Shameless Plug Tuesday!

Yeah, you've missed it over the last couple of weeks, so back by popular demand - Shameless Plug Tuesday brings you the Dancing With the Stars Performance Recap!

Click to read all about how Katherine and I are practically the same!

Dancing with the Stars Season 14: Week 6

Shameless Plug Wednesday!

I neglected Shameless Plug Wednesday last week, so I apologize for that, but Lord knows there's enough reading to do THIS week for you to get your fill.

Just in case you missed Dancing With the Stars this week (or you loved it so much you can't wait to relive it with words!), check out my Reality Wanted recaps!

 The Top 11 Cry Their Way Through Week 3!

Monday, 4/2 Performance Recap

Tuesday, 4/3 Results Recap

Write What You Know? Naaaah....

As an aspiring writer, the one piece of advice that I hear over and over and over again is "write what you know." So what am I doing writing about Dancing With the Stars?

Breaking that rule completely.

Nevertheless, I've got my dancing shoes on (assuming they look like little sheep slippers) to provide you with recaps for this season over at RealityWanted.com.

Check it out!

http://www.realitywanted.com/newsitem/5213-dancing-with-the-stars-season-14-week-1-performance-recap

Carryin' the Banner!

Totally have this collector's edition.
And two other copies.
And VHS.

"Sometimes, all it takes is a voice. One voice, that becomes a hundred. And then a thousand..."

These are the words spoken by Bryan Denton in Disney's 1992 BLOCKBUSTER "Newsies" (also known as my favorite movie in the history of the world.) Now, I put BLOCKBUSTER in giant letters with the hopes that it would be enough to revise history because, of course, the 1992 version of Newsies was not exactly a blockbuster. In fact, some would argue it was quite the opposite of a blockbuster. Some might have even suggested it was among the worst pictures of the year. (SUGGESTED. It did not WIN the Golden Raspberry that year. And I'd just like to add that The Bodyguard was also nominated, and that was a damn good movie.)

My point in all of this is that for nearly 20 years, the only thing about Newsies that got any respect was Christian Bale, who played lead Jack Kelly in the film. But the "Fansies" never forgot. And then one day....alllll that changed.

Maybe it didn't happen THAT quickly, but we kept carryin' the banner, and last spring, after years of rumors and false alarms, the announcement came that Newsies was FINALLY hitting the stage, albeit the Paper Mill Playhouse in Millburn, NJ. And then the fun began.

In the age of social media, "cult favorite" has taken on new life. It may still refer to an active and devoted (though very specific) group of fans, but now those fans have the tools to take their favorite subject viral to get it the attention it deserves. As a Fansie myself, it has been interesting to watch the evolution of Newsies and the fanbase - from film to stage to BROADWAY, the team behind Newsies has exploded across various platforms.

Tommy Bracco, aka "Spot",
Carryin' the Banner

Just days after it opened at the Paper Mill, the cast performed a medley on the talk show "The View" (as seen in the YouTube clip above). Two months later, "Spot Conlon" was back at the show with the headline announcing that Newsies, after such a successful regional run, was coming to Broadway, and just days after that, I had something to be very thankful for when the cast gave a performance as part of the Macy's Parade. Like so many fans, I shared links to the videos with my fellow Fansies, with people who were skeptical about the show, and with anyone I could think of who might want to buy me a ticket to see it. (Note: I'm still taking donations.)

In addition to the official appearances, DisneyOnBroadway has provided fans with a growing library of videos to make us all part of this special show. Visits behind the scenes, introductions to the cast, even previews of new songs...these are all excellent ways to engage the eager existing fan base as well as curious potential ticket buyers.

"Whaddya...scared a' Brookyln?"

Speaking of ticket buyers...have you checked out the Newsies page on facebook? The show allows fans to RSVP the date they'll be attending so they can meet up with other fans. One of the neatest things they did was create a "map" of the cities, giving a cool visual of where people were coming from to see the show.




As a fan, it was also interesting to be part of the process on Twitter. The Newsies account began as part of the Paper Mill, and they have done an excellent job of interacting with fans as their popularity has grown. While so many similar entities use their accounts primarily for broadcasting announcements and perhaps occasionally mingling with the common folk, Newsies has consistently provided active conversation. Whether the personal accounts of cast members or the official account for the show, there is no shortage of "twitpics", retweets, and seemingly genuine gratitude. From answering questions about the show to sharing updates from backstage, @Newsies feels like another fan to me, just as excited to "Seize the Day" as the rest of us are.

To quote Jack Kelly: "They got voices now...and they're gonna be listened to...."

No doubt about it...these guys will be Kings of New York as soon as performances begin on March 15th!

Priceless.

