Disney Uses Big Data to Forecast
Having just gotten back from spring break in Orlando, Florida, I thought it would be nice to reminisce on one of the 
most memorable places I visited while there: Disney World. Specifically, my friends and I went to the most popular park, Magic Kingdom, and experienced the great anticipation of the spring break rush. Magic Kingdom was ready for us, through the use of forecasting techniques, analysis, and experience. It’s well known that the most important factor most people think about when going to Disney World is the season and how many other people will most likely be there. Although there are always people going, whether it be people going in off-season or local Florida residents, the demand is mostly seasonal. The highest peak times are definitely in the summer and near the winter holidays such as Christmas.
As discussed in class, forecasting plays a strategic role in supply chain management, human resources, and capacity. These components are key to providing the products and experiences that have made Disney World as successful and alluring as it has been. The article discusses the intelligent method which Disney uses “big data” and data analytics to understand trends and predict visitor patterns. Disney employed the use of Magic Bands wristbands as a part of the “My Magic Plus Program” that acts as hotel keys, credit cards, tickets, and more. User-friendly and kid appealing, these bands are a simple way to keep track of everything in one device on your wrist. Moreover, it gathers large amounts of data for Disney analysts and managers to be able to forecast and anticipate demands. One of the biggest challenges Disney faces is how to minimize wait times for rides and attractions. Through data collection, decisions are able to be made about adding staff or attracting guests to other attractions within parks to ease wait times. Big data also opens up possibilities to how Disney can make visits more personable and guest-centric. Future possibilities could entail families pre-ordering a meal at a restaurant, which the system could alert wait staff and not only instantly deliver the meal, but have the staff greet the family by name. Another potential could include the system compensating guests if their wait time was too long with a voucher, or a Disney character personally greeting children based on location and scheduled times.
In this way, Disney employs strategic approaches and has room to grow in regards to innovation. The company is able to forecast strategically to accommodate and adapt to different seasonal arrivals of guests, as well as internally forecast to cater to daily operations and services within the parks. Anticipation through data analytics is paramount to allowing the parks to optimize guest experience and create that unique Disney experience everyone wishes.
What are your thoughts? What other aspects could Disney use forecasting approaches to improve? Do you think the big data innovations are too lofty to achieve with the grand amount of people that visit?
https://www.forbes.com/sites/bernardmarr/2017/08/24/disney-uses-big-data-iot-and-machine-learning-to-boost-customer-experience/#b3d083533876
This is probably one of the coolest and most informative articles I’ve read. I had absolutely no idea about any of these improvements at Disney World and I already want to book a trip to see for myself. It’s been about 11 years or more since Ive been to Disney World and the magic bands sounds like an incredibly genius idea that is not only fun for customers but also generates necessary data for management. Context-aware technology is the future and we are already starting to see small advances within our daily lives. I’ve recently noticed that my phone will automatically input important dates into my calendar that are mentioned through text or email and will insert times, dates, locations without me ever creating them. The wristband calls to mind a few other pieces of popular technology such as the apple iwatch, fit bit, and smart sole. All of these not only provide valuable information to the user but also send information back to the company so that they can further analyze and improve their own systems. It would be amazing if more companies began to utilize context-aware technology, for example airports are one of the most daunting and painful experiences but if they could somehow give regulated “magic bands” to customers that were able to check and approve bags, scan and immediately print boarding passes, etc, then that would cut down on wait times immensely and prove very beneficial to airlines.
http://www.gpssmartsole.com/gps-smart-sole.php
https://www.cnet.com/topics/wearable-tech/best-wearable-tech/
Like Isabella, I too thought of airports after reading this article. When I returned back to American after studying abroad, I noticed that Jetblue has kiosks where you can check in your bag and print your luggage tag, then just drop your bag off with the supervision of one employee. This significantly sped up the baggage process during the busy holiday season traveling. This past weekend over spring break, I flew Spirit airlines who had a similar kiosk system as Jetblue. However, Spirit’s system still required you to wait in long lines and have your bag taken to a representative at one of the counters. The lines were so long for the bags and kiosks that every door to enter the airport had lines wrapping around the building. With many colleges being on spring break these past 2 weeks, there was clearly an issue in forecasting on Spirit’s end.
My friend visited Disney a few years ago with her family – she’s one of four kids the oldest being 27 and the youngest 19, and they go all in for the wrist bands and entire package. When she was explaining the wristbands to me, it didn’t occur to me that Disney could be using data from the bands to help the flow of lines or track locations. Now, in the context of this class, I think that this use of big data is fair and very beneficial in tracking bottlenecks and congestion in the parks. As long as the data stays internally with Disney and participants are aware of the use of the data, I think this is a really clever idea and should be used in more theme parks!
As someone who has been going to Disney since I was a little kid, I was able to see the progress it has made from year to year in creating a more “magical” experience. When the wristbands were initially introduced, it seemed like a great way to consolidate their customers necessities, but I never considered the impact it can have on data collection for the company. Beforehand, they could see the names, ages, genders, etc of people staying on property, the number of people entering parks, food sales within the parks, and even the amount of people on rides each day (via fastpass or basic lines), but there was no way to link any of this data together. Now with the new wristbands, they are able to see the age, gender, resort, food bought, parks entered, rides ridden and more. From this, they can even more easily track times of year to see what rides are popular with certain age groups and staff those more heavily based on the week. Overall, it’s a smart move by Disney that benefits both the customer and the company.
