Research Section
Problem Statement
The campaign addresses the challenge of Disney’s escalated pricing affecting Non-Florida residents.
Situation Analysis
Secondary Research
Company Analysis
Schickel (2019) reports that Disney, a universal entertainment conglomerate, was founded in 1923 when Walt Disney founded the company as a small animation studio. For almost a century, Disney has transformed into a cultural phenomenon, expanding beyond animation into media networks and theme parks, among other entertainment ventures. The mission is to entertain, inspire, and inform individuals across the globe through storytelling, immersive experiences, and cutting-edge innovation (Xiao, 2023). More specifically, the company aspires to lead in creativity while continually pushing the boundaries of imagination. Further, Disney envisions itself as a leading global entertainment provider, creating magical moments that stand the time taste of time across generations. As such, the company strives to use its creativity to bring joy and happiness to its audiences.
Core values at the organization entail innovation, creativity, inclusivity, and a commitment to the excellence of storytelling. Such values form the basis of Disney’s identity and guide its operations. Moreover, the organization structure is characterized by diversified business segments such as Parks, Media Networks, Experience, and Product Studio Entertainment. Each segment is critical in delivering Disney’s services to various individuals. Also, Disney boasts robust Integrated Marketing Communication (IMC) resources using a multi-channel approach (Desai, 2023). From captivating advertising campaigns to strategic partnerships and digital presence, Disney leverages its iconic brand to connect with global consumers. As such, the IMC sources effectively reinforce the brand’s image. The historical perspectives, in combination with the brand’s mission, vision, values, organization, and IMC resources, offer a solid foundation for comprehending the context in which the correct pricing issue unfolds.
Product, brand, and service analysis
Since its early days as an animation studio, Disney’s products and services have significantly expanded. Initially, the brand was only recognized for its iconic animated characters, which has changed to other digital streaming services. This evolution reflects a strategic response to changing consumer preferences and technological advancements. The Disney brand is synonymous with beloved characters and storytelling. Beyond animation, the brand offers Disneyland and Walt Disney World, creating a magical destination for millions. Moreover, the extensions include media networks, like ABC and ESPN, producing vast content for diverse audiences.
Since its founding, Disney’s growth has been remarkably driven by strategic acquisitions and global expansions. In this case, the key contributors to its success are introducing new park attractions, a successful film franchise, and the launch of Disney+. Due to its value, Disney has been consistent in its financial success. Historically, the sales demonstrate the enduring popularity of its products and services (Arditi, 2023). Some services contributing to the increased revenue streams include box office revenues and merchandise sales. As a result, it can be concluded that the brand has been resilient and adaptable. This analysis offers insights into the dynamic evolution of Disney’s products, brand, and services, highlighting its ability to stay relevant and thrive in an ever-changing entertainment landscape.
Market and Consumer Analysis
Disney’s market plans consist of demographics that capture the hearts of families, children, and individuals of all ages. The theme parks cater to families seeking magical experiences, while the media networks target a broad audience. Demographically, the brand appeals to a global consumer base, transcending cultural and geographical boundaries. One of the reasons behind its success is its ability to understand the psychographics of its audience and the emotional and lifestyle factors influencing consumer choices. Disney crafts experience resonates with different psychographic segments by relying on nostalgia-driven services reliving childhood memories from adults and the search for adventure in its audience.
The seasonality of Disney’s markets is revealed in theme park attendance patterns. In this case, peak seasons coincide with school vacations and holidays, driving higher footfall. Therefore, understanding this seasonality is crucial for optimizing operations, pricing, and marketing strategies to meet various demands. Moreover, this seasonality factor extends to content releases, special events, and merchandise promotions. In addition to seasonality, consumer behavior, such as consumer preferences, motivations, and decision-making processes, play a crucial role in advancing the brand’s success. Also, Disney+ was introduced to cater to consumers’ evolving preferences, reflecting a strategic response to the shift in content consumption patterns. Notably, this analysis of demographics, psychographics, seasonality, and consumer behavior offers essential insights for tailoring strategies, ensuring Disney continues to resonate with its various and dynamic audiences.
