YOAMD - A good thing?

[cardaway]

I never knew Disney did that on a regular basis. I've been to WDW 5 times and never saw or heard about it. I hope that they keep doing it at the pace they're currently are, long after this promotion is over.

As I understand it, many of the things that are now "prizes" were previously given out on a regular basis for many years before this promotion started. The First Family thing was just one thing we have got or seen in the past. Another example would be the many lanyards given out, which of course in the past simply tried to launch people into pin collecting/trading. Hey, it worked, we were given one and still buy a few each trip.

 

[rie'smom]

Everyone on our boat at Maelstrom was given a Dream FP.
It was kind of peculiar because the CMs weren't letting us get off the boat. We probably sat there for an extra 3-4 minutes. We were so surprised and thrilled. By the end of the day,we gave away a few FPs and shared the magic.
It's funny because I'm the planner and had wondered if we would get any prizes but I had completely forgotten aboutthe whole YOAMD when we reached WDW.

 

[kaytieeldr]

As I understand it, many of the things that are now "prizes" were previously given out on a regular basis for many years before this promotion started. The First Family thing was just one thing we have got or seen in the past. Another example would be the many lanyards given out, which of course in the past simply tried to launch people into pin collecting/trading. Hey, it worked, we were given one and still buy a few each trip.

No.
First, afaik, if lanyards were given away in the past it was marketing. It wasn't "magical moments" and it CERTAINLY wasn't a sweepstakes.
What you're calling "prizes" are NOT prizes in the Year of a Million Dreams Sweepstakes.
There are 1,124,010 YoaMD prizes being given awarded during the fifteen months of the promotion.
Walt Disney World and Disneyland Resort have, conservatively, an annual total attendance of around sixty million visitors; expandad to fifteen months, that's 75,000,000.
There are 457 days in the sweepstakes period.
Prizes are awarded at all six parks, plus Downtown Disney, plus to mail-in entries.
1,124,010 prizes divided by 457 days = 2,460 prizes per day.
2,460 prizes per day spread out across eight "locations" = 307.5 prizes per day per park/area/drawing (and yes, I'm aware they don't do drawings every day - these are average figures).
Even if there are only 10,000 visitors in a given park on a given day (EXTREMELY low estimate), that's only one prize per every 32 Guests.

If anybody's still with me... there are WAY more "magical moments" than there were before the promotion. If you didn't get any, well, it's random.

As other posters have stated - being able to visit Walt Disney World is, in itself, a dream, a magical moment, whatever. MILLIONS of people never get to go; many of us go multiple times. THAT'S magic.

 

[cardaway]

If anybody's still with me... there are WAY more "magical moments" than there were before the promotion. If you didn't get any, well, it's random.

I'm not, and since I didn't make any claims about stats, that was all really unecessary.

 

[kaytieeldr]

Fine. In simple terms:
The likelihood of winning any prize or being granted any magical moment is negligible.
GOING to Walt Disney World or Disneyland Resort, is a DREAM full of potentially MAGICAL MOMENTS, that millions of people never get to experience.

Why not just give tickets out for the one big thing (Castle stay) and do the rest as unofficial stuff they always did in the past?

There is a Sweepstakes run by an entirely independent company, and then there are the magical moments being granted in much greater quantities and ways than in the past.

 

[IwasatWDWforamonth]

Its not that I hate the yoamd as a whole, but man it hurt to think someone won something big while we were at POTC.
as we came to the end of POTC we noticed a couple of cm's and a guy with a video camera set up, one cm comes over to help my mom out of the boat, my mom said that was nice of him and he said thats what were here for. then the others glance at him and he goes back to stand next to them and we leave the next thing we hear is people sounding very happy.

Its not that I dont want to be happy for others its just that you really start to wonder, what if. What if we had one more person with us, What if they wanted a more appealing family for the video they were making. What if its because I was wearing a sea world shirt, or because I was wearing my sunglasses(dont ask I didnt want to drop them getting out of the boat)

Now for the weird part , as we walked thru the line I had a feeling we were about to win something,,,,

My mom and I had one of our best trips yet, but I was in no hurry to come back for Christmas pretty much because of yoamd.

