Honors Theses

Date of Award

Spring 5-1-2021

Document Type

Undergraduate Thesis

Department

Integrated Marketing Communication

First Advisor

Christina Sparks

Second Advisor

Michael Fagans

Third Advisor

Scott Fiene

Relational Format

Dissertation/Thesis

Abstract

The Walt Disney Company has an estimated brand value of $61.3 billion and a brand revenue of $38.7 billion according to Forbes’ 2020 World’s Most Valuable Brands (Swant, n.d.). As number seven in the world’s most valuable brands and the only leisure brand in the top fifty, the Disney brand is often used as a business model and inspiration for many companies (Swant, n.d.). Its success can be attributable to the high degree of brand loyalty they create among their customers. Among its approximately 157 million visitors who visited Disney Parks globally, there was a 70% return rate of first-time visitors (Team Attendify, 2020). What is responsible for this high degree of brand loyalty that people feel for the Disney brand? To investigate why the Disney model has been successful in engaging generations of customers and establishing a loyal customer base, the core values of the Walt Disney Company were explored. In addition, how those core values are instilled in the Walt Disney employees was also examined. Research was collected through a review of published literature, a survey of 123 Disney customers, 10 interviews with Walt Disney World Resort employees, and 4 site visits to determine the influence points that distinguish the Disney experience and love for the brand that has established the reputation of Disney as a premier marketer of branded experiences. The purpose of this study is to explore how Walt Disney World Resort creates, maintains, and builds unparalleled consumer engagement through integrated experiences. Through research, one main research question was explored: How does Walt Disney World Resort implement an IMC approach to integrate, build and reinforce consumer behavior, loyalty, and brand love?

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Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

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