Competitive Analysis
Disney operates in a highly competitive landscape, performing against different industry competitors. Some critical indicators in evaluating the brand’s competitive sales include box office revenues and merchandise sales. Even with the high competition levels, Disney has outperformed its competitors, signifying its market dominance and consumer appeal. Moreover, closely monitoring competitive sales enables the brand to identify trends, capitalize on strengths, and address weaknesses. In the media realm, Disney faces competition across various platforms. Examples of competitive media include television networks, film studios, and streaming services. Given the battle of customer attraction and retention between Disney, Netflix, and Amazon Prime, staying innovative and responsive to changing consumer preferences is significant.
Disney faces both direct and indirect competitors. The Direct competitors include major entertainment organizations such as Warner Media and Universal Studios, which compete with Disney across multiple platforms, ranging from field production to theme park experiences. Contrarily, indirect competitors, such as video game developers or alternative leisure activities, represent additional challenges. Thus, Disney must understand the strategies applied by both the direct and indirect competitors to maintain its market leadership and adapt to the evolving consumer demands. This analysis offers Disney actionable insights, facilitating strategic decisions to enhance its competitive position and ensure sustained success in the dynamic entertainment industry.
Pricing/Distribution Analysis
Disney uses a pricing strategy that aligns with the perceived value of its diverse services. For instance, the merchandise, theme park experiences, and movie tickets are priced strategically to reflect the brand’s premium positioning while remaining accessible to a broad consumer base. However, the recent pricing adjustments for Non-Florida Residents necessitate a thorough analysis of the potential impact on consumer willingness to pay and overall revenue. This is because studies about pricing elasticity and consumer surveys are instrumental in gauging the ideal balance between affordability and maintaining Disney’s premium brand image.
The distribution channels are extensive, including physical and digital platforms. The theme park tickets are distributed globally through official Disney channels, online platforms, and travel agencies. On the other hand, films are distributed globally through theatrical releases, streaming services, and home entertainment. Further, the advent of Disney_ has extended the digital distribution landscape. As such, evaluating the efficiency of these distribution channels is crucial for optimizing accessibility and reach. Also, the recent shift towards direct-to-consumer streaming platforms emphasizes the need for Disney to continually reassess its distribution strategies to meet evolving consumer preferences and industry trends. This analysis offers a comprehensive understanding of the market dynamics, allowing the organization to make informed decisions balancing revenue generation with customer satisfaction and accessibility.
Analysis of Past IMC and Overall Communication Efforts
Disney’s historical Integrated Marketing Communications (IMC) and communications efforts serve as a valuable retrospective lens, offering insights into the band’s success and areas for improvement. The analysis entails a multifaceted approach, examining various communication channels and strategies used over time. Additionally, the historical use of traditional media, like radio and television, has been the center of Disney’s communication strategy (Ang, 2021). Through these channels, successful marketing campaigns for animated classics and theme park promotions have proved to be the brand’s ability to leverage traditional media effectively.
The organization has undergone a digital transformation in recent years, adapting to the changing landscape of consumer behaviour. For instance, the launch of Disney+ and the brand’s streaming service reflects a strategic response to the shift in content consumption patterns (Martinez-Sanchez et al., 2021). Consequently, the success of this digital pivot is evident in the platform’s rapid subscriber growth. Also, the organization has maintained a consistent brand narrative coated with magic, storytelling, and family-friendly values. This brand consistency has fostered a deep emotional connection with consumers, contributing to long-term loyalty and positive brand perception. This analysis offers a basis for future communication strategies, emphasizing the importance of implementing digital trends, maintaining brand consistency, and staying above the competitive edge.
Market and Environmental Analysis
The market and the environmental analysis thoroughly examine external factors shaping its operations. This includes regulatory landscapes, macroeconomic trends, and entertainment industry societal shifts. In addition, environmental considerations, such as sustainability efforts and eco-friendly practices, are significant in shaping consumer perceptions. Disney closely monitors economic trends affecting consumer spending patterns as a global entity. For example, economic downturns may influence theme park attendance, while solid economic periods may boost consumer confidence in discretionary spending on entertainment.
The organization navigates a regulatory environment, with regulations varying across international markets. This analysis ensures compliance and anticipates regulatory changes impacting operations, especially in content production and distribution areas. As of the societal shifts, the brand remains familiar with the social changes impacting consumer preferences. For instance, evolving attitudes toward diversity and inclusion prompt the company to incorporate diverse narratives and characters in its content.