I did get a box of pop corn and my mom got a cupcake.

While it may be random it does not always feel like it is.

 

[kaytieeldr]

It really IS entirely random. The Year of a Million Dreams Sweepstakes is being run by an entirely independent agency. Contests and sweepstakes (and yes, there is a difference) are regulated by many federal laws.

Magical Moments are entirely random as well, but those could be given by ANY Cast Member, not just the Dream Team. And the sweepstakes has NOTHING to do with 'being more photogenic', or having a cute kid in your party, or what you're wearing. It's ENTIRELY being in the right place at the right time - and the time, the place, and the prize, could be ANY.

 

[cardaway]

There is a Sweepstakes run by an entirely independent company, and then there are the magical moments being granted in much greater quantities and ways than in the past.

Since you seem to like stats on this subject tell us how many used to be given out before this promotion.

All I know is many fo the things they used to do in the past were renamed so they could become part of this advertised promotion. Makes me wonder if people really think they never had an Epcot First Family or Parade Grand Marshalls before YOAMD.

 

[Aidensmom]

I kind of like the idea of knowing you could win something big (like the Castle stay) just by being there for the day, but I do agree it can cause expectations and disappointments to have the dreams promotion advertised.

We are local and go a lot, and it seems like we probably experienced more pixie dust moments before the promotion than we have since (though we did win an official "Dream" McFlurry on Saturday when I went and got my son some Chicken McNuggets in Epcot ). It seems a little like the pixie dust may be reserved for those that the computer picks, rather than it being spontaneous.

 

[mrsltg]

Doesn't bother me at all. I spoke with one of the Dream Team in the Living Seas Pavillion. He was killing time talking with the cashier and the place was dead. As I was paying I said to the Dream guy, "You've got a great job!" and he agreed. We chatted for a minute about the fun stuff he gets to do and off I went. I really don't care if someone else is given something and I'm not. It just doesn't matter to me.

 

[Cool-Beans]

I disagree with those saying you can't be disappointed unless you are "expecting" to win or feel entitled. I buy lottery tickets sometimes. I don't expect to win, but I hope to - and am always a little disappointed when I don't. Same thing with the YOMD deal.

But I don't think that makes it a bad contest or that if I can't win then NOBODY should. I'm disappointed, because I hope to...but I can deal with it. Not crying into my pillow or anything.

Service at WDW has been on the decline for some time now, so I don't know if YOMD is to blame for less magical moments for the non-winners on not...maybe it is just a general WDW thing.

I do hate the new planning DVD with all the clouds and crap. Yawn.

 

[cardaway]

In the past the things they did for people were quite discrete.

IMO the key difference here is still the number of people seeing others "win" and even being surrounded by more "winners" all day. You don't have to be looking to be diappointed (as some have put it) to notice a family in front of you freaking out as they are awarded a prize or see a large family with huge Dream passes roaming the parks.

IMO it's pretty simple. Fastpasses in general have been shown to get so some guests based reaction to stand-by wait times. It's pretty logical IMO to take that one step further and figure those people are even more upset if it's one of these Dream Passes passing them by.

 

[piglet too]

As far as the FP prizes go, how are they any different then when a regular person gives away their FPs that they can not use. The people they give it to may be super excited and the next person in the area, may be 'why could'nt that have been us?"

 

[MushyMushy]

In the past the things they did for people were quite discrete.

IMO the key difference here is still the number of people seeing others "win" and even being surrounded by more "winners" all day. You don't have to be looking to be diappointed (as some have put it) to notice a family in front of you freaking out as they are awarded a prize or see a large family with huge Dream passes roaming the parks.

IMO it's pretty simple. Fastpasses in general have been shown to get so some guests based reaction to stand-by wait times. It's pretty logical IMO to take that one step further and figure those people are even more upset if it's one of these Dream Passes passing them by.

I agree.

It's also not a matter of sour grapes like some people seem to be implying. We can all be perfectly happy for the fortune of strangers, yet still feel a sense of disappointment ourselves. WDW isn't supposed to be about raised hopes and disappointments.

