Chapter 18 Social Media & Marketing

According to the MKTG textbook this chapter (18) discusses how much of an impact social media has on a firm. Social media have several implications for marketers and how they can interact with their customers.
1st marketers must realize they do not control the content on social media sites meaning they do not only need to have a great ad campaign but they also need to have a great product or service (customer service)

-What does Disney do to make sure they receive good content though social media?
The Walt Disney Company has a plan that sets targets in order to reach their overall goal that is to be successful/earn profit. These targets include making sure they keep their customers satisfied, keeping up a good reputation, relationship marketing and achieving the best quality merchandise and services which includes customer services. Disney makes sure they employ and train every personnel to be very polite and friendly. We can tell Disney has reached these goals by the many awards they have been awarded over the years; I have listed a select few:

• Disney named Most Reputable Company – Forbes, 2013
• Disney ranked No. 2 on World's Most Respected Companies list – Barron's, 2013
• World's Most Admired Entertainment Company – Fortune, 2012
• World's Most Admired Entertainment Company – Fortune, 2011

So even though Disney marketers have no control over the content on social media site they know they need to achieve high customer and brand loyalty sort of like an invisible hand where they want to gain profit and in order to do this they need to keep customers satisfied and happy, sort of like a multiplier effect. If they satisfy one customer with quality goods/services, and good relationship selling from Disney personal, this customer would then recommend Disney because of such great goods and services and also leave good reviews online and speak highly of the company to others who are then able to make more informed decisions on purchase they wish to make because of all the good things they find out about Disney. This cycle repeats its self over and over again, which therefore attracts more and more customers, to the point where Disney is nominated and receives such awards as the awards I listed above. These awards are posted on the official Disney websites and are very accessible to the public that gives customers even more reason to shop at Disney specially after reading high reviews written by previous consumers. Therefore this will only attract more customers and the main goal to start off with was to make profit and be successful and in order to achieve this Disney has accomplished many other things such as awards and customer loyalty which has made Disney what it is today “Most Admired Company, & Most Reputable Company.”

Disney Social Media
Just like many other companies Disney has many Facebook pages I do believe most of Disney’s main characters from their many different Disney animations have Facebook pages where Disney updates new information or products relating to the character. Also the main Disney Facebook page with the most followers has to be the Disney mascot: Mickey Mouse and this is where all the new information of any product/services and any Disney news or information is released 1st on the official Disney (mickey mouse) Facebook. Also these Facebook sites allow consumers to give feedback, which helps Disney make improvements that would better accommodate their consumers.
Disney’s YouTube channel would be considered as Owned Media since Disney created the channel and control the content that is being put up on YouTube.
This blog would be considered as, Earned Media since I am a consumer and I’m informing my readers of some Disney news & product information such as Disneyland and personal experiences I encountered while visiting a Disney location or store (customer feedback).

Disney has only been successful over the years because of their ability to keep up with trends such as this day and age social media is trending consequently Disney have jumped on board and joined this trend and used it to their advantage because of this ability to interact with consumers helps Disney make improvements and give customers what they want by listening to reviews and comments by making consumers feel they are appreciated and what they say does make a differences which keeps everyone happy at the end of the day customers get what they want and Disney earns more profits and customer loyalty.

Chapter 10 : Product Concepts 

The Walt Disney Company Product Line & Product Mix 

Product Modification From my previous blog I mentioned that the Disney Company made adjustments to the Disney store. This would be considered as Product modification to its Product line of consumer products, because they took advantage of the new technological era. They made developments to personal selling with new mobile checkouts after seeing how successful Apple were, being the first company to use mobile checkouts. Product Line Extension

The Walt Disney company made extensions to its product line of Parks & Resorts when they decided to open up more parks and resorts abroad such as, Disneyland Paris (1992), Tokyo Disneyland (1983), Hong Kong Disneyland (2005), Aulani Disney Resort (2011). Disney also plan on opening Shanghai Disneyland in 2015, and maybe in the near future Disney might even extend this product line to opening a Disneyland in Zimbabwe to be the first Disneyland in Africa.

