I certainly had other posts on my mind today, but I read one that downplayed Disney's new version of their website as not having a enough Web 2.0 bling in it and I felt the need to respond. And the response is pretty simple. Perhaps Disney knows a lot more about their users than we give them credit for. We are getting ready for our annual trip and I have to tell you, our family is vastly more technologically savvy than the majority of park visitors. I'm not bragging, so don't take it that way, but I think we are making an assumption that Disney's audience pays attention to blogs, RSS feeds, widgets, moving content around, embracing the community, and all the other Web 2.0 functions.
Disney.com badly needed a face lift. The old version was outdated, had too much of a childish feel to it, and not enough video upfront. I still did most of my bookings via the phone because the website wasn't warm or user friendly enough for me. The new site is a vast improvement and so what if they left out RSS feeds?
Sometimes knowing your audience and keeping it simple for the families that are true Disney customers are better than jazzing up the site for analysts around the country. Clearly they know about the bling, so why can't we give them the benefit of the doubt that they actually researched and tested it with customers and went with the better choice?
PardonMyFrench,
Eric
I agree! How many of us adults actually want an RSS feed from Disney? Having had my own sites web 2.0 friendly for nearly a year now, I understand a great deal about how things work, and why, and as a consumer I understand what I want. I think Disney has a better idea of what works best for them, than any of us do!
Posted by: Anissa | February 07, 2007 at 09:52 PM
Anissa,
Thanks for the comment. I hesitated posting it because I thought - oh have a different opinion then the Web 2.0 professors and I'll get flamed. I really believe that the Disney team has a better understanding of their own customers and probably knows what % of their base actually wanted some of these web 2.0 tools.
Eric
Posted by: PardonMyFrench | February 07, 2007 at 10:37 PM
disney just does everything good. thays why they are the best.
Posted by: disney store merchandise | April 03, 2009 at 10:13 PM