Marketing Strategy and SWOT Analysis of Walt Disney

There is one thing that all children from all times have shared in common. This phenomenon that we are about to talk about is pretty huge. It owns five major categories. Those are media webs, studio entertainment, parks and resorts, interactive media, and customer products. Walt Disney is precisely the topic that we are going to be touching upon today. Founded in 1923, the company’s legacy has been going strong till now. After almost a century of being around, people have so much hype about Walt Disney. Hence, today, we will discuss its marketing secrets to better understand its success.

First and foremost, we are going to talk about the mission and vision statements of Walt Disney.

The mission statement of the company is as follows:

“To entertain, inform and inspire people around the globe through the power of unparalleled storytelling, reflecting the iconic brands, creative minds and innovative technologies that make ours the world’s premier entertainment company.”

It really does not matter where the consumers of Disney are from because all of them are treated equally. Disney is not purely looking to entertain its customers. But with the power of entertainment, this company is also providing people with valuable knowledge. When consumers receive that fascinating information, it acts as a motivation to take it upon themselves to make a change.

Disney acknowledges that its creations are unique and like nothing else. This is why in its mission, we see ‘unparalleled storytelling’. Of course, people utilize so much thought and power to turn those stories into reality. People’s creative skills act as the most significant help. And then, of course, innovative technologies are a great deal themselves with the evolving world.

All that energy that Disney has put in the way it markets itself has definitely seen its fruits. This company is number one in the entertainment industry on a global scale.

The vision statement of Walt Disney is the following:

“To be one of the world’s leading producers and providers of entertainment and information”.

The vision is obviously closely interconnected to the mission statement of Walt Disney.

Entertainment and information are the main focuses for Walt Disney. It wants to be the best supplier of both those aspects for the whole world. And so far, this vision has been going strong. Walt Disney created the first cartoon, opened large theme parks, presented synchronized sound in a short animated film. The founder of the company is the individual that has received the most academy awards. This company is doing perfect with both its mission and vision statements.

Now, we are going to understand the positioning strategy of Walt Disney.

There is an influencer on Instagram that posts photos from Disney’s theme parks. Her handle is themegdalorian. She has about 6000 followers. The company’s Instagram has used one of her pictures for this specific post. And, of course, they have tagged her.

The photo is of the castle being all festive and cute. The account posted this photo on December 17th, so it was in celebration of the approaching magical Christmas.

The caption is pretty simple as well. It informs its followers that Disney is ready for the holiday spirit, and so should its followers.

Walt Disney World has 8.8 million Instagram followers, which is an amazing number for the scale that it has reached.

Now, let us see what we can say about Disney.

The pricing of the company is average and even above average. Not everybody can afford it, but some people voluntarily save up for it.

Disney is all about discovering the magic, fun, and inspiration inside other people. It is not a raw product that a company is selling. But it has many components, each of which holds meaning for consumers.

And lastly, the company has initially set a vision for itself. It has stuck to it and turned it into reality.

At this point, it is obvious that the archetype that Walt Disney belongs to is the Magician.

What do we know about it?

Desire: knowledge of the basic rules of how the world or universe operates

Aim: turn dreams into reality

Strategy: create a vision and live it

These are the messaging levels of the archetype.

Level One: suspicions, extrasensory or synchronistic adventures

Level Two: supernatural moments and incidents of change

Level Three: the understanding of flow

Level Four: miracles, shifting from vision to embodiment

The Magician may be a good identity for your brand if:

• the creation or assistance is transformative

• its implied commitment is to change the consumer

• it demands to New Age clients or artistic creatives

• it enables to develop or expand consciousness

• it is a user-friendly technology

• it includes a spiritual or psychological feature

• it is a fresh and extremely modern creation

• it is medium to high priced

Furthermore, we are going to discuss the SWOT analysis of Walt Disney.

Strengths

Market experience and presence:

You can imagine that a hundred years have provided Disney with lots of marketing tricks. They have tried a great variety of strategies to figure out what works best for their consumers.

The long history has made Disney a trusted company. All individuals around the world identify and adore Disney. This company has a strong presence in its market.

Among all things, Disney is a movie studio, theme park, themed product creator, etc. The idea that Marvel Studios, 20th Century studios, and Pixar are associated with Disney makes the latter even more powerful.

Disney has succeeded in making a name that people will recognize from various parts of the globe.

Brand value:

Just the fact alone that Disney’s logo is identifiable from the variety speaks well about the company’s brand image.

Most of us have grown up watching Disney’s animated movies. Those characters shaped parts of our personalities, and we adore them to this day.

Most people that grew up with Disney, are now adults. Everyone would rush to the movie theater if a new hypothetical movie were to come out. Regardless of age, Disney always screams home.

Finances:

Of course, all of us can guess by now that Disney earns a good amount of money every year. That allows the company to come up with new creations. These, in turn, again bring a lot of income to the picture.

That constant flow allows Disney to utilize the money it has earned, to put into a new project, and so on. The company is incredibly financially stable, which allows for unlimited creativity.

The company constantly comes up with new products and projects, keeping the fascination and fun alive.

Even during the pandemic, Disney had its means of earning money. Streaming service Disney+ kept the company going during the lockdown.

Workforce:

Training the employees is an important aspect for Disney. The company utilizes a good amount of money for that.

Just imagine going to Disneyland. You will be greeted and accompanied by numerous positive employees. The customer service there is simply amazing.

And, of course, without even acknowledging it, the creative crew is incredibly amazing at what they do. Disney has collected some of the best writers and designers.

