What Leaders Everywhere Can Learn From Disney Magic
At Disney’s theme parks, Magical Moments are planned events.
“The Cast,” as Disney calls their park staff, are charged with a series of staged activities to enhance the guest experience and make it memorable.
For instance, each day a family is chosen to officially open the park, a child is asked to introduce each live show, characters round up children for a dance captured on video and broadcast throughout the park, and a young patron is asked to become a conductor on the Disney train and announce, “All Aboard!” on the loudspeaker.
It’s not just the children who love these Magical Moments. Those watching remember those experiences as well and spread the news about how “magical” Disney is.
More spontaneous Magical Moments are called Take 5s because they only take five seconds to five minutes to create a lasting memory.
The Cast is empowered and expected to do special things for guests: replace a spilled ice cream cone, escort a hungry child to the front of a concession line, have a character ask a child dressed up like them for their autograph, offer a Disney handkerchief to a child who is crying, provide an umbrella on a sunny and hot day for a visiting grandparent, and write a note to a child that couldn’t make it to the park.
These simple but heartwarming gestures and random acts of kindness leave an indelible mark on those who witness them. They make such a profound difference for so many park guests that they fill the place with positivity and happiness.
Some gestures are planned, but most are simply encouraged. Disney mostly leaves it to the Cast to decide how they want to delight guests. Given the joyful responses, team members can’t wait to do it and often find new and creative ways to surprise people.
Disney isn’t unique in their desire to delight and astonish customers. Nearly every enterprise would build more customer loyalty and increase their brand reputation if they engaged more like Disney.
Empowering team members to go out of their way to enchant customers with simple acts of thoughtfulness isn’t hard. Yet so many organizations don’t think to do it.
They should.
Kind and helpful gestures are universal in their impact. The customers, clients, patrons, students, and end-users of every enterprise appreciate them and pay them back with their interest and loyalty.
Asking team members to look for and seize opportunities to bewitch customers with simple acts of thoughtfulness makes too much sense.
All your “cast” is waiting for is to be set loose. It’s time to set them free to delight others.
Cracker Barrel does not always have the best reputation for service, but I feel that they try to "go the extra mile" for their customers.
Example: My wife was recently given a gift card by her sister for her birthday. The card advertised that Crackle Barrel was one of several places where it could be redeemed. When she presented it, the cashier said that she had never seen this card before and that it would not work in their system.
She could have stopped at that, but she took the extra effort of calling her manager who said the same thing, supporting her cashier, but then said that the entire meal would be covered by the manager, without question, and gave my wife back the card to try at another location listed on the card.
This was the second time a similar thing happened to me at Cracker Barrel.
Good morning,
Yes, I have noticed, Disney is often referred to in professional and academic circles.
While in an emergency room (ER) Disney's approach may not be the best idea.
In the retail and hospitality industries, this approach to service should be encouraged.
Walt Disney seems to have done a phenomenal job in creating a place folks can escape the everyday, and experience imagination (for a hefty price of course).
Perhaps one of these days my family and I will be able to check it out.
Thank you for your time.