My Letter to Bob Chapek (should I send it?)

[MillauFr]

FWIW, we visited Disneyland yesterday for the 10th time with our Dream Keys. While things aren't "the same", we still have fun there as a family and that's all that matters to me. I guess we are part of the problem.

Yep. Us too. I was going to hold off on buying Keys but now I think I'll pull the trigger this week for our February trip. No one likes paying more for less, but for each person complaining most will get over it and pay up. That is the problem. Disney is way undercharging us. I keep thinking no one is going to pay some outrageous amount for a Disney special event but they seem to often sell out.

 

[DLgal]

Yep. Us too. I was going to hold off on buying Keys but now I think I'll pull the trigger this week for our February trip. No one likes paying more for less, but for each person complaining most will get over it and pay up. That is the problem. Disney is way undercharging us. I keep thinking no one is going to pay some outrageous amount for a Disney special event but they seem to often sell out.

If I were you, I'd buy your magic key RIGHT NOW. You are almost at the point of being able to make reservations for February anyway and I won't be surprised to see the rest of the magic keys have their sales suspended very soon. I think they are going to pause sales entirely until after the New Year.

They are undercharging. I was expecting $2000 passes with no lower priced options. We have already reached the break even point compared to using day tickets and it's not even been 2 months yet.

 

[PatMcDuck]

I would shorten it, and use more paragraph breaks. I would also recognize that Chapek is not a dictator, he answers to the board of directors, who seem to like what he is doing, and they answer to the stockholders.

 

[mjkacmom]

This is good as a vent, but the opposite of an effective complaint letter. https://www.consumer.ftc.gov/blog/2015/09/how-write-effective-complaint-letter

 

[MakiraMarlena]

you can send it if the idea of venting to the top will make you feel better. I would cut some of it down. The shorter the better. He will probably never see it. If he does, I'm sure he is used to seeing complaints from the Disney social media sphere. Genie+ is here to stay unless no one buys it. I would actually suggest leaving that out and writing a short complaint about the insufficiency of the 50th anniversary offerings.

 

[PaladinButters]

This is the one I sent to Guest Services this afternoon explaining my budget cutbacks. Short. Sweet. To the point. And tells the vendor why I had to cut back on offerings of theirs that I would not longer be buying.

They only understand the bottom line now so that's the language you need to speak.

Good afternoon,

I wanted to write and let you know that I had to make a business decision to change my five-day park-hopper for a three-day one. There are several reasons for this change, but the biggest one is your new Genie Plus application.

The reviews I’m seeing about Genie Plus aren’t good. If I’m going to have to pay extra to attend rides without having to wait in line for two hours for each ride, then I need to cut the budget elsewhere.

Perhaps if I wasn’t:
· Paying $120 to park my car in front of my cabin, something that used to be included in the cost of my room.
· Paying an extra $125 to park in preferred parking at the parks since the trams still aren’t running.
· Bringing my own trash-bags and toilet paper to a $436 a night room because housekeeping only comes every three or so days and these staples run out.

then I wouldn’t have had to make a business decision to drop those two extra days.

Best of luck in your future endeavors.

Regards,

My name
Reservation #

Ok, this is a much better letter for being short and to the point, but gets pretty dramatic when you bring your own toilet paper instead of just asking the hotel for some. And then double dramatic when you add 'best of luck on your future endeavors' like you're saying goodbye forever to a bad ex but in the same letter are saying that you still intend to visit and give them money anyway (just on a shorter ticket)?

 

[supernova]

Yep. Us too. I was going to hold off on buying Keys but now I think I'll pull the trigger this week for our February trip. No one likes paying more for less, but for each person complaining most will get over it and pay up. That is the problem. Disney is way undercharging us. I keep thinking no one is going to pay some outrageous amount for a Disney special event but they seem to often sell out.

I'm not paying for these new after hours holiday events, neither Halloween nor Christmas. The MVMCP was a no-brainer for me year after year, but now that it's well over $100 I see no reason to attend. And while I've never done any of the special viewing dessert parties, they ae stupidly overpriced at this point, so I'm not missing out there anyway. No one's eating that many cupcakes, and the view of the castle from Tomorrowland Terrace is blocked by trees. A totally pointless waste of money.

 

[Mickeynutty]

Bravo! I would not only send it, I would post it to Disney’s Facebook, IG and other social media outlets.

 

[DLgal]

This is good as a vent, but the opposite of an effective complaint letter. https://www.consumer.ftc.gov/blog/2015/09/how-write-effective-complaint-letter

I agree in this case.

