Experience Matters

Not a Goofy Experience, Part II

I ended my last post by laying out four areas of customer experience management examples that my family and I were privy to at Disney World. Those areas were interaction, appearance, simplicity and customer. The best example I can offer to you for how much they believe in the experience of the customer radiates from the Bibbidy Boppity Boutique. Here, little girls are literally turned into a princess. The cast member that greets you lets you know that you will be working with your “fairy god mother” who then takes you to your seat and begins the transformation. In case you are wondering, the fairy god mother offers an array of services from a simple manicure to an extreme princess make over. My daughter got “princessed up,” as we came to call it. This included the nails, the hair, the make up, the shoes and the dress. The cast members referred to her as Princess Ava the entire time. When we left, they gave us an appointment card with her name on it, a free picture and all of the extra make up. You then walk out, through the biggest Disney store on the planet (oh yeah, the boutique is in a store. God forbid you don’t buy something while you are waiting.) Below is my daughter going through the transformation.

We left the boutique and went back to the Magic Kingdom so that my daughter could find Snow White. We had just missed her when we got to the park. I went in to ask someone when she might be back. The cast member said “in about 20 minutes, but let me get on the phone and find out the exact time so you can use your time wisely.” We came back 5 minutes before the scheduled time and within those 5 minutes Snow White appeared. She paid extra attention to my daughter, saying things like “Oh my goodness, I have a twin!” That moment alone was worth the cost of the makeover. Each cast member would stop when they saw my daughter and say things like “Oh my, what a beautiful Princess.” Not some of the cast members. Every single one of them.

Brand marketers all over the world admire what Disney has done, but it really isn’t that complicated. They are committed to providing the best customer experience for each person. Period. What can we take away from that mantra for our own brands?

1. Create the framework for your customer experience and never deviate from it. Your employees, your marketing communications and your products should represent that experience at every turn.
2. Understand where your customer touch points are and ensure the proper information is readily accessible.
3. Remember that it’s not just the first impression that matters. It is every impression.
4. The experience should be engaging, but simple. The more challenging the interaction is, the higher the likelihood that it won’t work.
5. Sell a lot of high margin goods in an environment where kids ask for them and if parents at first say no, they ultimately say yes to resolve the meltdown that ensues.

Ok, that last one may not be for everyone, but Disney knows how valuable their brand experience is and, to an extent, they exploit it. Disney’s marketing strategy could almost be coined as blackmail. In fact, I can see the HBR case study now: “Disney’s Marketing Strategy: An In-Depth Look at the Strong Arm of the Mouse.” So do I feel exploited? You bet. But look at this picture of my daughter and the look on her face:

Do I have any other choice but to buy the products, see the movies, go to the website and ultimately take her back to the park? As a parent, I feel pressured and abused. As a marketer, I am envious. They endear themselves to our kids to a point where they believe, literally, that they cannot live without the products.

Give me a brand who wouldn’t kill for that.