Planned Obsolescence & Style Modification Disney has modified its product line of Studio Entertainment, by having products such as their VHS (videos) become obsolete because of the change in technology and become replaced by DVDs. Soon enough DVDs will be obsolete and Disney have already thought ahead and made agreements with Netflix’s to stream Disney movies online starting 2016.

Also all of the Studio Entertainment product line’s, brand names have been renamed from Buena Vista to Walt Disney Studio Entertainment or Disney. For example Walt Disney Studio Entertainment used to be called Buena Vista Home Entertainment, Disney Music Group used to be called Buena Vista Music Group and so on and so forth.

Repositioning Walt Disney has repositioned most of its media and cable products line but I shall only discuss Disney Channel, which was originally called, The Disney Channel. Disney changed the Disney channel by decreasing the amount of classical Disney films they aired and replaced them with Disney shows such as, Hannah Montana, Jessie, Austin & Alley, and Ant Farm in order to shift its target audiences more toward pre-teens but continue to cater to family audiences at night. Branding As of November 2013 The Walt Disney Company, placed 17th place on the Forbes “Worlds Most Val-uable Brands” list. From this information we gather that Disney has strong, brand equity, global branding and obviously as mentioned in every blog brand loyalty enough to earn 17 place for the “Worlds Most Valuable Brand” Disney Brand Mark is :

Co-Branding Disney has Co-Branded with many different companies but I shall only mention one company, which is McDonalds. McDonalds produces Disney character themed toys to give away with its happy meals which benefits Disney because every time a new Disney movie comes out McDonalds promotes/advertises it by giving away toy character with its happy meals. In the other hand Disney opens McDonald restaurants in their Parks so that visitors are exposed to McDonalds while in the park which is another form of advertising because its everywhere they look while traveling in the park. This is a win-win situation since McDonalds was also placed on the “Worlds Most Valuable Brand” list as number 6. Overall both brands have very strong brand equity & by working together they will only earn much more success.
 

Chapter 17: Personal Selling and Sales Management

Since personal selling is a direct interaction between a sales person and a prospective customer it offers many advantages because many question that can not be answered by an advert or promotion, but can be answered in person. The prospective customer can be specific about what exactly they want and then a sales person can recommend and advise products that would fit the customer’s requests.

Disney has been so successful over the years because they have been aware of their customers needs through relationship selling also known as consultative selling. Which makes sense since research has shown that positive customers-salesperson relationship contributes to trust increased customer loyalty. Speaking from experience I have never had a bad experience in any of the Disney store I have ever entered (in the U.S or U.K) this has lead me to believe that Disney makes it’s a must to train all employees how to be patient and very nice to all customers. This is an important step to help build strong customer loyalty because Disney employees are so nice customers feel comfortable and welcome to just walk in and look around, then when they have a question they can easily ask any of the approachable sales persons in the store who can recommend whatever the customers is looking for.

Selling in the technology age
Disney has been around for so long because their ability to modify and fit the market of their time. A perfect example of this would be of a previous article written in October 2009 that I’m able to talk about because of resent visits to the Disney store and speak of the changes that took place.

**In 2009 the Walt Disney Company decided to team up with Steve Jobs and his retailing team at apple to drastically change the Disney stores and customer experience. Disney’s traditional approach of displaying row after row of toys and apparel geared to Disney franchises has been given a high-tech makeover and incorporated into a new array of recreational activities (reading time/events that take place in the store). The goal, which has been achieved, was to make children clamor to visit the stores and stay longer, bolstering sales as a result.

In the near future Disney will adopt Apple touches like mobile checkout (employees will carry miniature receipt printers in their aprons) and the emphasis on community
(Disney’s theater idea is an extension of Apple’s lecture spaces). The focus on interactivity — parents will be able to book a Disney Cruise on touch-screen kiosks while their children play — reflects an Apple hallmark. Employees can use iPhones to control those high-tech trees.
 ** Brooks, Barnes. “Disney’s Retail Plan Is a Theme Park in Its Stores” The New York Times Oct. 13, 2009, A1 Web. Nov. 2, 2013.

