Simple question, member satisfaction

[bookwormde]

Simple question, member satisfaction

Have the cumulative changes over the past 2 year increased or decreased you “member satisfaction”

bookwormde

 

[ChelleinNC]

Members demanded and received free internet.
Members demanded that mugs & glasses be returned to studios, and DVC responded.
Members wanted dedicated booking categories at OKW for HH, and got it.
Members wanted to be able to call MS on the weekend, and can call 7 days a week now.
Members wanted to use the DDP and can

My question is, why wouldn't I be satisfied? DVC has tried to meet member needs & wants and even when they misunderstood what we wanted, they rectified it. If this question is spurred by the point reallocation, I'm not upset by that either. DVC is supposed to be at nearly full capacity at all times and when weekends cost double a weeknight we couldn't/wouldn't spend those points. Now I'll be able to stay over weekends when it suits my schedule. Our guide was very upfront on DVC being able to reallocate points based on member usage. Room occupancy? We read our contract when we bought and knew what the limits were (our guide was very upfront about that as well).

I'm very satisfied

 

[keishashadow]

not so simple answer to this one, after weighing the pros & cons; I have decided that while DVC/Disney experience is still magical to me, DVC is implementing many changes I am not happy with & while i shall continue to enjoy our membership, i don't plan on any future add-ons...conversely, another member may be thrilled ; just the way it is.

We are a diverse group, united by our DVC membership, yet should be entitled to express our personal opinions as to changes in a respectful manner

JMHO, many members are so financially & emotionally invested in DVC they cannot dream of considering any comment that may not reflect 100% positively upon DVC. Many cannot or will not accept that things are changing, whether to our overall detriment or not TBD

 

[oakmanner]

I love our DVC. Please pass the DVC Kool-Aid


Dennis-

 

[ajenkins]

Ditto....

 

[bwvBound]

Nicely put, Chelle!

 

[palhockeymomof2]

Members demanded and received free internet.
Members demanded that mugs & glasses be returned to studios, and DVC responded.
Members wanted dedicated booking categories at OKW for HH, and got it.
Members wanted to be able to call MS on the weekend, and can call 7 days a week now.
Members wanted to use the DDP and can

My question is, why wouldn't I be satisfied? DVC has tried to meet member needs & wants and even when they misunderstood what we wanted, they rectified it. If this question is spurred by the point reallocation, I'm not upset by that either. DVC is supposed to be at nearly full capacity at all times and when weekends cost double a weeknight we couldn't/wouldn't spend those points. Now I'll be able to stay over weekends when it suits my schedule. Our guide was very upfront on DVC being able to reallocate points based on member usage. Room occupancy? We read our contract when we bought and knew what the limits were (our guide was very upfront about that as well).

I'm very satisfied

I agree with the above..my favorite perk is the discounted annual pass

 

[CheapMom]

aw I voted wrong- I should have said increase in satisfaction- i voted neutral.

the biggest changes that have improved my experience are the addition of the THVs, AKV, BLT, GCV

 

[DebbieB]

The one change I was not happy with is the $95 fee to stay at a non-DVC WDW resort. I sometimes book 1 night as an add-on to a business trip, it's usually last minute so DVC rooms are not available. For example, I stayed at POFQ one time on a Sunday night in October, it was 18 points (this was before the fee). That's double the OKW or SSR studio points then they want to hit me with $95 also?

 

[Disneypirate85]

I would like to see DVC decrease the points needed for standard resort stays if there is no rooms available for a DVC resort and wave the darn fee. Buth thats bout the only thing I would like to see diffrent.

 

[WOW]

WE are disappointed in the food......as a whole, it used to be much better than it is now. I feel it is because of the disney dining plan. Now you almost have to have reservations, which in our case, has us planning our days around meal reservations and that isn't something we like to do.

 

[DisDaydreamer]

WE are disappointed in the food......as a whole, it used to be much better than it is now. I feel it is because of the disney dining plan. Now you almost have to have reservations, which in our case, has us planning our days around meal reservations and that isn't something we like to do.

This is one thing we have never done. Couldn't possibly work multiple days around dining reservations. Too much stress.. and maybe my stomach isn't ready at the right times.

Give me my 1 bdrm and we will go home for a few hours and have a meal when we want. Maybe a little nap, then go back, then come back and eat when we are ready, and go back again... This is what works for us.....

Oh... I voted "no change"... 10 years.

 

[JimMIA]

not so simple answer to this one, after weighing the pros & cons; I have decided that while DVC/Disney experience is still magical to me, DVC is implementing many changes I am not happy with & while i shall continue to enjoy our membership, i don't plan on any future add-ons...conversely, another member may be thrilled ; just the way it is.

We are a diverse group, united by our DVC membership, yet should be entitled to express our personal opinions as to changes in a respectful manner

JMHO, many members are so financially & emotionally invested in DVC they cannot dream of considering any comment that may not reflect 100% positively upon DVC. Many cannot or will not accept that things are changing, whether to our overall detriment or not TBD

I was going to say something worth reading, but Keisha beat me to it.

This post absolutely echoes our families feelings about the last couple of years. Our estimation of our DVC membership is that, overall, it has been diminished. Yes, there have been some bright spots -- like the glassware being taken away, and then not being taken away.

But when we look at the overall effect of all these changes, we don't think high speed internet makes up for the loss of the ability to transfer, or the changes in banking/booking regulations, or DVC's apparently congenital inability to implement a sensible and functioning waitlist system which replaces the previous system which was not broken. Little pluses don't outweigh big losses.

And an even bigger concern, for us, is that we really don't know what DVC will look like five years from now. That unreliability really is why we would not recommend DVC to our friends.