While interviewing for a marketing position recently, I was asked to describe a campaign that I loved, one that was effective. Of course, this is a question we should always be prepared to answer, but often the answer changes depending on who's asking. Is it a firm rooted in tried and true methods of respected brands? Or is it a company that may be equally (if not more!) impressed by the innovative experiments of emerging businesses? Either way, it's smart to really learn about those campaigns so that you're not only naming them, but discussing them as well.

So which did I choose? Well, having already demonstrated by admiration for Disney's efforts in a previous question, the interviewer asked me to pick anything but my favorite brand to talk about. The first (well, second, but first behind anything associated with Disney) that came to mind has to be one of the most prolific of the last two decades. It is, in a word....Priceless.

MasterCard's "Priceless" campaign began running back in 1997, and since then, everyone has created their own version of their ads at least once. Admit it - you have. Maybe it was spending $200 on concert tickets and $60 on gas so that you could see NKOTB on tour with your sister. Maybe it was blowing your paycheck on a new tv and 25 lbs of hot wings so you could celebrate with your friends as your team won their first Super Bowl of your life time. Whatever it was, you've had a "Priceless" moment. And maybe MasterCard helped you pay for it.

Over on MasterCard's Twitter account, you'll find an feed full of hashtagged "#priceless" tweets. Literally. MasterCard invites their followers to submit their priceless moments in 140 characters or less, doling out retweets to the ones that catch their attention and, once a week, a prize based on whatever that week's topic was. In the past, they've prompted followers to submit their idea about what's priceless about school, or the summer, or baseball or Christmas. Sometimes, it's just priceless in general.

I love how MasterCard has given new life to a campaign that is 15 years old via twitter. I mean, it's not like the tv ads are ineffective - they still have enough of a following to merit their own page on MasterCard's website - but Twitter has allowed MasterCard to give their followers #priceless moments through trivia contests, instant win games, and, yes, the "tweet of the week".

Our "priceless" seats

I would know. Back in 2010, I won Yankee tickets via #pricelesstrivia, and my sister and I sat in seats that we couldn't even afford to breath on otherwise. It really was priceless. (Technically, for the Yankees, "priceless" was actually $250 a ticket that year, but I digress). And it was excellent marketing because after I won those tickets, and MasterCard started following me on Twitter?




I applied for one of these:

(Note: Not my actual card.)

Well played, MasterCard. Well played.

Crisis in the Kingdom

A warning inside Splash Mountain
applies outside the Disney world as well

As a whole, the Disney company has done a pretty good job at managing scandals and crises throughout its existence. It's not to say that negative stories don't exist - because they certainly do - but the Walt Disney Company has handled situations calmly, professionally, and, often, privately, settling matters before they become unstoppably viral and taint the entire reputation of the brand.

Jim Lewis

Disney Vacation Club hasn't faced a lot scandal in its limited years of existence, and what might be considered its most serious crisis happened just a few months ago. Problems surrounding the sale of Aulani, their new resort in Hawaii, prompted the removal of three top Disney officials, including Jim Lewis, then president of the Disney Vacation Club.

Less than two weeks before the resort was scheduled to welcome its first visitors, sales of DVC contracts for Aulani were halted in August due to financial issues for resort management, as reported by many media outlets including the Orlando Sentinel. Dues, paid by members annually for maintenance of their home resorts, were reportedly set too low during the initial sales period, and would not be sufficient to operate the beautiful resort.

The issue has since been resolved, with original contract holders compensated for the higher dues and new contracts including appropriate costs, but this crisis was an interesting one to witness as an established DVC member. As previously discussed, DVC generally concentrates on their marketing efforts rather than communicating with their stakeholders and potential members about more serious news and topics. Without a lot of crisis management history to draw from, this continued throughout the trouble this summer as well.

Claire Bilby, casting a shadow
that looks like Mickey Mouse

With social networking and instant communication, however, fans and members began discussing the topic on various message boards well before it became "public" knowledge in the media. Most of the discussion included questions about why the sale of Aulani was put on hold, with speculation running rampant about possibilities. It was not until Claire Bilby was announced as Jim Lewis' replacement that any official news about the change in leadership was announced.

To be fair, there were legal circumstances preventing DVC from releasing all the details of what caused the problems at Aulani and the shake up in leadership, though I'm sure Disney was also protecting their brand, particularly in light of the plans for DVC expansion starting with Aulani.

Welcome to the neighborhood, Ms. Bilby!

Let's get back to the strategies in crisis management, however. Without a dedicated blog or clear communication channel specifically for investors, government or the community, DVC was mute on the topic until a resolution was reached and plans were in place to compensate those impacted by the trouble. An announcement celebrating Claire Bilby's appointment was delivered to the email of all DVC members a few days after the media was introduced to her in her new role, though no mention was made of the delay in sales at Aulani. Anyone who was not actively seeking out DVC information or looking to purchase points at Aulani was likely to be completely oblivious to the reasons behind Bilby's promotion.