This news article relates because we see how Disney has made changes to benefit its customers needs and wants making a more interactive store therefore more convenient for the customers by making it much quicker and easier to make a purchase instead of waiting in lines they can just make their purchase from an employee through a mobile checkout. Also incorporating recreational activity makes going to the Disney store a day out and people trend to spend money when taking their children out for the day.

Disney store E-commerce site is also very convenient and easy to use which clearly shows Disney does use a CRM system where customers take center stage and by providing many categories to choose from Disney  also has a personalize section on their website, where customers are able to customize their very own Disney products. Even if they don’t have a sales person with them to recommend or advise a product they can make their own decisions by reviewing previous customer comment about the products. Also because Disney identify customer relationships and make it a point to understand their customer base and capture customer data, not only do they develop deeper relationships but, also close more sales with loyal customers and receive positive feed back which attracts new customers to shop online or in store and this is a result because of Disney’s customer centric focus.

Everyday the world is changing therefore so is Disney and that is why Disney is so magical.

“Around here, however, we don't look backwards for very long. We keep moving forward, opening new doors, and doing new things, because we're curious and curiosity keeps leading us down new paths.”- Walt Disney

Chapter 16: Advertising Public Relations and Sales Promotion

Advertising is key because, without advertising we wouldn't know about half the products we use and we wouldn’t remember any brands. When Advertising is done the correct way it gives a company an advantage over its competitor such as,
creating brand preference to its products or services compared to its competitors.

The Walt Disney company spends billions of dollars on advertising, public relations and sales promotion every year and this is why Disney is not only ranked as the third most recognized brand in the world*, but also it is the only entertainment company with both brand and franchise equity.

 Disneyland advertising appeals have consisted of, fun and pleasure appeal “happiest place on earth” to attract young adults, health appeal(loving or romance)”where dreams come true” to attract families and couples, and most recently admiration appeal (celebrity advertisements) “where dreams come true” to attract fans.

An example of Disney using an advertising appeal would be, that this year Disneyland have taken a different approach by hiring renowned photographer Annie Leibovitz to capture celebrities in a series of portraits where they dress up in costume and bring some of the all time loved Disney characters to life. These celebrities include: Queen Latifa, Jenifer Lopez, Jessica Beil, Jennifer Hudson, Whoopi Goldberg, Tina Fey, Russell Brand, Will Farrell, Jack Black, Taylor Swift, Jeff Bridges, Penelope Cruz, Julienne Moore and Michael Phelps Scarlett Johansson, David Beckham etc.…   This form of advertising appeal is admiration since they are using celebrities to attracts fans to visit their parks where they to can dress up and act out and live out a whole day just like their favorite character.

Disneyland has an advantage in advertising since thousands of people visit it and buy Disney merchandise daily. This can also be considered as advertising since individuals who have not yet bought any Disney merchandise and do not intend to, will see someone with a Disney product that might catch their eye and make them want to purchase the same product because they like what they see or feel they might need it like a hat if it rains, or umbrella, bow to tie their hair and so on. For example like, if you were a young girl walking in Disneyland and you see women or girls with the Minnie mouse bows in their hair or children with the Mickey and Minnie mouse caps or children dressed as their favorite Disney character this may spark a need recognition/want  (result of imbalance between actual and desired state also a want is recognition of a need and a product that will satisfy it) which might make you want to purchase these products because they catch your eye and you might need it, like you might need  to tie you hair up, or its to hot or rainy and you need to cover your head, so you would convince your parent or yourself to get it. Then you would walk in to one of the many the Disney store in Disneyland and buy what you saw you might even end up buying more merchandise when you walk in since you have such a wide variety in the store which you would never have entered if you didn’t previously see most of the people in Disneyland with whatever item caught your eye in the first place.

