courtney0mae
Earning My Ears
- Joined
- Mar 22, 2016
- Messages
- 3
I asked everyone to help me out a few weeks ago with a survey for my senior thesis so I'm posting my conclusions, as promised, for anyone who wants to see:
Wait Time Information Effects
Of the 149 responses 145 (97.3%) of the participants answer yes to having visited a theme park, and 121 (81.2%) answer yes to having visited a Walt Disney theme park. Only four of the participants of the survey are a current of former Walt Disney Company cast member. It can be concluded from this data that a majority of the participants do not have the insider knowledge that a cast member would most likely have. This is also beneficial because a majority of the participants are knowledgeable of the basic workings of a theme park which makes my survey more accurate. Having a basic understand of the workings of a theme park ensures that participants understand that when visiting a theme park much of the time spent is not enjoying the rides but waiting in line, eating lunch or finding the bathrooms, they understand the low likeliness of being able to complete everything in a park in one day. The participants who have already visited a Disney park knew some about the attractions they were choosing, making the question about personal preference more accurate. The balance between having basic knowledge and insider knowledge is key, insiders often know what time of day to visit certain attractions to guarantee a low wait time which could affect their decisions, which could have skewed the data.
Initial ranking by participants are noted in charts 2, 3 and 4 of the results section. The blue bar in charts 2, 3 and 4 are the baseline for the research and vary from ride to ride. For the majority, however, the distribution of would want to ride responses is evenly distributed. This is most likely because this question was based on personal preferences and participants had no information of the wait time or ability to FastPass when making this decision.
Even though a majority of the population answered they agree or highly agree when asked if they considered themselves a patient person, as in the patience chart, most of the participants changed their most likely to ride attraction based on wait time rather than what they wanted to ride initially. This information demonstrates how computer mediated communication can affect the decisions of people who believe they are patient as well as people who believe that they are not.
The research asked participants if they believed that the knowledge of the wait time affected what rides they chose, if they would be more likely to attend a park that offered the ability to skip some lines and if knowing this information made their decision any easier. 72.0% believed that knowing the wait time affected what ride they chose, 70.0% said they are more likely to go to a theme park that allows them to skip some lines, and 81.0% said being able to skip a line made their decision easier.
FastPass Implications
Consistently indicated in each graph once the wait time is given the participants tended to choose the ride with the lowest wait time as the attraction they would ride, Splash Mountain – 20 minute wait with 42.30% of the responses, Pirates of the Caribbean – 15 minute wait 46.30% of the responses and Dumbo the Flying Elephant – 25 minute wait with 36.90% of responses. While the attractions with the longest wait time had the least amount of participants choosing as their preferred attractions. Seven Dwarfs Mine Train – 75 minute wait having a measly 2.7%, Jungle Cruise and Buzz Lightyear tied with 50 and 40 minute wait respectively and each with 10.70% and Peter Pan’s Flight with a 75 minute wait and only 12.80% of the participants.
Lastly the research wanted to answer whether or not the presence of a FastPass would affect which ride was chosen. There was a trend between longest wait time and which ride participants chose to FastPass. The Seven Dwarfs Mine Train has a 75 minute wait and 49.70% of participants chose to FastPass it. Similarly Jungle Cruise had a 50 minute wait and 45% of participants FastPassed it and lastly Peter Pan’s Flight had a 75 minute wait and 57.7% of participants FastPassed it.
Compliance Gaining Effectiveness: Implications of MyMagic+ and FastPass+
Study data suggest that guests have a perception of choice as opposed to actual choice because they are basing their decisions off of Disney recommendations, as reflected in participant choices based on the wait times and FastPass option. A majority of the study population chose a different attraction that they were most likely to ride when they had wait time information, and they indicated they would FastPass a long-wait ride rather that stick with their original selection. These findings are similar to what was initially theorized.
In sum, data from this study support the following responses to the four questions initially posed in this research:
· Does knowing the wait time affect what rides a consumer chose? Yes, a majority of the participants chose the attraction they would ride based on wait time rather than their original choice of attraction.
· Did the presence of a skip the line option affect what rides a consumer chose? Yes, most participants chose the attraction with the longest wait time despite what they had initially chose to ride.
· Were the consumers knowledgeable of the changes in their decision because of the presence of wait times and skip a line options? Yes, consumers agreed that the presence of the wait time and FastPass option affected what they were going to ride during their visit.
