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Walt Disney logo

Walt Disney Marketing

To entertain, inform and inspire global audiences by creating unforgettable experiences that build direct relationships with consumers worldwide.

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To entertain, inform and inspire global audiences by creating unforgettable experiences that build direct relationships with consumers worldwide.

Strengths

  • PORTFOLIO: Unmatched intellectual property across Disney, Pixar, Marvel, Star Wars
  • DISTRIBUTION: Omnichannel presence across streaming, parks, theaters, consumer products
  • BRAND: Nearly 100-year legacy with multi-generational emotional connection
  • EXPERIENCES: World-class theme parks drive high-margin recurring revenue
  • TALENT: Access to premier creative talent across entertainment industries

Weaknesses

  • FRAGMENTATION: Inconsistent marketing messaging across business units
  • DATA: Limited cross-platform customer data integration and personalization
  • SILOS: Marketing teams operate independently with minimal collaboration
  • ATTRIBUTION: Difficulty measuring impact across complex consumer journeys
  • AGILITY: Slow marketing approval processes hamper campaign velocity

Opportunities

  • PERSONALIZATION: Leverage streaming data to personalize all touchpoints
  • METAVERSE: Develop immersive digital extensions of physical experiences
  • MEMBERSHIP: Create unified loyalty program across all Disney touchpoints
  • INTERNATIONAL: Accelerate growth in emerging markets like India and LATAM
  • CREATIVITY: Extend IP through bold marketing collaborations with creators

Threats

  • COMPETITION: Intensifying streaming wars with Netflix, Amazon, and others
  • FRAGMENTATION: Declining traditional media channels and viewing habits
  • PRIVACY: New regulations limiting user tracking and personalization
  • ECONOMICS: Inflation pressures on consumer discretionary spending
  • AGING: Maintaining relevance with Gen Z and Alpha demographics

Key Priorities

  • DATA FUSION: Unify customer data across all touchpoints
  • DIGITAL FIRST: Shift to personalized digital-native marketing formats
  • GLOBAL EXPANSION: Accelerate international marketing investment
  • LOYALTY: Launch unified cross-platform membership program
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To entertain, inform and inspire global audiences by creating unforgettable experiences that build direct relationships with consumers worldwide.

UNIFIED VIEW

Create single view of customers across all touchpoints

  • PLATFORM: Launch unified marketing data platform integrating all business units' data with 95% coverage
  • IDENTITY: Establish persistent cross-platform identity solution for 70% of Disney customer base
  • INSIGHTS: Deploy real-time customer insights dashboard accessible to all marketing teams
  • MEASUREMENT: Implement cross-platform attribution model showing true customer lifetime value
DIGITAL EXCELLENCE

Lead in personalized digital-first engagement

  • PERSONALIZATION: Scale AI-powered personalization engine to 90% of digital touchpoints
  • CONTENT: Increase automated content variations by 5x through AI creative tools
  • TESTING: Implement always-on experimentation with 200+ tests running concurrently
  • OMNICHANNEL: Deliver seamless experiences across 12+ customer touchpoints
GLOBAL GROWTH

Accelerate international audience expansion

  • LOCALIZATION: Increase culturally-relevant content for top 8 international markets
  • INVESTMENT: Grow international marketing budget allocation from 22% to 35%
  • PARTNERSHIPS: Launch 15 strategic regional marketing partnerships in key growth markets
  • TARGETING: Deploy region-specific audience acquisition strategies in 20 countries
ONE DISNEY