Another example of Disney promotion would be Disneyland introducing their 2013 Limited Time Magic Promotion, Disney Parks installed a 25 feet tall, 9 feet deep and 15 feet wide castle in Times Square Manhattan.  It was assembled into 37 pieces, then boxed and driven to Times Square to reassemble – and each piece required a 15-ton crane to lift and place.  But, like the aspects of the new promotion, the castle was there for a limited time. To attract consumers and remind them how magical and fun Disney is

 Walt Disney is always advertising. They do not start, stop and then start again. They have a marketing budget and plan that’s designed to keep their message in front of audiences. You regularly see their ads on TV, in print publications, on the Internet. Also Disney continually sends direct mail pieces to past customers with varying offers. Disney’s promotions are designed to keep them in your mind. So when it’s time for vacationing, you think of going to Disneyland or perhaps another Disney park destination.

Chapter 14- Marketing Channels and Retailing

Chapter 14 - Marketing Channels and Retailing

Recently I visited the Walt Disney Store in, New York, Time Square location,

And in this blog I shall be discussing my experience and how I think this store relates to chapter 14 in the MKTG 7

Place

The Manhattan, Time square, Disney store, is a perfect location being that time square is a famous intersection in New York City, with More than a third of a million people passing through every day.  This Disney store attracts many tourists because Disney is such an internationally recognized brand also it attracts many New Yorkers who happen to be passing by Time Square. Also the Disney store has the Time Square feel to with its gigantic screen in front of the store which pulls in customers, since Times Square is known for its famous electronic screens and striking billboards.

Target market

Quite often when we think of who would visit a Disney store, we usually think only parents go because their children insist. But believe it or not every time I’ve gone inside a Disney store obviously I find kids of both sexes, but I also find a lot of females who ages range 15- 50 who are not looking at children merchandise but merchandise for themselves that Disney has to offer which are Disney toys, clothes and Disney collectibles featuring everyone's favorite characters including Mickey Mouse, the Disney Princesses, Fairies, Buzz Lightyear, Pooh and so Many More.

Like me for example anytime I walk passed a Disney store I have an urge to enter just to look around I find my self attracted to the beautiful scenery the bright colors it brings back to so many childhood memories. I feel somehow connected to Disney because I’m familiar with all the animated characters because of watching all the classical Disney films and knowing the stories I’m automatically sucked in I feel compelled to walk in and look around the store. Even though I know I don’t actually need anything from Disney and I know their products are all so pricey, something always happens to catch my eyes. Consequently I find myself spending money on something I don’t even need and will never probably use, and I believe this is what usually happens most of the time when individuals visit the Disney Store especially with such a perfect location as time square.

Market Factors

o   Who are the potential customers? 

Children families & females ages 15-50 & tourists

o   What do they buy?

Disney merchandise ranging from toys, clothes, souvenirs and housewares; such as dishes photo frames snow globe etc..

o   Where do they buy?

Disney stores /Where full price is charged (retailers) JCPenney, Target, Bj’s, etc. /Where prices are discounted  (Intermediaries)   

o   When do they buy?  

All year round

o   How do they buy?

Retailers are more pricier and offer better products compared to intermediaries which are discounted Disney-designed merchandise that’s similar to the products Disney sells in its theme parks instead of the licensed goods that other retailers stock. These discounts would make Disney products more affordable.

Personnel

As soon as I walked in to the Disney store I was pleasantly greeted by a security guard who informed me about the different merchandise offered on the different floors, which made me feel very comfortable and welcome as soon as I walked in the store. When guest enter a store with this feeling they want to spend money because they feel very welcome and happy.

The Disney store even has a like sitting area and at certain times in the day employees will gather kids to sit in the area where they read stories to the customers. Also while I was in the store I observed employees walking around and passing out Disney stickers to the young children and greeting all guests I even asked about a specific doll I didn’t see and the employees was very helpful and friendly, helpful and very patient with me.

Presentation / product

While I was walking around looking at the many different merchandise and I was fascinated at how beautiful everything looked which made me feel like I was a young child once again in a fairyland the atmosphere is very friendly and happy and the store has many different sections which offers different atmosphere like for males they have a marvel comic book hero section so young boys can feel like super hero’s and older men can reminisce when they were young and were fans of these comics for females there is a fairytale princess section were young girls feel like princess and women remember those fairy tales that they read or watched when they were young. Other sections of the store sell clothes soft toys souvenirs of all the other Disney characters. Everything is assorted just right so walking thought different sections is just like you’re walking though different worlds and all products are neatly placed and assorted on the many different shelves

Price

The Disney store are prices at the retailers but there are alternatives such as intermediaries who sell discounted Disney-designed merchandise that’s similar to the products Disney sells in its theme parks instead of the licensed goods that other retailers stock. These discounts would make Disney products more affordable but wouldn’t be as nice as the products at the Disney retailers, which are pricier.

