DVC Survey about killing the printed Vacation Planner

[jambo5564]

Does anybody actually believe we would save any money if they stopped making the book? Lol

 

[elgerber]

I would opt out as well. We get 2 each year, must be one for our original contract, and one for the add on. I never even look at them. They must cost a fortune to produce and mail, and I'm sure there are other things that our money could be used for.

 

[elgerber]

When is the last time Members received one of these? It seems like it has been a long time since we received it; or maybe ours got lost in the mail. Regardless, while I do love the high quality photographs I would probably opt out. I spend way too much on-line with this stuff as it is.

We just got 2 of them a few weeks ago.

 

[rlduvall]

We just got 2 of them a few weeks ago.

Thanks for the info. Hopefully, will see it soon.

 

[a742246]

I would say to only send them out to the members that request them.
That might cut the volume in half.

 

[disneynutz]

I don't think members are paying for TOTWL. It may be a member exclusive venue, but dues are legally tied to operational costs at the individual resorts plus a general management fee percentage. The observation deck may be a common area expense to BLT owners, but really an observation deck should not be a big expense. The lounge itself should be leased to WDW Food Services, with a member exclusive agreement. If it fails to garner enough revenue to pay for itself, it surely will be closed, revamped to open to everyone, or used solely as a private rental venue for weddings, conventions and so forth.

Nor should we be paying for Welcome Home events and mixers. That should come out of DVD's marketing budget, not member dues.

As far as beautiful planners, they could save costs by simply sending out new loose leaf point charts. That's the way they used to do it. Early owners received a binder containing the purchase info, POS book, and the point charts. Annually we got new charts to add to the binder until they started publishing the full color planners. And really, those should be paid out of the set management fee. But I'm all for discontinuing them, they seem wasteful and not eco-friendly.

It has been confirmed that the members pay for all events and gatherings, it's the Member Activities cost component in our dues.

We own at BCV, BLT, BWV, VWL, and AKV and the total charged for member activities in 2013 was $4.2 million. Not having access to all resorts budgets I can only guess that the total is $10 million or so. That seems like a lot of money to me.

The TOTW isn't just the real estate, it's the costs that go along with it. Cleaning, HVAC, utilities, insurance, security, maintenance, furnishings, cable TV, and anything else that costs.

Bill

 

[dallastxcpa]

As for the cost, that's a complete and utter non-issue, IMO. We get catalogs from Eddie Bauer and Pottery Barn 3x per month which are just as elaborate. Those booklets probably cost $2-3 each to print and mail in bulk.

As DVC owners, we got into bed with a company that charges $11 for turkey legs and $5 for churros. Seems silly to micro-manage dues expenditures.

The DVC Planner this year was 9 x 12 and over 100 pages long. As a small business owner who send out marketing materials I can tell you that the cost for printing and shipping these is well over $2-3 dollars even at the bulk rate for 90,000+ member families.

As an example we pay close to $2 for a 5X5 trifold mailer. That is just the production cost for a bulk order on quality paper and doesn't include design costs and mailing.

 

[tjkraz]

The DVC Planner this year was 9 x 12 and over 100 pages long. As a small business owner who send out marketing materials I can tell you that the cost for printing and shipping these is well over $2-3 dollars even at the bulk rate for 90,000+ member families.

As an example we pay close to $2 for a 5X5 trifold mailer. That is just the production cost for a bulk order on quality paper and doesn't include design costs and mailing.

Whether it's $3 or $10 or $20 doesn't change my opinion.

I'm paying for pool parties, community halls, theme park buses, DME and many other services that I rarely use. Haven't called Member Services in 2 years but I'm paying for telephone operators.

When we leave our villa, our trash is in the cans, dirty dishes in the dishwasher, sheets often pulled off the bed and all of the furnishings are back in their normal place. Still I pay the same fees as another guest who trashes the room and requires housekeeping to spend twice as much time cleaning.

With dues of $1500 per year, the production cost of a 1x annual glossy mailer is the least of my concerns.

As for member events, one minute we're talking about how DVC was so much better in the 90s when they supposedly "cared" about members. Next minute we're petitioning for the removal of such events.

The activity budget for the WDW resorts averages $.15 per point, per year. An owner with 200 points is paying about $30 per year for Member Activities, which also includes things like Community Hall operations, pool parties, resort movies, bonfires and other similar events. Even if that amount includes allocations for weekly member meetings, holiday mixers and TOTW lounge, it's not an outrageous sum.

Go to the event...have some refreshments....collect your baseball cap, luggage tags and Christmas Tree ornament...and make some new friends in the process.

 

[disneynutz]

Whether it's $3 or $10 or $20 doesn't change my opinion.

I'm paying for pool parties, community halls, theme park buses, DME and many other services that I rarely use. Haven't called Member Services in 2 years but I'm paying for telephone operators.

When we leave our villa, our trash is in the cans, dirty dishes in the dishwasher, sheets often pulled off the bed and all of the furnishings are back in their normal place. Still I pay the same fees as another guest who trashes the room and requires housekeeping to spend twice as much time cleaning.

With dues of $1500 per year, the production cost of a 1x annual glossy mailer is the least of my concerns.

As for member events, one minute we're talking about how DVC was so much better in the 90s when they supposedly "cared" about members. Next minute we're petitioning for the removal of such events.

The activity budget for the WDW resorts averages $.15 per point, per year. An owner with 200 points is paying about $30 per year for Member Activities, which also includes things like Community Hall operations, pool parties, resort movies, bonfires and other similar events. Even if that amount includes allocations for weekly member meetings, holiday mixers and TOTW lounge, it's not an outrageous sum.

