name some things Disney could give dvc members that wouldnt cost them anything

[Pluto 2]

im going on my first dcl cruise so i had to wait until 75 days to make the excurions, the first day i could make reservations to palo they had no openings. for people staying cat 1-3 they get to make it at 105 days for people who have been on a dcl cruise before they get to start making reservations at 90 days. if you are a dvc member you get no special treatment on excurions if its your first dcl cruise.
it would be nice for them to give dvc members some extra time to make excurions it wouldnt cost them anything.
im not here to bad mouth dvc i love dvc just got more points 6 months ago,
and would really like to get more later once my house is paid off, but theres somethings they could give us and it wouldnt cost them anything. i can think of a few more but i will let other people name them

 

[LisaS]

A fastpass or two per day for members and each guest on their reservation!

 

[spiceycat]

no offense - to get you the same benefit as returned customers - that is entirely up to the cruise line. DVC has to renew its contract with the cruise line each year to even get us cruises...

the fass passes are a ticket thing again not DVC. I just glad that we FINALLY have a discount for annual passes - I waited over 10 years for that one....

if you want something free from DVC - then made it a DVC thing only - you can't cross departmental lines.

even free food would be a restuarant thing....

 

[disneybride96]

Don't worry to much about those palo ressies. I've never been on the DVC cruise, but we've never had trouble booking a time once on board. You'll love the cruise. The only thing I regret about DVC is that we will be spending more time on land!

 

[bobbiwoz]

Well, I guess everything costs something, but for a few years now, they have had Holiday Mixers in November/December, and the day before the '05 Members Cruise everyone was invited to a party at PI (that was for sure a rainy rainy afternoon), and we did go to a party at PI for the opening of SSR, or something, it was on a Tuesday afternoon last August. If you go to the weekly meetings at SSR, I think you get refreshments.

When you went to some of these activities, we got these magnetic DVC pins that blink on and off, of course, because of the magnets, you had to keep them away from your AP! Whatever they give you, it's to sell DVC, and encourage the spread of add-on-itis!

Bobbi

 

[tmt martins]

I'm going to Miss my Luggage tags I got when booking through Disney Travel.That would be nice to get some with the Resorts on them instead of just the DVC ones I seen for sale.

 

[spiceycat]

I'm going to Miss my Luggage tags I got when booking through Disney Travel.That would be nice to get some with the Resorts on them instead of just the DVC ones I seen for sale.

you know I think they only have the DVC ones.

I have never seem a luggage tag for just OKW or BWV....

 

[Deemarch]

When you get to your room, they should have any of the current give-aways sitting on the bed or the table. Makes you feel special and really encourages us to talk up being owners even more than we do. They could have pins that say something like, "DVC member - Just ask me!" If you wear it would mean that you are willing to TALK about DVC!!!

 

[LisaS]

the fass passes are a ticket thing again not DVC.

Right, but Pluto asked about things DISNEY could give DVC members, so I didn't limit my thinking to DVC only. Free fastpasses would cost very little but could have some payback to DVC (and therefore to Disney) if it encouraged more people to become members.

 

[Happy Birthday Cat]

I'd suggest greater home resort reservation preference guarantees. For example if I make my home resort reservations at 11 months and another member makes his/hers at 7 months, my preferences would take priority over the non owner.

I own BWV and BCV. This guarantee is already the case in some ways at the BWV with standard view and Boardwalk view guaanteed. But what about other view preferences like those who own at SSR having a guaranteed DTD view? Or BCV having pool view guaranteed?

HBC

 

[dianeschlicht]

And the real question is... Why would DISNEY give DVC members anything for free? I guess I don't quite get it. They are two seperate business entities. The Disney Cruise line isn't DVC, and they make less profit on the DVC exchanges as is. WDW isn't DVC, so why would they give out fastpasses and risk angering those on site guests who only MIGHT return another time in the future.

I do know of several things we get. They aren't costless to DVC, but they are for us. The nice DVC coasters they are leaving in the rooms now. Frankly, I'll take my DVC subsidized AP discount and keep my mouth shut about anything else. That is so far and away the best perk we could ever expect. Not free for either side, but certainly appreciated.

 

[spiceycat]

I want something back.

express check in over the phone - it was GREAT!!!

I also appreciate the books that had the real instructions on how to work everything in the room. but non-members stole them so often that DVC quit that long ago.

I also want bigger TV.

how about a happy hour - member drink half price - non-member only get a 25% discount.