In exploring opportunities for a new product launch, Disney conducts a comprehensive market opportunity analysis. This entails assessing the gaps in the market, understanding unmet consumer needs, and evaluating the potential for innovation within the industry (Azarpour, 2022). Disney leverages its brand equity to identify areas where its unique storytelling and entertainment expertise can create a competitive advantage. Moreover, strategic alliances and partnerships include potential partnerships and alliances that align with the new product’s objectives. This is because collaborations with other industry leaders or emerging players can enhance market penetration and offer synergies to the product’s success.
Other Information
While performing secondary research, multiple secondary was acquired to improve the understanding of Disney’s pricing difficulties for non-Florida residents. An important line of inquiry has been the examination of customer sentiment. Disney’s price adjustments were the subject of a sentiment analysis conducted using social media listening tools and online forums. This qualitative data sheds light on potential difficulties in managing public relations by offering insights into the emotional impact on consumers. A comprehensive analysis of industry reports has also been conducted in parallel. These reports provide a macro-level perspective of industry trends, competitive dynamics, and consumer behavior. They are sourced from analysts who specialize in entertainment and theme parks. This more significant viewpoint offers insightful background for comprehending Disney’s place within the dynamic and competitive market landscape.
In addition, economic indicators have been thoroughly examined, including information on inflation rates, disposable income, and consumer spending trends. This investigation makes it easier to understand the larger financial framework within which Disney is putting its price adjustments into effect, facilitating a more thorough evaluation of the possible economic effects. Disney’s pricing strategies have also been examined from a historical perspective. Thus, analyzing past price adjustments that have been made offers essential historical background. This retrospective view informs future strategic decisions by helping to foresee possible outcomes and challenges related to the current pricing changes.
Trends related to travel and tourism have also received attention. Anticipating possible changes in theme park visits by non-Florida residents is made more accessible by considering the changing travel patterns, particularly in the post-pandemic environment. This all-encompassing integration of additional data guarantees a thorough comprehension of the outside variables impacting Disney’s pricing strategy, which helps to build a more prosperous and comprehensive marketing campaign.
Implication and Guide for Primary Research
The thorough secondary research yielded valuable insights that will guide and rationalize the upcoming primary research efforts regarding Disney’s pricing challenges for non-Florida residents. First off, subtle public responses to the price adjustments have been revealed by the analysis carried out in secondary research. The ramifications imply that primary research should further comprehend the emotional aspects of customer reactions. A qualitative layer can be added by conducting focus groups, interviews, or surveys to determine the target audience’s specific pain points and concerns and the degree of emotional resonance.
The dynamic nature of the entertainment and theme park landscape has been highlighted in industry reports. This indicates that real-time data that reflects the state of the market must be collected for primary research. Moreover, interviews and surveys with subject matter experts, visitors to theme parks, and travelers can provide pertinent and timely insights, assisting in identifying new trends and possible changes in consumer behavior.
The secondary research examines economic indicators that offer a framework for comprehending the broader financial context. This highlights the significance of including economic viewpoints straight from the target audience in primary research. To determine how the economy affects consumer decision-making, surveys may ask about disposable income, spending priorities, and the perceived value of theme park experiences. Retrospective approaches can help primary research by utilizing past pricing strategies. In this case, surveys may ask about preferences for pricing schemes and prior experiences with Disney’s price adjustments. As such, questions that reveal consumer expectations based on past interactions with price adjustments are formulated with this historical context in mind.
The examination of travel and tourism trends reveals how post-pandemic patterns have changed. Primary research can make the most of this insight by concentrating on comprehending prospective theme park visitors’ shifting preferences and worries. Further, the factors influencing travel decisions, such as safety concerns, favoured means of transportation, and expectations for a theme park experience in the current travel environment could be investigated through surveys or interviews. The conclusions drawn from the secondary research highlight the necessity of conducting timely and pertinent primary research that also considers the emotional, historical, and economic aspects of consumer perspectives. By ensuring strategic alignment, primary research efforts are ensured to be purposeful and to yield actionable insights that can be used to develop a successful communications campaign.