 

[MushyMushy]

As far as the FP prizes go, how are they any different then when a regular person gives away their FPs that they can not use. The people they give it to may be super excited and the next person in the area, may be 'why could'nt that have been us?"

Have you ever given away FPs to other guests?

Every single time my family has given away unused fastpasses, people look at us with suspicion and distrust. It's a little weird. I've heard similar stories from others on here.

It won't stop us from doing it in the future, but it's not always the best reaction to get when you're doing something nice.

Because of that, I feel that it's comparing apples to oranges.

 

[cardaway]

I agree.

It's also not a matter of sour grapes like some people seem to be implying. We can all be perfectly happy for the fortune of strangers, yet still feel a sense of disappointment ourselves. WDW isn't supposed to be about raised hopes and disappointments.

Yup, people can continue to be aware of how lucky they are to be there (although I don't look at it as luck, just hard work) and still have a wonderful time. It's just odd to me that they woudl introduce a level of have and have not in plain site more than they already wiht the fastpass program.

In fact, it's amazing tom me just how many people still believe Disney started going down hill in this regard when they created the fastpasses in the first place. They think they should shut it down tomorrow, and in many ways I think they have a point, but I don't completely agree and would keep it going. Everybody has access to those if they understand how it works.

 

[cardaway]

Have you ever given away FPs to other guests?

Every single time my family has given away unused fastpasses, people look at us with suspicion and distrust. It's a little weird. I've heard similar stories from others on here.

It won't stop us from doing it in the future, but it's not always the best reaction to get when you're doing something nice.

Because of that, I feel that it's comparing apples to oranges.

I understand that point, both as a giver and receiver of single ride fastpasses. We received some from people on at least two different occasions late at night as people are having to leave a ride area because they have to leave the park. On the times it happened top us, we paid it back by giving ours to somebody who was obviously heading towards the ride commenting on the stand-by wait time.

Yes, the reaction by the surrounding guests could be the same, but this example is person to person. It's a huge difference when somebody is being given passes by the park itslelf that are good for multiple rides rather than just one.

 

[XOoOoVEEoOoOX]

Even before YOMD, there were some bits of extra magic that some guests got and some didn't.

On my daughter's sixth birthday, she got to ride Goofy's Barnstormer with Pooh. We were just standing in line, when Pooh showed up and hopped in her car.

On our last trip to DL, the young lady driving on the vehicles on Main St. took a liking to my son and let him sit next to her while we drove around Main St. twice. Then she gave all three of my kids special Main St. pins for their lanyards.

I'll never forget the time - must be eight years now - when my oldest daughter was just three...Chip and Dale had made a spontaneous appearance in Toontown, and she was waiting so patiently for a chance to go up to them, but bigger kids or their parents kept jumping in front of her. Well, the handlers came out to take Chip and Dale away, and Chip actually came back, picked a flower from a nearby bush, and fought his way through the crowd to come back to my daughter and give it to her with a hug.

We are going to DLR in August, and of course I'd be thrilled if we had a Dream experience, but even if we don't, I'm sure something magical will happen; it always does.

That actually brought tears to my eyes...I can imagine your daughter must have felt so special!!

 

[donnajon]

You know, y'all remind me of my kids. I just recently fussed at them when we were at the store buying of all things, a pack of $.99 stickers for a car. Then one starts fussing that she didn't get stickers for her car. I told them I frequently run across something that I think one of them would like, but I wont get it because the other two will fuss that it isn't fair. They whine if they all don't get something. So, nobody gets anything. Would that be better? Can't we just be happy for someone else's good fortune?

 

[littleteapot]

I don't have a problem with it. As long as people don't go to WDW *expecting* to win, there should be no disappointment.

When the DVDs and all the advertising drills the YOAMD into you and your children, it is a little hard to not "expect" anything.

We were there for 10 days and our "Dream" was a free bucket of popcorn. Hmmmm, not so dreamy for a family of six.

We had a great time, but it was a little disappointing.