Promotion

Every few days Disney changes characters on its gigantic outside screen above its time square store. This is one way Disney advertise its products by having different character themes that are routinely changed to attract customers to walk in.

While I was at the Disney store I was told about an upcoming event that would take place in the store, which is a Halloween dress rehearsal event where customers dress in their favorite Disney costume, for a costume parade.

This is part of store promotion customers who attend this parade will remember this Disney store because of such an event and all the fun they would have had which will earn Disney, customer loyalty and brand preference because other stores don’t offer such events for specially for families who have young children this would be like a perfect day out.

Overall customer service in the Disney store was very good matter of fact it was excellent. I felt very welcome and happy and as I looked around the store everybody (other consumers and employees) was smiling so I gathered they felt the same as me. The atmosphere was wonderful it was like I was in a very happy place; compared to outside the store (Time Square) where everything is very fast and so busy and crowded every thing is very hustle & bustle outside meanwhile in the store was very calm and happy.

Chapter 6: Consumer Decision Making

Need Recognition

We all know Disney doesn’t produce any products we (consumers) actually need, so how has Disney been around since the 1920’s and become one of the largest media conglomerate in the world in terms of revenue?  How has the Walt Disney Company, been able to produce such revenue by offering things people don’t necessarily need but want?
  The Walt Disney Company has achieved much success because they have adequately understood their target markets (young children and families) wants.
Disney understands how important spending quality with ones family is. Therefore they produce products families can enjoy together such as animation movies that families gather around and watch together. Which consequently leads to these families purchasing Disney merchandise, since they recognize the characters from the different animations they watch with their families be it siblings, children and parents. This then results with families booking vacations to go an visit the many different Disney theme parks that they have to offer, particularly Disneyland.
**The need recognition is the result of an imbalance between actual and desired states. Need recognition is triggered when a consumer is exposed to either an internal or external stimulus.
What drives consumers to visit a Disneyland location?

Disney has succeeded its target market by triggering families internally needs (spending quality time together for a vacation) and being able to provide for that need Disneyland, also externally stimulating this need with such slogans as “the happiest place on earth,” their brand equity and their many satisfied customers and keeping such a high reputation.
Information Search & Evaluation of alternatives
**After recognize a need or want consumers search for information about various alternatives available to satisfy it. After getting information and constructing an evoked set of alternative products the consumer is ready to make a decision.
So now families have realized what they need internally (spending quality time together) they then have to choose from many different alternatives, in this case other theme park such as Universal Studios, Sea World, 6 flags and so on.

Most of the times, just like my personal experience Families decide to go to Disneyland because they remember how much they enjoyed visiting Disneyland in the past, in a way this is like brand preference that would be an example of internal information search. An example of external information search would be commercials seen or slogans heard such as “happiest place on earth” or “where dreams come true” this would be marketing controlled compared to non-marketing controlled information source; a family member researching online to find reviews of what other Disneyland customers had to say about their trip to Disneyland and how much of a great time they had. This is why it is so important for Disney to keep such a good reputation so their external information search especially non-marketing controlled information source will only have five star reviews so they can attract more consumers.

Purchase
What makes Disneyland stand out compared to all it’s competitors in order to earn move revenue?
• Disney understands “white glove treatment.” Disney goes the extra mile for its visitors to have the most convenient and comfortable stay they offer baggage check service at the airports so guest don’t have to wait in the long lines in the airport to have their baggage checked
• Disney understands guest convenience. Guest can purchase merchandise from any of the Disney stores at Disneyland and have the store send it to their hotel room, so they don’t have to carry their purchased item all around the theme park and actually enjoy they day.
• All Disney employees are beyond friendly and helpful. Which is very pleasant to any guest
specially an international guest who has traveled half way round the world to visit Disneyland or anyone how has spent their hard earned money to visit. It makes it that much more worth it when they are greeted and treated with the utter most respect. From personal experience the employees are very friendly and pleasant which makes you want to keep visiting, because everyone that works there is so nice it just makes you feel so happy inside. The customer service is excellent which make Disney stand out because there aren’t many companies that can manage to maintain all employees customer service qualities.

