“Remember when we had breakfast with Mickey Mouse?” “Remember when we got soaked on Splash Mountain?” These kinds of comments put smiles on faces around dinner tables everywhere, and demonstrate how vacation memories hold a special place in family history.
In fact, travel service marketing firm Ypartnership’s recent survey indicates that “vacation memories occupy a prominent place in our psyche, and that 72% of U.S. and Canadian adults think of them often or very often.”
Additionally,”88% of adults actively plan vacations with the hope that they will result in special memories for/about their children,” and “vacations taken with immediate family are the most memorable.”
As part of a media announcement on September 29, Tom Staggs, chairman of Walt Disney Parks and Resorts, announced their new “Let the Memories Begin” campaign by stating “a Disney vacation is the perfect way to create family memories that will last a lifetime.”
Starting in January, 2011, as part of this initiative, Disney Park guests will become the stars of a nightly spectacular when photos taken in the park during the day are projected on the canvas of “Cinderella’s Castle” at WDW Resort, and on “It’s a Small World” at the Disneyland Resort. In both parks, Disney photographers will capture guests creating their memories in the making, and turn them into larger-than-life images, using as many as 500 photographs in each location every day.
Additionally, when searching online for publicly posted photos and videos of Disney Park vacations, the creative team discovered images of such authentic emotion, they noted that this footage was not something they could ever have shot. Leslie Ferraro, Executive Vice President of Global Maketing for Disney Destination notes “these real voices have impact and credibility. They are making real-time moments that burn in your memory.”
To introduce and facilitate the use of user-generated marketing (including home videos, photos and text-only memories of real guests) in their television commercials and other marketing pieces, Disney Parks has created a website where you can upload your family’s memories and view those of other vacationers, with the possiblity that they’ll be used in a television, print on online ad.
Already available at DisneyParks.com/Memories, there is information about uploading, viewing and searching Disney memories. It will also be part of the Disney Park pages on Facebook, YouTube and MySpace.
So have a blast at the Disney Parks, share your images online with others, and maybe you’ll say “Remember when we saw ourselves on TV having breakfast with Mickey Mouse?”
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