Excuse Me, “Legacy Fans”? We Might Just Be Disney’s Only Way Forward.

[JJZMgailey]

If not being a collective doormat means we need a new passive-aggressive title, "Legacy Fans," then take a seat, Josh D'Amaro; we need to have a little chat.

In today's featured article on wdwinfo.com, longtime DIS contributor Zoë Wood dives into her feelings about Disney's newest term for those of us Disney fans who have been around for a number of years. Ahem.

Stop by the site and give the article a read – it's worth your time and if you're feeling anything like me, it hits the nail right on the head with regards to what's going on right now.

 

[Ursula J]

Excellent article--definitely agree with this. I just wish anyone at Disney was listening.

 

[Scalemaster34]

Feelings have very little to do with the running of a megacorporation... finding new ways to create revenue from an existing product is the name of the game. Once we have to pay for the "air"...

 

[disney-inspired]

I totally agree with the article. I have a Gen Z sibling and there is no way they could afford a Disney trip if our parents or I weren't footing half the cost. AND Disney isn't even a huge draw for her right now/
Have they even considered that the reason Gen Z/Alpha would even take once-in-a-lifetime trip is because their parents or grandparents instilled that love for Disney. If their parents lose that love, future generations won't know what the big deal is about Disney.

 

[FCDub]

Corporations are not your friends or family, regardless of how they like to dress it up with pixie dust and nostalgia.

 

[TraderStitch]

Disney is going to have a rude awakening in 10-15 yrs. It seems like GenZ could care less about Disney if they are footing the bill. All of my younger coworkers I've talked to don't "get" the Disney draw. The same seems to go with their friends. They will go if their family pays but would rather go abroad with their own money.
Josh is sounding more and more like a problem then the "hopeful" savior we want.

 

[Smugpugmug]

I am in the younger millennial/older Gen Z age range and only one of my friends has an interest in Disney. I went with her this past May since none of our other friends care about the Disney parks. They would rather go to Universal for the thrill rides or travel internationally. To them, Disney doesn't have thrilling enough rides and they do not have nostalgia for the classics like Pirates, Haunted Mansion, Small World, etc. I grew up going to Disney so that's where my love for the parks come from. However I do agree with the previous poster that corporations aren't our friends (not just the Walt Disney company - corporations in general). They only care about making the most amount of money possible; our feelings do not matter at all.

 

[Snowysmom]

I agree with what the article has to say. They do need to consider their "foundation" and not use the term legacy fans. I am going on a family trip to WDW next month with 2 sons, 1 DDIL, and 6 grandkids. How are the kids and grandkids interested in going to Disney? This legacy fan! DH and I honeymooned at WDW when we found a love for Disney, took the kids, went ourselves as empty nesters, and now that it is only me I planned this family trip and I want to do solo trips down the road. I understand Disney is a corporation but they need to look ahead a bit and see where they will be in 10-15 years with this type of strategy.

 

[vpusey]

Great article , as a longtime Disney fan and DVC owner I totally agree !
I just wish someone from Disney could read this .

 

[_19disnA]

I couldn't access the WSJ article since the link in the OP's article didn't work and even when I tried to search on the WSJ website, I couldn't access it since it was behind a paywall. However, I can glean enough of what it apparently covered from the way the article references it.

I think the big issue even for the 'money is no object' crowd is they have CHOICES of where to spend their vacation dollars. Disney isn't the only place to vacation. If the VALUE they perceive from Disney isn't worth it, they will find other places to vacation. We used to go to Disney every 4-5 years since the rides/shows/etc. really didn't change that often. When we last went in 2019 we were amazed at how crowded and expensive everything had become. Some of the older rides like 'It's a small world' or that 3D Muppet movie haven't changed in probably 20 years. Small World now seems amateurish and outdates with those plywood/glitter covered cutouts.

Disney seems to overly focus on glitzy new rides and has apparently forgotten about all of the existing rides that remained basically the same after all these years. However, the new rides seems to have been designed with insufficient capacity since that new Star Wars rides sells out for the entire day within 15 minutes of the park opening. Tron which is apparently a copy of the ride at one of their international locations will likely have the same issue since far more people go to MK, but isn't clear if their planning considered that. On some days even in the middle of the week, various parks were wall-to-wall people making even walking around a challenge. Narrow walkways in many parks create pinch points and are clearly insufficient for the current levels of crowds. We would estimate it takes roughly 2x as long to do the things we used to like to do since parks are just way too crowded for the available ride capacity. Neither FastPass nor Genie solves the over-crowded park issue.

In our view, prices have risen way out of line with other popular vacation destinations. We have ZERO plans to return anytime soon given the way the parks currently operate. If others start to notice this as well, it wouldn't surprise me to see a significant decline in attendance...............and Disney will likely be left wondering why. Treating their long-time fans in a condescending way is certainly NOT the way any company should operate. I think some of the top Disney people need more PR training in how to talk about their customer base. They certainly come off as tone-deaf in many of the recent public statements they are making.

 

[Genie+]

I’m conflicted on this.

On one hand, obviously millions of people continue to find value paying Disney Park prices. Look at MNSSHP. The whole season is almost sold out with 2 months to go. The parks are still full. DVC is nearly booked solid into Jan 2023. Try finding an onsite room this year and it is slim pickings, and many dates have close to zero. As a business, all they’d need to do is wave a good deal and plenty of fence sitters would flock back. They are by no means desperate to attract visitors.

