Client Challenge
Disney Parks wanted to know two things:
What were the top attractions across their property
The best use for a vacant plot of land at Florida’s Magic Kingdom
Specifically, the study was aimed at American families travelling from out of state and staying at a Disney hotel during their visit to the Magic Kingdom.
Competitor vs Polly Approach
This project was done in tandem with a competing market research firm to compare results from competing methodologies.
The other firm used digital diaries filled out by participating park goers, whereas askpolly’s solution was done by the Disney Parks team directly without any participant intervention. Digital diaries required incentives for participation, involving park ticket giveaways, making the competing methodology 10x more costly than askpolly.
Aspect | Traditional Firm | askpolly |
|---|---|---|
Data Collection | 1-month digital diaries with recruited, incentivized participants | 12 months of real, unprompted conversations on Twitter and Reddit |
Participant Involvement | Requires active participation of park goers and incentives | Passive, unobtrusive collection from naturally occurring conversations |
Scope | Focused only on on-property experiences | Captures the entire vacation experience, including off-property behavior |
Analysis | Manual coding and analysis | Machine learning with statistically validated, census-balanced sampling from social media |
Timeline | 3–4 months for data gathering and analysis | Insights delivered immediately |
Cost | High cost due to participant incentives(meal vouchers, pass upgrades) and time | Delivered at a tenth of the cost |
Top Attractions
1. Cinderella Castle
2. Main Street
3. Tower of Terror
4. Space Mountain
5. MGM Studios – Jedi Training
6. Tree of Life
7. Rock N’ Roll Coaster
8. Dumbo the Flying Elephant
9. Mount Everest
10. MGM Studios Backlot Tour
Use for Vacant Plot
For the second query, the findings for the best use of the vacant plot of land were also the same.
In this case, however, the customer had a further question. They were most interested in the 3rd and 4th ranked options: shopping experience or restaurant. The other firm couldn’t go back to the digital diary for more feedback, so they recommended shopping as it was slightly ahead.
While Polly also found shopping slightly ahead, she uncovered a critical nuance: visitors seeking a restaurant were primarily adults without children, expressing frustration over the lack of “adult” dining options in the park. They wanted a martini and a salad in a quieter setting, rather than shakes, burgers, and noisy crowds. Based on this insight, Polly recommended using the space for an upscale restaurant to meet this unmet demand.
Additional Insight
Since the digital diaries only monitored on-site activity, Polly was able to reveal more insight into what visitors did on the rest of their holiday, which Disney hadn’t even thought to investigate:
Visitors staying at Disney hotels only spent 54% of their vacation on Disney property, the remaining 46% was spent with competitors.
Polly also uncovered that dissatisfaction with Animal Kingdom was a driving people out of the park – a significant missed opportunity.
Results
Traditional market research can confirm what is already known. Polly helps brands see what others miss, revealing hidden opportunities in real consumer behaviour and conversation data.
CWF's Outcome
CWF ran their ads according to Polly’s recommendations and not only saw an increase in engagement with the organization but also achieved their sign-up targets for their education programs. Polly is a valuable tool for PR professionals and media buyers.