Social responsibility:

All of the consumers of Disney have an absolutely secure experience with the company. Disney actively participates in various social issues, which makes it a socially responsible company.

Children are the main consumers of Disney. Hence why the company makes sure that its marketing strategies are child-friendly.

Weaknesses

Business closure owing to Covid-19:

It would be wrong to assume that the pandemic did not take a toll on the company’s finances at all.

Nobody visited the theme parks, leaving a bunch of employees without a job. A considerable amount of income that Disney could have earned from its theme parks was thrown out of the picture.

General criticisms:

The media criticizes large companies a lot of the time. These criticisms apply to the alleged stereotypical illustration of non-white characters, an accusation of plagiarism, etc. The theme parks of Disney are no exception. Some people believe that carrousels are dangerous, for example.

A kids’ company:

The ultimate belief is that Disney products are mainly for children. However, that is not an entirely accurate belief. A lot of adults watch Disney movies and visit Disneyland a few times a year. Some people even fly to a different location for that opportunity.

Opportunities

International expansions:

Disney can benefit from investing in more physical attractions in other places of the world. And there is an even more fun idea. Disney has the resources to create a virtual Disneyland experience. Thus, people who do not have a Disneyland nearby can use the virtual Disney.

Changing trends in consumer behavior:

Streaming services are taking over the world. Netflix is one of those which is a highly successful company.

Disney needs to adapt to the contemporary world. More titles are one way that Disney can contribute to this. For example, utilizing its popular film characters to make creative titles.

Also, considering the number of characters Disney has in its movies, it can develop more video games.

Threats

Competition:

CBS, Six Flags, Sony, and others are the biggest competitors of Disney.

Companies that offer similar services with less money are probably the biggest competitors of Disney.

These companies are even continuing to develop new technologies and more affordable products. This constantly keeps Disney on the lookout for its income.

Non-specificity:

Disney does not have a certain category of what it offers. This has been proven to be beneficial for the company. However, at times, it is disadvantageous as well.

If a company offers “it all”, there is a high possibility that at some point, all of those categories will be average. When instead, it is best to master what a company offers.

Last but not least, we are going to watch a video that will help us reveal the segment that Disney has chosen to target.

This video is simply advertising Disneyland. We first see the castle and then slowly travel everywhere in the theme park.

Disneyland is all about magic. It is a place where everybody gets distracted from the world outside and experiences magic in their own way.

The perception of magic appears differently for everyone. For children, it can be pixie dust and flying elephants. And for adults, it can be flying and simply being surrounded by balloons. Magic is at Disney for everybody that wishes to be around it.

We see different families in this video which acts as our main hint. Parents are Disney with their kids, having the time of their lives.

One can not go to theme parks with glamorous clothing. The second hint is that the people in the video are dressed comfortably to also provide a relaxing experience for themselves.

Without further ado, it becomes evident that the segment that Disney has chosen to target is Nesters.

Lifestyle and values:

Nesters’ lives are centered around their families. Everything they do, every milestone they accomplish is mainly for making their family proud and relieved.

This segment enjoys setting family traditions. Among those are simple weekend gatherings where they can enjoy food and each others’ company. This makes them feel that they belong somewhere.

Nesters really enjoy cooking for their loved ones, which makes the kitchen their go-to room in their home.

This segment has a pretty traditional mindset. They enjoy following traditions and beliefs. Nesters are pretty faithful. That applies not only to religion but relationships and friendships as well.

Nesters view people fairly and anticipate honest and honorable manners from the people surrounding them.

This segment would rather go with the flow when it comes to life and making decisions.

It is more important for Nesters to feel comfortable rather than stylish. So, that applies to their sense of fashion.

Nesters like scheduling everything ahead. Most of the time, they follow a routine. Their job usually is something that matches their comfort zone. Stability is more preferable to financial advantages.

Because family is so significant for Nesters, they search for a significant other with a similar mindset. Their future husband or wife should get along with their family.

Nesters like to be better safe than sorry. Hence why they mostly but ‘tested but proven’ technological devices. That is a better option than trying something new and discovering that it was not worth it.

Attitude towards shopping:

Nesters mainly purchase from affordable and domestic brands. They look for deals and discounts as much as they can. As they prefer comfort over style, that reflects in their shopping choices.

Nesters like to be productive with their time. Which is why they make sure that their shopping trips are planned ahead.

If the store they are going to is not as far, they will ride there with their bicycle. Cars exhaust this segment.

Nesters enjoy involving their family even when shopping. For example, long supermarket visits are boring when done alone.

This segment chooses to go to cheap grocery stores. That is because they are able to get more products for a better price.

Nesters simply do not care about upcoming trends. They stick with the style that they are comfortable with. Also, they prefer to shop from domestic brands.

Other interesting facts:

• Home is the best place to be, surrounded by the lovely family members
• Fixer-uppers when it comes to home, and gardening
• Average TV consumers, sometimes watching a film with their big family
• Irregular exercisers
• Enjoy staying up-to-date about the buzz going around in their neighborhood
• Typical bike riders in the neighborhood to go meet friends
• Consume magazines that are revolved around local problems
• Are not masters of the internet
• Above-average radio consumers

That was the ‘Marketing Strategy and SWOT Analysis of Disney’, a huge company that we all know of and adore. The company has been around for over a decade, so it was interesting to find out about its tips and tricks. We constantly release new blogs on our website about various companies. So, if this got you interested, do make sure to visit our main website for more fun!