· Is a consumer more likely to return to a park that allows them to know this information? Yes, most of the participants of the study enjoyed being able to choose attractions based on wait time and the ability to skip rides with the longest wait time.
Future researcher on compliance gaining through computer mediated communication should be done to expand on this study, examining how it applies in other areas of consumer decision making based on company-provided information. It would be interesting to see how the consumer ability to obtain information that would not always be available to them affects their decision making. Other businesses, specifically theme parks, may benefit from following in the footsteps of Walt Disney Park. Allowing guest to know the wait times of any attraction in the park makes them feel that they have control of their experience, while simultaneously providing crowd management power to the company.
Validity, Reliability, and Limitations
The validity of this survey is high; the questions were presented in a low reading level, which leads to few routes for interpretation and better results. The reliability is also high because there was a large group (149) of participants who were selected randomly.
Participants were reliable because a majority had basic knowledge of the parks but not insider information, which a cast member would have. This means guest knew some background information about what attractions they were choosing and they knew the low likeliness of being able to complete all they had attended while visiting a Disney Park. They did not have the insider information, which is information like which attractions to go to a certain times because they would have a lower wait time.
A limitation of this study includes the vast amount of responses in the 18-24 range. Older guest to the park may have more of a preference to wait for an attraction than younger guests. The information is also limited because it only focused on one Disney Park; other parks with fewer attractions could have a higher likeliness of guests waiting for the attraction.
If Walt Disney World’s plan was to control crowd levels by means of wait time, then they were successful. Showing the wait time directly correlated to an increase of guest to that attraction as a result the rides with the longest wait time would decrease and rides with a short wait time would increase creating a more balanced wait time in the attractions throughout the park. The study’sresults also showed that the ability to FastPass a ride assisted guest in making a decision about what attraction they were going to ride next. Guest also responded that they were more likely to attend a theme park that allowed them to FastPass some attractions, which could mean an increase in Walt Disney guest attendance.
Computer mediated communication and compliance gaining have proven their strengths, as reflected in this study. The new MyMagic+ system at Disney has allowed their guest to have a perception of choice rather than actual choice. This has allowed Disney to manage guest experience by gaining their compliance to follow Disney’s recommendations. Because of its effectiveness, the Disney MyMagic+ and FastPass CMC strategy is one that is surely to be emulated by other companies.
Wait Time Information Effects
Of the 149 responses 145 (97.3%) of the participants answer yes to having visited a theme park, and 121 (81.2%) answer yes to having visited a Walt Disney theme park. Only four of the participants of the survey are a current of former Walt Disney Company cast member. It can be concluded from this data that a majority of the participants do not have the insider knowledge that a cast member would most likely have. This is also beneficial because a majority of the participants are knowledgeable of the basic workings of a theme park which makes my survey more accurate. Having a basic understand of the workings of a theme park ensures that participants understand that when visiting a theme park much of the time spent is not enjoying the rides but waiting in line, eating lunch or finding the bathrooms, they understand the low likeliness of being able to complete everything in a park in one day. The participants who have already visited a Disney park knew some about the attractions they were choosing, making the question about personal preference more accurate. The balance between having basic knowledge and insider knowledge is key, insiders often know what time of day to visit certain attractions to guarantee a low wait time which could affect their decisions, which could have skewed the data.
Initial ranking by participants are noted in charts 2, 3 and 4 of the results section. The blue bar in charts 2, 3 and 4 are the baseline for the research and vary from ride to ride. For the majority, however, the distribution of would want to ride responses is evenly distributed. This is most likely because this question was based on personal preferences and participants had no information of the wait time or ability to FastPass when making this decision.
Even though a majority of the population answered they agree or highly agree when asked if they considered themselves a patient person, as in the patience chart, most of the participants changed their most likely to ride attraction based on wait time rather than what they wanted to ride initially. This information demonstrates how computer mediated communication can affect the decisions of people who believe they are patient as well as people who believe that they are not.
The research asked participants if they believed that the knowledge of the wait time affected what rides they chose, if they would be more likely to attend a park that offered the ability to skip some lines and if knowing this information made their decision any easier. 72.0% believed that knowing the wait time affected what ride they chose, 70.0% said they are more likely to go to a theme park that allows them to skip some lines, and 81.0% said being able to skip a line made their decision easier.