Primary Research
Objectives
The primary objective of the research was to gauge public sentiment and perceptions regarding Disney’s recent price increases. In particular, this objective focuses on the impact of these increases on non-Florida residents. Specific research questions include the following;
- How aware are respondents of Disney’s recent price hikes?
- What is the general sentiment towards the increased pricing, especially among non-Florida residents?
- How likely are respondents, especially non-Florida residents, to reconsider visiting Disney World due to these price changes?
Methodology
The methodology of the research involved data collection through a survey administered to non-Florida residents who have visited Disney World. The sample consisted of 101 non-Florida residents who have visited Disney World. The respondents were selected based on their willingness to participate in the survey. The survey included questions related to residency, visitation frequency, travel arrangements, motivations, satisfaction, affordability and demographic information.
Survey administration was done online, and participants were asked to respond voluntarily. However, the participants were assured of privacy by stating that there were no personal identifiers included to maintain anonymity. As such, all the participants were allowed to refuse to answer any of the questions since there were no coercion. Moreover, the introduction to the survey emphasized the voluntary nature of participation, allowing respondents to refuse to answer or withdraw from the survey at any point.
Key Findings
The survey on Disney World’s affordability for non-Florida residents yielded several key findings and observations. For starters, the results recorded that almost 99% of the respondents were non-Florida residents, indicating a targeted focus on this demographic. Contrarily, the Florida residents were only represented by 1%, suggesting that the results of the survey were reliable as it empathizes with the perspectives of those outside the state. The visitor’s frequency was also higher because over 97% of the respondents had visited Disney World in the past three years, indicating the popularity of the organization. Particularly, a significant percentage of 61% had visited at least 1-2 times in the specified period. The graph below provides a better illustration of the visitor’s frequency.
Fig 1: Figure 1 indicates the percentage of individuals who have visited Disney World for the past 3 years.
Fig 2: Indicates the number of times the respondents had visited Disney World within the specified period.
From the results, majority (88%) reported planning their Disney World trips independently, with a similar percentages using travel agents or online travel websites. Among the travellers, it was discovered that the travel was primarily motivated by effective marketing (71%), love for Disney characters and stories (69%) and family vacations (53%). Additionally, a considerable number utilized the Disney Vacation Club, highlighting the popularity of such perks among visitors. As a result, approximately 75% expressed their satisfaction with their Disney World experience. Notwithstanding, affordability rates varied, with 47% considering it expensive and 15% finding it very expensive. These results are expressed in the graphs below.
Fig 3: Indicates the respondent’s motivations for visiting Disney World
Fig 4: Indicates level of Satisfaction among the respondents
Fig 5: Indicates the affordability rates
The results indicated that more respondents spent 3-4 days at Disney World, with a significant portion spending around $2,501-$4500 on their trips. Out of all this expenditure, about 65% had planned the budget for their trip, illustrating a financial awareness among visitors. While visiting, the respondents reported that they faced challenges such as long wait times for attractions (68%) and the high rate of ticket prices or add-on experiences (52%). Therefore, most of them suggested improvements on limiting entry (68%) and expanding parks or offering more experiences (65%). Moreover, a notable 26% indicated that if the prices continued to rise they would be somewhat unlikely to visit again the next year. This is because a large majority (88%) of the respondents were aware of the deal-saving offers for Florida residents, while only 4% were unsure.
Fig 6: Indicating the money spent by the respondents during the trip
Fig 7: challenges faced by the respondents
Fig 8: Suggestions on Improvement
According the survey, most respondents 83% claimed that if more saving options were offered, then they were likely to visit Disney World more. These findings collectively provide insights into visitor behavior, satisfaction, and preferences, offering valuable information for both Disney World and reserachers examining theme park affordability for non-local visitors. However, while some considered Disney World expensive, a significant portion 53% still believed that they received value for the money spent, reflecting a balance between cost and perceived experience
References
Ang, L. (2021). Principles of integrated marketing communications. Cambridge University Press. https://books.google.co.ke/books?hl=en&lr=&id=6DcTEAAAQBAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PR16&dq=Disney%27s+IMC+iNTEGRATED+mARKETING+cOMMUNICATION&ots=MUSkoW2c-D&sig=Kjkm6MWNKG_acldwCk6Dy7Mtap4&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q=Disney’s%20IMC%20iNTEGRATED%20mARKETING%20cOMMUNICATION&f=false
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