Build lifelong customer relationships across touchpoints

  • MEMBERSHIP: Launch unified Disney loyalty program with 30M+ enrolled members
  • ENGAGEMENT: Increase average customer touchpoints from 2.3 to 4.1 per quarter
  • RETENTION: Improve cross-platform retention rate from 76% to 85%
  • ADVOCACY: Boost Net Promoter Score from 68 to 78 across all Disney experiences
METRICS
  • SUBSCRIBERS: Disney+ subscribers growth to 242M (10% YoY increase)
  • ENGAGEMENT: Increase average monthly active users across all platforms by 18%
  • EFFICIENCY: Improve marketing ROI by 25% through data-driven optimization
VALUES
  • Optimism: We believe in creating a better tomorrow
  • Innovation: We pursue new ideas and technologies
  • Storytelling: We create stories with emotional resonance
  • Decency: We act with integrity and respect
  • Quality: We pursue excellence in everything we create
Walt Disney logo
Align the learnings

Walt Disney Marketing Retrospective

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To entertain, inform and inspire global audiences by creating unforgettable experiences that build direct relationships with consumers worldwide.

What Went Well

  • STREAMING: Disney+ subscriber growth exceeded projections by 6.3M users
  • PARKS: Domestic park attendance and per-capita spending up 7% year-over-year
  • EFFICIENCY: Marketing cost reductions of $380M through organization changes
  • ORIGINALS: High engagement metrics for new original content across platforms

Not So Well

  • INTERNATIONAL: Asia-Pacific subscriber growth missed targets by 11%
  • THEATRICAL: Box office results for animated releases underperformed by 18%
  • ADVERTISING: Linear TV ad revenue declined faster than forecasted by 14%
  • MERCHANDISING: Consumer products licensing revenue down 8% year-over-year

Learnings

  • LOCALIZATION: Need for more culturally-relevant marketing in global markets
  • INTEGRATION: Cross-platform promotions outperformed single-channel by 32%
  • ANALYTICS: Enhanced attribution modeling improved marketing ROAS by 17%
  • TARGETING: First-party data campaigns outperformed third-party by 28% ROI

Action Items

  • PLATFORM: Unify all customer data into single marketing data platform by Q3
  • TALENT: Hire 15 data scientists and AI specialists for marketing technology
  • TESTING: Implement rapid experimentation framework for all digital marketing
  • EXPANSION: Accelerate Asia-Pacific marketing investment by $120M annually
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To entertain, inform and inspire global audiences by creating unforgettable experiences that build direct relationships with consumers worldwide.

Strengths

  • CONTENT: Vast catalog enables superior AI content recommendation systems
  • CREATIVITY: Advanced AI tools supporting content creation workflows
  • EXPERIENCES: Early adoption of AI for personalized park experiences
  • SCALE: Significant data assets to train proprietary AI models
  • INVESTMENT: Established AI Research lab with dedicated funding

Weaknesses

  • FRAGMENTATION: Siloed AI initiatives across business units
  • TALENT: Shortage of specialized AI/ML marketing talent vs big tech
  • INTEGRATION: Limited AI integration in legacy marketing systems
  • GOVERNANCE: Unclear AI ethics framework for brand safety
  • MEASUREMENT: Inadequate attribution models for AI marketing impact

Opportunities

  • PERSONALIZATION: Hyper-personalized content and marketing at scale
  • EFFICIENCY: Automate content creation/adaptation for global markets
  • EXPERIENCES: AI-powered interactive storytelling across platforms
  • PREDICTIVE: Anticipate content preferences and optimize production
  • ENGAGEMENT: AI chatbots for character-based consumer interactions

Threats

  • TALENT: Competitive recruitment environment for AI specialists
  • DISRUPTION: New AI-native entertainment competitors emerging
  • REGULATION: Evolving global AI governance restrictions
  • PRIVACY: Consumer backlash against AI-driven personalization
  • AUTHENTICITY: Maintaining human creativity in AI-assisted marketing

Key Priorities

  • UNIFIED AI: Establish cross-platform AI marketing center of excellence
  • PERSONALIZATION: Deploy AI-powered 1:1 content experiences
  • CREATIVITY: Implement AI tools for content creation efficiency
  • TALENT: Aggressively recruit AI/ML specialists for marketing team