FastPass Implications
Consistently indicated in each graph once the wait time is given the participants tended to choose the ride with the lowest wait time as the attraction they would ride, Splash Mountain – 20 minute wait with 42.30% of the responses, Pirates of the Caribbean – 15 minute wait 46.30% of the responses and Dumbo the Flying Elephant – 25 minute wait with 36.90% of responses. While the attractions with the longest wait time had the least amount of participants choosing as their preferred attractions. Seven Dwarfs Mine Train – 75 minute wait having a measly 2.7%, Jungle Cruise and Buzz Lightyear tied with 50 and 40 minute wait respectively and each with 10.70% and Peter Pan’s Flight with a 75 minute wait and only 12.80% of the participants.
Lastly the research wanted to answer whether or not the presence of a FastPass would affect which ride was chosen. There was a trend between longest wait time and which ride participants chose to FastPass. The Seven Dwarfs Mine Train has a 75 minute wait and 49.70% of participants chose to FastPass it. Similarly Jungle Cruise had a 50 minute wait and 45% of participants FastPassed it and lastly Peter Pan’s Flight had a 75 minute wait and 57.7% of participants FastPassed it.
Compliance Gaining Effectiveness: Implications of MyMagic+ and FastPass+
Study data suggest that guests have a perception of choice as opposed to actual choice because they are basing their decisions off of Disney recommendations, as reflected in participant choices based on the wait times and FastPass option. A majority of the study population chose a different attraction that they were most likely to ride when they had wait time information, and they indicated they would FastPass a long-wait ride rather that stick with their original selection. These findings are similar to what was initially theorized.
In sum, data from this study support the following responses to the four questions initially posed in this research:
· Does knowing the wait time affect what rides a consumer chose? Yes, a majority of the participants chose the attraction they would ride based on wait time rather than their original choice of attraction.
· Did the presence of a skip the line option affect what rides a consumer chose? Yes, most participants chose the attraction with the longest wait time despite what they had initially chose to ride.
· Were the consumers knowledgeable of the changes in their decision because of the presence of wait times and skip a line options? Yes, consumers agreed that the presence of the wait time and FastPass option affected what they were going to ride during their visit.
· Is a consumer more likely to return to a park that allows them to know this information? Yes, most of the participants of the study enjoyed being able to choose attractions based on wait time and the ability to skip rides with the longest wait time.
Future researcher on compliance gaining through computer mediated communication should be done to expand on this study, examining how it applies in other areas of consumer decision making based on company-provided information. It would be interesting to see how the consumer ability to obtain information that would not always be available to them affects their decision making. Other businesses, specifically theme parks, may benefit from following in the footsteps of Walt Disney Park. Allowing guest to know the wait times of any attraction in the park makes them feel that they have control of their experience, while simultaneously providing crowd management power to the company.
Validity, Reliability, and Limitations
The validity of this survey is high; the questions were presented in a low reading level, which leads to few routes for interpretation and better results. The reliability is also high because there was a large group (149) of participants who were selected randomly.
Participants were reliable because a majority had basic knowledge of the parks but not insider information, which a cast member would have. This means guest knew some background information about what attractions they were choosing and they knew the low likeliness of being able to complete all they had attended while visiting a Disney Park. They did not have the insider information, which is information like which attractions to go to a certain times because they would have a lower wait time.
A limitation of this study includes the vast amount of responses in the 18-24 range. Older guest to the park may have more of a preference to wait for an attraction than younger guests. The information is also limited because it only focused on one Disney Park; other parks with fewer attractions could have a higher likeliness of guests waiting for the attraction.
If Walt Disney World’s plan was to control crowd levels by means of wait time, then they were successful. Showing the wait time directly correlated to an increase of guest to that attraction as a result the rides with the longest wait time would decrease and rides with a short wait time would increase creating a more balanced wait time in the attractions throughout the park. The study’sresults also showed that the ability to FastPass a ride assisted guest in making a decision about what attraction they were going to ride next. Guest also responded that they were more likely to attend a theme park that allowed them to FastPass some attractions, which could mean an increase in Walt Disney guest attendance.
Computer mediated communication and compliance gaining have proven their strengths, as reflected in this study. The new MyMagic+ system at Disney has allowed their guest to have a perception of choice rather than actual choice. This has allowed Disney to manage guest experience by gaining their compliance to follow Disney’s recommendations. Because of its effectiveness, the Disney MyMagic+ and FastPass CMC strategy is one that is surely to be emulated by other companies.