I think the most important strategy in a crisis, particularly like the one DVC has just weathered, is honesty. Honesty, in my opinion, demonstrates confidence by the company - they're not afraid to tell you what's going on because they're sure they can fix it. With that being said, I don't think it's necessary to wave red flags at a group of people who aren't immediately concerned with or impacted by the issues at hand. For those asking questions, appropriate answers should be provided - for example, many DVC members, like these, reported frustration caused by confusion and a lack of answers by their guides.

Going back to my earlier blogs about how the public impacts the DVC brand, I think it is again important to note that Disney and DVC are not an interchangeable entity when it comes to their stakeholders. While fans of the Walt Disney Company, and Walt Disney World in particular, are engaged in the name and the faith they have in the brand, DVC members literally take on ownership of it. It's not always enough to feed them (well, us) pixie dust and Mickey ice cream bars (I speak for others - for me, food shaped like Mickey generally IS enough) because they're just as interested in the inner workings of the division.

Now, on the other hand, the greatest DVC crisis I've ever been personally impacted by? I call it "THE DROUGHT". Nearly eight LOOOOONG months since my last visit home.

And I'll be taking care of that crisis myself next week. Stay tuned.

Let the Memories Begin!!

Cast of Characters

The personality of DVC. The voice of DVC. The face of DVC.


Disney Vacation Club continues to expand and evolve, and with those changes, DVC is also working towards better defining each of those three things. So what does each currently mean to its members, potential buyers and other stakeholders? Who best represents the company?

Nice place to visit...

As previously discussed, DVC uses various websites, blogs and social networking to engage the public, some more effectively than others. The blog most often used for DVC updates is the Disney Parks blog, and the entries are written to focus on the magic and wonderment most often sought from Disney as a parent company. These entries frequently feature photos or video to enhance the experience, and in my opinion, are usually indistinguishable from entries focusing on other aspects of the Disney parks. This, of course, is a good move for Disney - one blog covers all Disney Parks (and resorts), sharing the same types of news and stories.

The personality is covered, but what of the voice? For current members and those serious about considering the investment, a separate blog strictly for DVC may be a good consideration. Disney fans, and especially Vacation Club members, love fluffy news stories about pixie dust, but we're also interested in the heavier content about the refurbishment projects at our home property, updates to our perks and benefits, and changes to transportation throughout the resort. Though members have their own website, the information is updated slowly, and "news" is usually spread through unofficial websites before reaching official ones. The question of who to write this type of blog? Well, as I've mentioned before, I'd be happy to volunteer, as would the many DVC bloggers already on the web, but I also think newly named President Claire Bilby could use this as a way to engage her stakeholders.

Which brings up another question - who is the face of Disney Vacation Club?

Who else?

DVC Members, of course!

We'll sell DVC for the price
of a bag of popcorn!

Disney Vacation Club regularly recruits real families to represent the program by starring in print and video advertisements, including "specials" that air on national tv. (Tip:  Disney disguised their 30-minute infomercials as a "special" called Disney Storybook Vacations.) Even on site, through a program called "Welcome Home Wednesdays", current members are invited to bring visiting friends and families to an open-house with Deevy Cee, where they compete for prizes by answering trivia questions about the resort, membership, and their own vacation memories. What do they (ok, fine, WE, because if there's prizes to be won, you better believe my butt is in the room) get for a couple hours of their time?

A free bag of popcorn!


What better spokesperson than one who is excited about your brand and willing to work for free? 

The only celebrity that needs to attach his name to DVC is the one already attached to it - Walt Disney. The Disney name, despite occasional criticism, is generally thought of in a very positive way, especially in regards to vacationing. What celebrity is as universally trusted in the way the Walt Disney Company is? Sure, Walt may not have introduced DVC to us via his Wonderful World of Color the way he showed us Disneyland, but his legacy of commitment to quality and innovation continues through every brand with his name attached to it. Few, if any, celebrities enjoy this same general trust from the public at large.

Though I don't imagine it happening anytime soon (based on recent requests from members for photos, videos and memories), if DVC decided to select a celebrity spokesperson, it would have to be someone as authentic as their members, preferably a member themselves.  What celebrity can you think of that needs to use a timeshare for his family vacations? (Side note: I actually do know of a few celebrities who own points through DVC, but none of them would be terribly effective spokespeople.)

And of course, if DVC chose to go the celebrity route, they've got their own cast of characters to chose from who, I'm sure, would be happy to say a few nice words!