This is a very interesting article and it further highlights the power and opportunities that structured data can provide to a firm. I was recently reading an article about the “Ritz Carlton Mystique”. Essentially Ritz Carlton uses data analytics to identify customer preferences so that the next time the same customer visits, the hotel staff have the room set up based on the customer’s preferences from the last visit. For example, if you visited Ritz Carlton and ordered a specific type of wine, they will have the same wine waiting for you on your next visit. This use of data to appease customers makes the whole hotel experience extremely personable so that customers leave the hotel feeling valued. The fact that Disney has started using data analytics can open great possibilities for the things it can do with its data in the future. I was thinking if Disney starts using a survey to ask its customers about one specific event that can magnify the experience of its customers, it can truly win the hearts of millions of people who visit Disney World simply by trying to fulfill the desire of the customer. A simple thing like being greeted by a Disney character when you arrive at the Disney resort can significantly improve the experience of the customers. Although I am aware that trying to fulfill the wishes of all the customers can not only be time-consuming but will also be very expensive. Overall, data analytics can open a whole lot of opportunities for Disney to improve its customer experience. http://news.gallup.com/businessjournal/112906/how-ritzcarlton-manages-mystique.aspx
I really enjoyed reading this blog post. I love Disney World, and I plan to travel to Florida at this summer to return once again! These new technological advancements sound awesome. For once we are seeing technologies that are enhancing the customer experience by reducing one of its biggest downfalls: waiting times. However, this is an update that, unlike most technologies, does not take the human interaction and care aspect out of the equation. Returning to the supply chain operations process we learned at the beginning of the semester, Disney places a large focus on customer relationship. Their dedicated relationship with their customers is what has created a 70% return rate (2014). Disney knows that it is not only the service they provide that is important, but how they deliver it is just as important. This is a large contributing factor to their success. Overall, I just believe that Disney has such a great grasp on their forecasting methods and understanding the seasonality of their parks. As you mention, they know exactly when their demand will be high, and when it will not. With years of experience, Disney continues to be at the top of their game and I do not see any other park threatening this.
I would say the large volume of guests Disney receives on a daily basis is suited well for big data collection. I am sure that Disney uses machine learning algorithms or other forms of artificial intelligence to analyze the trends in the Big Data and automatically make suggestions or change operations to improve efficiency. This is similar to many new companies coming out with software that will optimize telecommunications by pairing likely purchase candidates with salespeople that are most likely to close the sale. It makes sense that Disney increases staff on call during seasonal increases in customers because they can steer patrons into routes that optimize work flow, minimize waiting lines, and increase the overall well being for park customers. Disney could also use its magic wrist band to measure food/beverage sales to manage a proper inventory during demand fluctuations. It is reasonable to assume that more water and ice-ees will be purchased during the summer months as opposed to more coffee and sweatshirts during the winter months. IT might also be beneficial to know how long a customer waits in a particular line and how long a customer spends in total waiting in lines at the park. Waiting in line can be less gruesome if entertainment is provided at the bottleneck points in the park such as popular rides that last a long time.
This topic is fascinating for a number of different reasons, many of which have already been stated. Clearly this innovation is a huge benefit to Disney because they are able to eliminate so much more of the friction involved in visiting amusement parks. I have been to a number of amusement parks and lines are quite frankly the worst part. What I find interesting about the magic bands though is that they help alleviate the long lines by helping move park goers to less crowded areas. Disney is able to use their impressive forecasting system to send alerts or texts to those in the park offering suggestions on which rides or locations they should go based on their location and where the shortest lines are. Not only does this help the flow of people but those in the park are even happier. I found an article that made an interesting point about this. It’s the paradox of choice. By eliminating options the park is actually making people happier. If people have a better guideline, provided to them by Disney, based on all of their improved forecasting data then the park goers will get to see more and remain busier and happier for the duration of their stay. I really enjoyed reading about how Disney is taking forecasting to the next level and not only using it to determine how much food or how many employees they need but also how to control those who do come. It’s a much more involved forecasting process and other theme parks have a lot they can learn from Disney.
I forgot to link the article I found. Here it is:
https://www.wired.com/2015/03/disney-magicband/
With Disney expanding internationally it may be interesting to see whether the company can use the data it collects to streamline the park opening process. It is also interesting to hear that the company may be able to use the data they collect to reduce wait times at rides. As anyone who has been to an amusement park knows lines can be a serious detraction from enjoying your time there. In the article below describing the opening of Disneyland Shanghai visitors are already complaining about this issue. With 11 million visitors in the first year Disney was likely able to collect significant data about guest traffic and it will be interesting to see how they can alleviate these concerns.
https://www.ft.com/content/702a44e8-53dd-11e7-9fed-c19e2700005f
I will admit it has been some time since I last visited Disney World, about 10 years ago. However, one of the few things that stood out to me were the incredibly long waiting lines and the offers Disney had to solve it. When I was there, they offered the option of a fast pass, where customers can pay more if they want to go through the lines quicker. My dad and I only waited in the Space and Splash Mountain lines for about four to five minutes total. My point is Disney knows they will have incredible amounts of demand no matter what, and they smartly profit off of it. Many companies really just think about how they can manage it all in terms of staff and inventory. Disney thinks bigger and smarter about it.
As for your comment about the big data analytics, it does not surprise me in the least that Disney is doing that and creating services such as the “My Magic Plus” card. It is smart for them not just for managing demand for staff, but also understanding what rides and services are working for them. If Disney sees demand for a certain ride has been high compared to other rides, they can figure out why through big data and market research. With that said, I do not believe it is too lofty. The increasing scale at which they operate requires big data such as this to forecast demand in a more technologically simpler way. As long as IT operations can manage all of this data, this a great move for them.