 

[Horace Horsecollar]

When something is "given" to us as a DVC member, it falls into one of five categories:

1. Marketing expense - When we receive a pin, calendar, lithograph, baseball cap, or whatever, Disney Vacation Development (DVD) is paying for it as a way to generate add-on sales or to create awareness among those who are not yet members. It's not costing us anything as members, except that the expenses are part of DVD's cost structure, just like construction costs and the salaries of DVC Guides.
   
2. Contractual obligations - As members, we bought the right to reserve nights in DVC resorts, based on a contract that spells out obligations on both sides of the contract. So we're not being "given" anything when we use our DVC ownership points. (However, when the services for are delivered by friendly cast members who provide great service, we are, in fact, getting more than just what is contractually due to us.)
   
3. Things we pay for - We pay the cost of DVC operations directly through our annual dues. For example, we pay for the Mickey Mouse soap and shampoo through our dues. In the past, some people on this board have wished that we would get fancy toiletries, just like at a fancy hotel. They failed to realize that it would make our dues go up by the cost of those toiletries, with members who tend to have longer stays subsidizing those who check in and out often. I'd rather just get the basic soap and shampoo we get today than to see my dues go up $10 or $20. If I want something fancier, I'll bring it from home.
   
4. Things that are mutually beneficial - When Disney gives us a discount on meals, tickets, or anything else, it's not because they're just trying to nice; they're generating additional sales. We're happy because we "save" money (because we're paying less than the full price). Disney is happy because we end up spending more money than we would have if there were no discount.
   
5. Things that don't cost Disney anything - It's hard to identify anything that falls into this category. DVC pool hopping comes close. Even there, when DVCers use a pool at a non-DVC resort, we're slightly diminishing the experience for the guests at that resort. FastPasses are just a way of allocating the limited capacity of popular attractions. Every FastPass that is issued through a preferential distribution means one less FastPass for regular distribution to other paying guests. Actually, I wouldn't encourage Disney to issue extra FastPasses to anyone, because Disney would be much more likely to use FastPasses as an incentive to get people to book deluxe resorts or vacation packages than to give them to those of us who are already DVC members.

 

[dianeschlicht]

Perfect answer, Horace!

 

[brasey]

When I bought in we rec. a really nice DVC tote bag.




Then again, it was a $17000 tote bag

 

[BWVNUT]

For some people who don't get to Disney as often as they'd like and who it might not be worth it to buy APs, it'd be nice to get some sort of discount on regular park passes. . .

 

[Horace Horsecollar]

For some people who don't get to Disney as often as they'd like and who it might not be worth it to buy APs, it'd be nice to get some sort of discount on regular park passes. . .

I agree it would be nice. But Disney is a business. I don't see what Disney would gain.

The annual passes fall under the category of "Things that are mutually beneficial." By encouraging us to buy annual passes, Disney is also encouraging us to spend our money on-site rather than wandering off to off-site attractions, dining, and shopping, even if we're spending 10 or more nights per 12-month period at onsite DVC resorts (and would thus be likely to look off-site for more variety and to save money).

Sure, some DVC members bought APs anyway. For others (like us), the economics really sarted working out when the discount was introduced. I imagine that AP sales to DVC members went up substantially when the discount was introduced. And I also imagine that many DVC members bought add-on contracts to be able to take advantage of the APs. That's good business for Disney.

On the other hand, DVC members who don't stay long enough to benefit from APs are probably going to buy regular park passes anyway and to focus on on-site activities anyway. There's probably no business reason for Disney to provide discounts on regular passes. Magic Your Way passes provide great savings as the number of days increase, and DVC members are in a good position to make the optional, extra-cost "never expire" feature work for them because they know they'll be back.

 

[mkrober]

Has anyone been to a weekly member update recently? What do they pass out now at these meetings? Does anyone think it has encouraged you enough to make the trip over to SSR? Maybe we should start a new post-- how easily can you be bought? A magnet, a hat, a shirt, a few fastpasses?

 

[Dean]

Even listing something as a perk, advertising and training personnel has some cost. But ignoring the overall negligible costs of such, there are many things that have no direct cost to DVC and in many cases, to Disney in general. These include any restaurant and similar discounts. To me, I'd rather DVC go to bat to get good value exchange options rather than trying to offer everything. Play hardball and be willing not to offer certain resorts if they won't give a fair price. I know that's not popular with many members here but it's the way I feel. And I'd like to see DVC go after the DDE option directly for members in the same way. As for pool hopping, I think it has a LOT more cost the way it's set up that most any other perk.

 

[MinnieGirl33]

express check in over the phone - it was GREAT!!!

Is this something from "back in the day" or did I somehow miss something