We'll continue to use, and enjoy, our DVC. We have no current plans to sell. We would not recommend that a friend purchase at this time. We won't be adding on.

 

[SuzanneSLO]

I didn't vote because "member satisfaction" is a tough thing for me to gauge. I agree with Keisa and Jim that there have been several negative changes.

I was vocally opposed to the new booking policy but was happy to get an acceptable reservation for 8 nights in a BWV SV studio in Dec with just 3 phone calls, only the first of whic was unsuccessful but not made at 9 AM.

I don't like the changes in the WL policy but honestly, I don't think they will effect me at all. I am not sure why Jim thinks the WL functioned before and does not now. I just had my first successful WL and it was for 2 nights in a AKV CL studio booked about 4 months out for this May that came thru in about a week. Prior WLs for a single Mon night BWV SV or BW view in Apr or Oct made 3 to 6 months out did not come thru (although the BW view came thru by calling in the last 7 days).

I don't like the limits on transfers per year, but again, I don't think they will really effect me. I have transferred a small number of points out and a large number of points in, both transactions within 6 months of each other but in different UYs.

The change in the points charts does not effect me greatly. We usually stay more than 9 nights and have included more than 2 weekend nights in most of our trips due to airline scheduling and FF miles.

The free internet does benefit me as we paid $10/night in the past and now get it free!

Most troubling is the overall realization that DVC is just another timeshare and that it is no better (and may be worse) than others, escpecially when it comes to comunicating with its members.

I am fully prepared to sell my membership when DVC no longer works for me, but that time has not yet come. I still see DVC as the best way for my family to vacation at WDW. When that changes, we will sell.

-- Suzanne

 

[DVC Mike]

Slightly increased satisfaction.

 

[Pamjr]

We just returned from 7 days at VWL. We had two families (2 adults and 3 adults/1 child) but they would only take one credit card. Why can't they attach a credit card to two of the room keys and another credit card to the other 4 room keys? That escapes me. This causes an issue for the Dining Plan. We were on Basic and everytime I used a snack, the receipt would give me the remaining number as a combination of all 6 cards. This isn't a huge issue, I agree, but it's easier on both families if the system keeps tabs. They don't have any problem tracking usage by card # for purchases. Why can't they do that for food points?

That said, we bought the right number of points for our use. We get there about 2 times a year and we don't go to the parks often. We spend a lot of time visiting resorts, eating the food, lazing by the pool, and drinking in the atmosphere.

We honestly don't drink the Kool Aid but we are happy with our decision to buy in.

 

[jodifla]

The way they go about the changes is troubling. You never feel like you are getting the truth...just corporate happyspeak.

When you have a 50 year investment, you expect certain things to remain stable. But DVC changes things in a way that makes it hard to DEPEND ON and PLAN for your vacations. These tinkerings with the point charts show it.

So does the INDEFENSIBLE change to 4 months for everything....it totally doesn't work for me.

So far, we are still greatly enjoying our DVC. Just returned from an awesome vacation about 24 hours ago, in fact. But they way they are changing it around makes me concerned for the future.

I do like the models at AKL, BLT and the treehouses. The Internet access is good.

 

[disneynutz]

Members demanded and received free internet.
Members demanded that mugs & glasses be returned to studios, and DVC responded.
Members wanted dedicated booking categories at OKW for HH, and got it.
Members wanted to be able to call MS on the weekend, and can call 7 days a week now.
Members wanted to use the DDP and can

I don't remember being asked if I wanted any of these things.

Where do I sign up for the surveys?

 

[BeccaG]

And an even bigger concern, for us, is that we really don't know what DVC will look like five years from now. That unreliability really is why we would not recommend DVC to our friends.

We'll continue to use, and enjoy, our DVC. We have no current plans to sell. We would not recommend that a friend purchase at this time. We won't be adding on.

I would echo Jim, on not being able to recommend DVC at this time to a friend, which is why I voted for decreased satisfaction. None of the aforementioned changes have messed with my plan. So I have not been upset by the changes as much as some. However, the fear of future changes that would be a detriment to me or someone I would refer keeps me from doing so. As someone else stated, DVC, which I once, perhaps naively, believed was different, has risks and rewards just like every other timeshare.

 

[tjkraz]

With all due respect, it's hard to put any value in a survey like this. Polling a specific audience like this is going to return a very biased result which is not indicative of the membership as a whole.

Market Metrix performs quarterly surveys and rates the top timeshare managers. In the 4-5 years they have been doing this, DVC has been tops for all but 1 or 2 quarters. (And those quarters were right at the very start--DVC has been tops every quarter for about 3 years running.) Satisfaction is usually in the 89-92% neighborhood.

Additionally DVC has stated that their own survey yielded a 91% Very Good or Excellent rating among members. Details are supposed to be in the next Disney Files.

I think we online denizens (yes, I include myself) live in our own little bubbles and obsess over things that are of no concern to the vast majority of members. I also think that many are quick to dismiss comments from DVC like "members requested a simplified booking system" or "members requested lower-cost weekends" or "members requested simplified banking guidelines" when, in fact, those statements are VERY accurate.

The survey may give you a good idea of how DISBoards members feel--at least those who are willing to vote--but I can guarantee that the results would be vastly different if they included the tens-of-thousands of members who do not frequent Disney message boards.

BTW, DVC was still leading 2008 by a sizable margin as of the 3rd Quarter (last data available):

http://www.marketmetrix.com/en/default.aspx?s=mmhigraph&p=10&y=2008.50

That's AFTER the change to the booking policy, after the banking changes, after the $95 non-DVC fee, after the transfer limitations, etc. DVC satisfaction has actually risen 2-3% over the last 3 years.