Taken for granted? Absolutely. I feel like more and more they take our devotion for granted. Often it’s like they see what they can get away with, and that is very unlike the good will Legacy Disney was known for. I can go on with alot of specific and reasonable gripes here, but suffice to say most of us have had more of them in recent years. What is the breaking point to the synergy machine? Every family that walks away likely cuts ties with many different Disney revenue streams. As long as there are enough new consumers ready in the wings, they’ll be okay. But the future is not known. Universal is giving a good run, recession looms, international exchange rates are hurting.

 

[jade1]

Look at MNSSHP. The whole season is almost sold out with 2 months to go. The parks are still full. DVC is nearly booked solid into Jan 2023. Try finding an onsite room this year and it is slim pickings, and many dates have close to zero.

I do agree it's a popular product and not hurting.

But I know 2 families going to MNSSHP for the first time ever, because they no longer have AP available.

Sounds weird but it did leave money available and get's them into MK for the night as well.

As for DVC being full, there are still a lot of banked points finally being used. But I think it will be a long time until it's flush again.

 

[J-Dog]

To me, the distaste of the article and Josh's comments aren't so much about price hikes, or even a decreasing experience.

It's about mega-corporations like Disney making public statements the seem to double-down on their views that we, as patrons, are just a data point in their revenue stream. Terms like "legacy fans" and "unfavorable attendance mix" only highlight their lack of empathy and a waning connection to their customers.

Hell, my business is much less customer-dependent than Disney, and even we have signs around the building that say things like "Make the Client Feel Important".

 

[TraderStitch]

The article also shows a lack of connection to their customers. While Bob, Josh and others making decisions earn boku money, the vast majority of those they are categorizing and putting down do not.
They want that desirable top 10% but if those people don't have a Disney foundation or see value Disney is SOL.

 

[RoseGold]

I'm not really sure what the article was arguing, because it was so disorganized. It just seemed like a lot of reminiscing for $1 gas to me.

And the thing is, us "legacy fans" ARE powerful. I plan Disney trips for everyone I know, and everyone they know. Two families I sent to just Universal for 2022. I've never even been to Universal and I knew it would have a superior product. Disney behaves as if it isn't competing with other vacations, but also with the guys up the street.

 

[DL1WDW2]

I'm not really sure what the article was arguing, because it was so disorganized. It just seemed like a lot of reminiscing for $1 gas to me.

And the thing is, us "legacy fans" ARE powerful. I plan Disney trips for everyone I know, and everyone they know. Two families I sent to just Universal for 2022. I've never even been to Universal and I knew it would have a superior product. Disney behaves as if it isn't competing with other vacations, but also with the guys up the street.

I read the original article and was not confused until now.
Do you agree or disagree with the importance of the legacy fan ?

I understand that Corporate America needs to make money .
But they don’t want to understand that the $1.00 raise can only be stretched so far. and then game over !

 

[jade1]

I think a lot of planes have been grounded to keep the flying planes full and therefore more expensive.

So I guess WDW could keep dining half full, rides running at partial rates etc.

Just doesn't seem to make sense to me though, or the same.

But that must be the comparison?

 

[RoseGold]

I read the original article and was not confused until now.
Do you agree or disagree with the importance of the legacy fan ?

I understand that Corporate America needs to make money .
But they don’t want to understand that the $1.00 raise can only be stretched so far. and then game over !

I'm not sure exactly what the article was trying to argue. It didn't say anything about the stretching part. Something about wanting "value" whatever that means. It jumps between value to her and value to Disney, without arguing either very clearly.

There's a lot of arguments I could make about "legacy fans" being important to Disney, but they aren't in that article.

 

[parasail_of_congress]

The wdwinfo article is really bizarre. The author seems to take offense to the word "legacy," but here's the quote from the WSJ article:

At the same time, the changes driving the increases in revenue and profit have drawn the ire of what Disney calls “legacy fans,” or longtime parks loyalists, including annual passholders who feel they are being pushed to the side in favor of big-spending families taking once-a-year, or even a once-in-a-lifetime, vacations.

Does Disney actually call longtime parks loyalists "legacy?" I've never heard anyone from Disney use that term before, and I can't find it used specifically for that anywhere online.

 

[dieumeye]

if they really want to encourage the highest spenders, then they should do what airlines, hotels, and some restaurants and stores do and have a loyalty program where you get “points” for every dollar you spend. The more points you have, the higher “tier” you get and the more/better perks you get.

Book a room at a Disney resort? Buy park tickets or annual passes, food, or merchandise? Get points.

Have Disney+, DVC, D23 memberships? Go on a Disney Cruise, or Adventures By Disney? Get points.

There would be different tiers based on how many points you have in a year. The basic tier could give you some incentives like food and merch discounts. Higher tiers could offer greater discounts, hotel upgrades, member only nights, advance or priority booking of services or ADRs, access to a members lounge, etc.

And there it is. A program that rewards the most loyal and biggest spenders without enabling “unfavorable attendance”. Isn’t that what they want?

I know there’s been a rumor that Disney is considering a “Prime” style membership program. I wonder if that would be something like this.