• Disney understands the power of repetition. All over Disneyland there are hundreds of Disney stores so therefore physiologically after seeing merchandise over and over again guest will final purchase something because of seeing it so many times they will think they want or need it.

Overall, Disney makes it so EASY to spend money with them, also they keep their customers satisfied after there post purchase which result with good customer reviews and customer loyalty and brand preference and the cycle will keep repeating itself over and over this is how Disney has become one of the largest media conglomerate in the world.

Chapter Five: Developing a Global Vision

According to this chapter from the MKTG^7 we find out that, France, Britain, and Germany all derive more than 19% of their gross domestic products from world trade, which is considerably more than the united states does.
So I did research to find out how much the Walt Disney Company contributes towards the gross domestic products of the United States. And to my surprise I found out that for April 13, 2011 - A new study released showed that Disney parks and resorts (which include Disneyland) and cruise ships translates into a strong economic impact not only in Central Florida but also across the state.
So your probably wondering how much GDP was the Walt Disney Company able to contribute towards the GDP of Florida?
 And the answer is $18.2 billion in annual economic activity generated locally by Walt Disney Parks and Resorts accounts for a staggering 2.5 percent of the gross domestic product for the entire state. The negative impact of trade and globalization include jobs’ being outsourced that translates into unemployment which results with protest. Even though Disney do take part in this they also take responsibility and create domestic jobs. According to my research fortunately for the Floridians thanks to Disney out of the 7.2 million Floridians in the workforce in 2009, more than one out of every 50 had a job that can be directly or indirectly tied to the operations of Walt Disney Parks and Resorts. Locally, 6 percent of all jobs in Central Florida can be attributed to Disney's operations. This is why GDP is so important because when a company is based in its own country like Disney it is contributing to its country’s success. For example by opening resorts and theme parks Disney is able to accommodate not only Americas but also attract tourist from all over the world to come and visit their parks and also America. Not only that but Disney is also able to employee people to work which will lower the unemployment rate, help people earn money so they are able to spend and keep the economy healthy so in a way this is like a multiplier effect.

Positives of globalizing
As a consequence of globalization countries are able to expand economically just like the multiplier effect I mentioned. Globalization helps lift millions out of poverty and improve standard of living of low wage families in developing countries around the world.
While researching I found that Disney have globalized all over the world and call this globalization, Walt Disney International (WDI) that provides oversight of the Company’s activities outside the United States.
Disney has established foundations for long-term growth in the emerging markets of Latin America, Russia, India and China. More recently a renewed focus has been brought first to Japan and this year to Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA), where Disney businesses are more developed, and where they believe they can grow substantially and better serve their consumers.
What is Walt Disney’s Disneyland global marketing standardization?

Disney's traditional approach was largely to force-feed its U.S. products from its Burbank, Calif., headquarters. The company ultimately concluded that this approach wouldn't work, and now it is going country by country, with a particular focus on five hot markets: India, China, Russia, Latin America and South Korea. "We're building Disney from scratch," in countries such as India, said Mr. Iger, citing the company's founder and namesake: Just "as Walt did in the U.S. over 50 years ago." -http://mjperry.blogspot.com/2007/06/disney-goes-global-india-china-russia.html#sthash.aYkZWRoP.dpuf

So from this article we can see Disney does operate different in each country it ventures to, but they do keeps most traditions such as the many different characters of there animation and the castles and rides but just change culture wise so they can fit in and attract and accommodate more visitors.

Sources :
http://corporate.disney.go.com/news/parks_resorts/news_release/waltdisneyworld/2008/041311_wdw_econ_impact.html
http://thewaltdisneycompany.com/investors/annual_reports/2009/keyBusinesses/waltDisneyInternational.html