ways, transparent) than ever, including plenty of Fortune 500 companies, Disney is behind the times. They are missing out on an opportunity to build an even stronger fan base that visits the parks more frequently than ever. The covert, propaganda-driven, payola-laden, "they'll take the message we hand them" crap is old-school, shady PR (and is why many people still see PR people as "spin machines"). It just doesn't fly today.

How about sharing a comparison you feel is doing it right with their corporate outreach blog?

 

[HMF]

yes, completely agree.

WDW has the typical approach of 5-7 years ago, where they mistake popularity for an air of...i want to say infallibility. it's this idea that, "hey, we don't have to really tell you anything, because you'll come to the parks anyway." in truth, that idea couldn't be more counter-intuitive. if they were more transparent and forthcoming, they'd be more likely to elicit more excitement for upcoming projects.

Makes you long for the days when Walt used to preview in specific detail all the new things coming to Disneyland on National television reaching a far-broader audience than the Parks Blog.

 

[PeoplemoverTTA]

How about sharing a comparison you feel is doing it right with their corporate outreach blog?

Sure, here are a couple of companies whose blogs I read and who I follow on social media (these are off the top of my head, so I'm sure there are better examples out there):

Starbucks - There's a nice balance here of corporate outreach, fun at home ideas, and new product developments that I like, but the real standout here is on their Twitter page (Facebook is fine too). They are frequently responding to tweets, retweeting other messages from customers, sharing relevant outside content and sharing original content too. A well-rounded presence that delivers (in my opinion).

Wegmans - For those of you who don't know, Wegmans is a regional grocery store chain based out of Rochester, NY (they have a very strong base here in Buffalo). They've been expanding pretty rapidly in the past decade or so, and are now as far east as Boston and are down into Virginia as well. Their blog has a great blend of at-home ideas from various chefs and members of their team, with recipes and other company news. Their comments are frequently responded to -- by the actual blog writer (or presumably so - they are very authentic feeling and well-written), creating an engaging base for their content. On the social media front, Wegmans simply excels. I have had several negative tweets responded to within minutes, and have seen many examples of the same (yup, they actual respond to -- and diffuse through excellent customer service -- negative posts). If you are looking for a particular product in one of their stores, they will tell you whether they have it -- and what aisle it's in. Total, 360 service at all levels. Wegmans really "gets" it.

This is purely subjective, but to me, Starbucks and Wegmans do a great job of feeling authentic -- this is one area where Disney Parks is sorely lacking. Everyone expects to hear typical PR news on a blog and social media, it's par for the course. But the overall tone, messaging and engagement from these brands feels less like propaganda and more like a genuine, authentic voice for the company. A voice that seeks and gives meaningful engagement to its customers.

 

[Avenger117]

Its hard to say WDI is too corporate or soulless based on a project manager. I'm sure the opinion would be different if the chat was done by someone in a more creative role.

 

[HMF]

Its hard to say WDI is too corporate or soulless based on a project manager. I'm sure the opinion would be different if the chat was done by someone in a more creative role.

As I said earlier, I feel that the chat should have been with Show Producer Trevor Bryant. He comes off as more genuine in interviews and less of a corporate mouthpiece.

 

[Avenger117]

As I said earlier, I feel that the chat should have been with Show Producer Trevor Bryant. He comes off as more genuine in interviews and less of a corporate mouthpiece.

Very true, I'm surprised that did go with someone like that. Having gone with a project manager, I wish they talked more about process. It just wasn't a very informative. I don't think its any fault of Melissa Jeselnick, but I didn't really take anything away from it.

 

[flynnibus]

This is purely subjective, but to me, Starbucks and Wegmans do a great job of feeling authentic -- this is one area where Disney Parks is sorely lacking. Everyone expects to hear typical PR news on a blog and social media, it's par for the course. But the overall tone, messaging and engagement from these brands feels less like propaganda and more like a genuine, authentic voice for the company. A voice that seeks and gives meaningful engagement to its customers.

Thx for those - but I find it interesting that most of the engagement you refer to is not on the blog, but rather in the twitter space. Just a casual browsing of the wegmans blog shows alot of the same type of content.. product promotion, corporate posture, events, etc. The blog is still a promotion tool above all else. Heck, look at Starbucks, their most recent pages are full of politics.. yuck.

I see people continually upset that the blog isn't something else.. like a discussion forum. Well then it's not a blog People seem upset that disney won't give them equal footing on disney sites and take it out on the blog.

I don't look at any of Disney's twitter activity so I can't comment there. But as a blog, Disney continues to put out tons of original content. This isn't just them reposting their PRs.. look at how much original content is created now for the digital space and published through the blog.

Honestly the wegmans blog looks a lot like the magazine/catalogs they publish. What I think is powerful about the DPR blog is there is a ton of information they break there now.. and prior to this.. wasn't as accessible.

Your posts seems to suggest Disney should do more customer advocacy outreach. I wouldn't disagree, they already do a TON of this through guest relations.. but that's really the role of their support and guest relations teams.. not just social outreach. The staffing levels required would overwhelm any non-funded group trying to 'help out' with guest relations issues.

 

[whylightbulb]

They are out-sourcing Show Producers now? sigh!

They are outsourcing entire projects. I'm working on one right now.

 

[Tod&BigMamaOdie]

They are outsourcing entire projects. I'm working on one right now.

Any hints?
Don't tease, aim to please. Please...

 

[danlb_2000]

As I said earlier, I feel that the chat should have been with Show Producer Trevor Bryant. He comes off as more genuine in interviews and less of a corporate mouthpiece.

This assumes that they would allow him to speak freely. I would think any Imagineer would be happy to talk honestly about thier project they are working on if they were actually allowed to.

 

[michmousefan]

Straying a bit off topic here, but when it comes to social media and Twitter in particular it almost seems that one "official" twitter account for WDW is just too big. Obviously, the @disneyparks account is just too broad to handle specific needs and interactions with day guests. There really should be one for each park, as is the case with @DCAToday, which is "official." Even really small units like @cavadeltequila do a much better job of interacting with guests -- it's not so much to bite off, know what I mean?

So... is it TDO's fault that we don't have official accounts for each of the Florida parks?