{"id":912,"date":"2013-02-12T08:00:23","date_gmt":"2013-02-12T14:00:23","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/juneux.com\/blog\/?p=912"},"modified":"2022-03-23T19:28:04","modified_gmt":"2022-03-24T00:28:04","slug":"what-to-learn-from-disneys-relationship-marketing-mistakes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/juneux.com\/blog\/2013\/02\/what-to-learn-from-disneys-relationship-marketing-mistakes\/","title":{"rendered":"What to Learn from Disney\u2019s Relationship Marketing Mistakes"},"content":{"rendered":"

I am a huge fan of product finder<\/strong> tools \u2014 interactive experiences that ask prospects to assess their current situation or prioritize the features or benefits that are most important to them. <\/span><\/p>\n

Product finders are a smart way to simplify complex products<\/strong> and services, provide\u00a0superior customer experience<\/strong> on your website and allow your company to begin relationship marketing<\/strong> using a transparent, user-centric approach.<\/span><\/p>\n

As you can imagine, planning a Disney vacation is the perfect application for such a tool. Trying to consume everything a family might do at a Disney theme park would be overwhelming and frustrating for most people.<\/p>\n

So how did Disney solve this dilemma? I’ll get back to that in just a second.<\/p>\n

Relationship Marketing Begins with Helping Customers<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Think about the last time you researched a digital camera online. There were hundreds of options, right?<\/p>\n

Even after you narrowed your options by price and brand, you were likely presented with way too many choices, with too few discrete differences.<\/p>\n

A good digital camera finder tool would\u00a0ask you how you plan to use your camera, where, how often, and your level of photography expertise, and then recommend 2 or 3 cameras based on those criteria.<\/p>\n

Much like a good sales person in a brick-and-mortar store.<\/p>\n

Relationship Marketing Tool:\u00a0Product Finders<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Still need a visual? Here are a few examples of product finders from CarMax<\/a>, Find Wine<\/a> and Sears<\/a>:<\/p>\n

\"CarMax\"<\/a><\/p>\n

\"Find<\/a><\/p>\n

\"Sears\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Disney Vacation Planning Tool: Before<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Now I\u2019m going to pick on Disney<\/strong> for a moment, the much-lauded leader in customer experience design<\/a>.<\/p>\n

When I visited their website last fall to begin preliminary research about Disney World, I was disappointed by what I found. Immediate information overload.<\/p>\n

\"Disney<\/a><\/p>\n

29 hotels. No way to compare. No way to filter.<\/p>\n

I had to read each and every hotel description and park activity to determine which ones were best for my family. Then I had to try to remember everything I read.<\/p>\n

I didn’t visit their website again for 5 months.<\/p>\n

Disney Vacation Planning Tool: After<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Upon returning the other day, I noticed right away Disney World had relaunched<\/a> their website.<\/p>\n

They still have 29 hotels displayed in a list format, but they wisely introduced the concepts of filtering and comparing<\/strong>. (Though, I think the new format still needs some work. The filter options don’t seem to be aligned with customers’ needs. For example, users can filter by “Moderate Resort Hotels.” What does that mean? How is that different from “Price Range?”)
\"Disney<\/a><\/p>\n

Since last fall, I’ve been thinking Disney badly needs to launch a comprehensive interactive vacation planning tool and relationship marketing program. Even the best filtering options will only get customers so far.<\/p>\n

Last year, I spent hours and hours on their website, but Disney never knew I was there.<\/p>\n

It would have been great to design my dream Disney vacation; save it to my Disney account; receive emails about insider tips, recommended itineraries, and packing checklists; connect with a Disney World rep; and then later, receive promotional offers.\u00a0All perfectly timed<\/strong> based on my trip date and recent site activity.<\/p>\n

It’s Disney! I want the \u2014 ahem<\/em> \u2014 top-notch treatment!<\/p>\n

With the recent site redesign, Disney launched something called “My Disney Experience.” Unfortunately, it’s hidden behind a login and buried in the footer, so only the most determined customers will find and access it.<\/p>\n

\"Disney<\/a>
As a highly motivated customer (and to show it to you here), I spent several minutes completing the account registration process in order to view and create \u201cMy Disney Experience.\u201d Again, all but the strongest would have walked away at this point. You see, it took me 7 tries \u2013 SEVEN! \u2013 before I was able to successfully create an account.<\/p>\n

\"Disney<\/a><\/p>\n

At first glance, the user interface has all the visual indicators of being exactly what I dreamed an interactive Disney vacation planner would be. But it turns out the planning “tool” is really just more information<\/strong> to read \u2014 the personalized recommendation engine<\/strong> I imagined doesn’t exist<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

In addition, it looks like information is organized by the way Disney thinks about their company (e.g., which park do I want to attend), rather than the way visitors think (e.g., by specific activity such as meet Mickey Mouse).<\/p>\n

At minimum, I wish there was a way to save or remove activities from the itinerary.<\/p>\n

Building a Product Finder Tool: Where to Begin<\/strong><\/h2>\n

My advice to Disney and companies that are thinking about building a product finder tool is to begin with careful user research<\/strong> to ensure the end result meets your customers’ real needs<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

If you haven\u2019t already done so, develop a data-based user persona and customer journey map. These resources will make the rest of the process go much more smoothly.<\/p>\n

During the user research phase, ask questions such as:<\/p>\n