I recently took a long overdue vacation to the happiest place on earth – Walt Disney World®. Despite my first-hand awareness of how mobile enhances overall customer engagement, demonstrated by the successes achieved by SoundBite clients, I was still impressed with Disney’s effective use of mobile and how much it contributed to my overall experience.
Disney’s proactive outreach to me started long before I arrived at the resort. I received several personalized communications via multiple channels with suggested activities and tips based on my reservation, as well as information Disney had maintained about my previous visits. They provided an interactive map of the hotel I was staying at so that I could become more familiar with the property ahead of time, and they provided an option to check in online prior to my arrival to expedite the process.
Disney has a mobile app called My Disney Experience that enabled engagement throughout my vacation, and it completely enhanced my experience. I had instantaneous access to wait times for rides and attractions, which was extremely helpful in minimizing the time I spent waiting in lines. I made dining reservations directly from my mobile phone and received follow up notifications confirming each of these via email. Thanks to its location-based services feature, I was also able to quickly view the attractions, restaurants, etc. that were closest to where I was at the time, including prioritizing those with the shortest lines. Wireless was available throughout the resort, making this enhanced level of engagement even easier.
Disney embodies a customer-centric culture of not only meeting, but exceeding expectations. With their proactive, personalized approach to engagement, along with their highly effective use of mobile, my expectations were definitely exceeded. They went out of their way to surprise me with a few unexpected things and interacted with me on relevant topics throughout my stay. This type of engagement strategy leads to extremely loyal customers who are willing to be positive endorsers of Disney – such as myself!
Immediately after my trip I received a thorough survey from Disney about my experience. Interestingly enough, there were A LOT of questions about technology and my mobile experience. It appears that they have put a great deal of effort into ensuring they are maximizing the use of mobile to improve customer engagement. It certainly enhanced my experience – it was like a whole new world for me.
SoundBite’s Proactive Customer Care Solutions can help ensure your customers experience a similar level of engagement and loyalty. Please read here for more information.