Go to the event...have some refreshments....collect your baseball cap, luggage tags and Christmas Tree ornament...and make some new friends in the process.

I agree with you to a certain extent but when you look at the total number of $10 million for member activities don't you think that it seems like a lot of money?

Bill

 

[tjkraz]

I agree with you to a certain extent but when you look at the total number of $10 million for member activities don't you think that it seems like a lot of money?

Bill

I'm not in any position to judge one way or the other.

The description of that budget category suggests it includes all resort recreation. So we're talking about:

- All Community Hall expenses including equipment and staff
- Swimming pool operations including maintenance and staff (lifeguards)
- Outdoor movie nights hosted 3-4 times weekly
- Pool parties, bonfires, etc.

Most of those services operate 365 days per year at every single DVC resort (though not all have Community Halls.)

Add in 52 Welcome Home Wednesday events, 4 holiday Mixers and 365 nights of TOTW lounge operations (assuming you are correct about those items being fully funded by the activity budget.)

$10 million may sound like a lot of money but I have no idea how much would be saved by eliminating the member events. Seems to me that 7 days of resort activity staffing--for 7 Walt Disney World properties--costs a heck of a lot more than one hour-long weekly get together.

 

[Chuck S]

It has been confirmed that the members pay for all events and gatherings, it's the Member Activities cost component in our dues.

We own at BCV, BLT, BWV, VWL, and AKV and the total charged for member activities in 2013 was $4.2 million. Not having access to all resorts budgets I can only guess that the total is $10 million or so. That seems like a lot of money to me.

The TOTW isn't just the real estate, it's the costs that go along with it. Cleaning, HVAC, utilities, insurance, security, maintenance, furnishings, cable TV, and anything else that costs.

Bill

The lounge part of TOTW should be paid by Disney Food and Beverage via a rental agreement. I don't think "DVC" actually "operates" the lounge. If they did, profit/loss should show up somewhere in a budget detail.

 

[luv2sleep]

I got to take part in a survey today, and one of the questions mentioned that they are considering getting rid of the printed Vacation Planner book in favor of online materials (which they already have).

I made it clear that I wanted to keep getting the book. I use it as a conversation piece, and maybe a little bit of of a humblebrag. But I would really hate to see those books go, because they have some really great photography, and I enjoy looking at them.

What do you guys think? Would you want to see them get rid of the Vacation Planner?

I think the printed planner is pretty to look at but I don't really need it. It would save a lot of $$ if they didn't send those out. They could just uploaded to their site in PDF format for people to download of desired.

 

[Hettie]

Well, I just received my planner in the mail today. I'm a new member, purchased resale, so it was fun to get something pretty and official to look at with my member card. DH and I enjoyed flipping through it, but I don't see this as something I will use when I can get all the info I need online using my iPad which is practically attached to my hip. My vote would be to charge a small fee to order the print version, save some trees and maybe save on MFs in the process.

 

[mlayton14]

Opt OUT !


What a colossal waste of member dues (IMO)

 

[CMOORE185]

Does anybody actually believe we would save any money if they stopped making the book? Lol

So true....I would say they should only send it to people that want it, but I guess it is easier just to send out to everyone instead of spending the time to figure out who wants it and who doesn't.
It is a non-issue to me as the cost is negligible. By the way I have three contracts but only receive one.

 

[Tigger1]

I say keep the planner but let those who do not want it opt out. Cost should still come out of member dues as those who do not have internet should not have to pay extra just as those who look it up online do not pay extra for the cost of the information online.

 

[gray52]

Got to be honest... We get some miles out of our planners... At least an evening or two of Disney talk... The whole family comes together, we look at the pictures, dream of our next trip and spend some quality time together in "Fantasy Land"... If that is costing me a few dollars, so be it. Worth every penny. We own an oceanfront timeshare on the Outer Banks... We love it... but when it comes to value received per dollar spent, it doesnt compare... DVC is top notch, in our opinion. I'll keep the book, Welcome Home Wednesdays (even though we've never been), ME and bus transportation and everything else.

However... I'm sure they can figure out a way to send one book per household... I'm sure that would save a bit. We have two contracts... Different UY... And now we get two of everything, including the big glossy, beautiful planners.

 

[wdwlover25]

Completely agree with gray52... I love my planner. As much as I enjoy technology... I still pull my planner to answer questions and calculate points. Not sure why VGF was not included in most recent but that's another story.

It should be extremely easy for Disney to have an opt out option for those who want it.

 

[BEASLYBOO]

I think when you're new to DVC, getting the planner, and anything really from Disney/DVC makes you feel special, part of that special club! I kept them all for a few years! Now, it's about booking the vacation, I use the website or the phone, I threw all of my planners away including the new one that came, don't need more clutter.

I would be happy to save money where we can as owners, spend the printing budget on better mousekeeping services!

 

[gray52]

I think when you're new to DVC, getting the planner, and anything really from Disney/DVC makes you feel special, part of that special club! I kept them all for a few years! Now, it's about booking the vacation, I use the website or the phone, I threw all of my planners away including the new one that came, don't need more clutter.

I would be happy to save money where we can as owners, spend the printing budget on better mousekeeping services!

It's not necessarily how new you are... but more about how young your little ones are. My guys are 9 and 6... And anything that comes in the mail that has Disney on it contains pixie dust! Lol.