I did once write an effective complaint letter. It was when WDW added the resort parking fees. I got a call from an "assistant to Bob Iger" who made me feel like he genuinely wanted to hear more about my concerns and who listened patiently. At the end, when I was done talking, he assured me that they take guest feedback VERY seriously and that they had heard simular complaints from a NUMBER of guests, BUT (and this is where the PR spin came in) "our guests continue to be OVERWHELMINGLY satisfied with the value of a Walt Disney World vacation." Then, he thanked me for my time and said he wanted to give me a $50 Disney gift card for being a "loyal customer over the years."

Have they taken away WDW hotel parking fees? Absolutely not. Did I stop giving Disney my money? Absolutely not.

The people who respond to these complaints are WELL TRAINED to keep loyal customers loyal, even when nothing ever changes.

 

[Disturbia]

They do listen and make changes when they see potential legal issues though. I once had a CM load 2 parties into a safari ride, I had no seat and waved but they screamed and continued to drive and I had to squat the entire way. They offered $200 but asked for my SSN. I refused but requested they change procedures to not overload.

 

[Anthony1971]

If you want any chance of something be read by any top management of any company you need to be straight to the point. Sentences at most. Example I find the current guest experience... please consider bringing back....
Feelings do not matter it is a company that looks at bottom dollars and how BEST to spend what may be in the budget. Not a matter of what ones personal feelings if they can get more guests and more income by giving out free Mickey Loli pops to everyone at the park entrance they will.... In the same if you can provide a logical sentence of lost revenue from taking away a service that will work as well.

 

[wings91]

all leadership needs to be reevaluated.

 

[Klismania]

Ok, this is a much better letter for being short and to the point, but gets pretty dramatic when you bring your own toilet paper instead of just asking the hotel for some. And then double dramatic when you add 'best of luck on your future endeavors' like you're saying goodbye forever to a bad ex but in the same letter are saying that you still intend to visit and give them money anyway (just on a shorter ticket)?

"Best of luck on your future endeavors" is a typical blow-off end-line used by people at corporations.

Regarding the rest of your critique, meh. I sent it. The OP was talking about sending letters to Disney so I gave an example of what I sent. No validation requested or needed.

Best of luck on your future endeavors.

 

[PaladinButters]

"Best of luck on your future endeavors" is a typical blow-off end-line used by people at corporations.

Regarding the rest of your critique, meh. I sent it. The OP was talking about sending letters to Disney so I gave an example of what I sent. No validation requested or needed.

Best of luck on your future endeavors.

Hit a nerve, huh? You know what…. It’s not worth the points. I hope the rest of your day is as pleasant as you are.

 

[DLgal]

Disneyland is bringing the trams back.

Maybe that strongly worded letter I wrote to them about that had something to do with it.

 

[Klismania]

Disneyland is bringing the trams back.

Maybe that strongly worded letter I wrote to them about that had something to do with it.

I sure hope so. It would be nice if the trams came back to WDW.

 

[poochie]

Seems you are not the only one not happy with Bob. Have you seen the petition going around to fire and replace him.
Petition · Fire Disney CEO Bob Chapek · Change.org

 

[Brian Noble]

Disney parks have always been out of the reach for a lot of people. We only notice when it’s starts to affect us.

This. 100% this. We are talking about a luxury discretionary purchase that has been exclusionary for a long long time.

I had to make a business decision to change my five-day park-hopper for a three-day one.

This is more or less exactly what the Parks management folks were hoping would happen---and they've been open about that in quarterly earnings calls for at least the last few years. Even dating back to Iger running those calls, they would often talk about wanting to reduce the overall attendance, giving the remaining guests a better experience, while preserving (or even enhancing) overall revenue.

While things aren't "the same", we still have fun there as a family and that's all that matters to me. I guess we are part of the problem.

Or a sign that there really isn't a problem---at least not from the business' perspective.

-------------

No one likes paying more, for anything, ever. I've written this many times in the past, but it bears repeating. Disney is a business that sells happiness. That's not the same as "Disney wants me, personally, to be happy," but it was easy conflate the two especially when I first encountered The Mouse. Inevitably, something happens which shines a light on the difference, and for many that is a significant point of disillusionment. But, it was always an illusion. A very good one, but an illusion.

 

[Klismania]

This is more or less exactly what the Parks management folks were hoping would happen---and they've been open about that in quarterly earnings calls for at least the last few years. Even dating back to Iger running those calls, they would often talk about wanting to reduce the overall attendance, giving the remaining guests a better experience, while preserving (or even enhancing) overall revenue

Good point. I guess only time will tell if that strategy works. I have my doubts about this theory, though. Why build more hotels when you're trying to reduce overall attendance? Doesn't make sense.

 

[FCDub]

This. 100% this. We are talking about a luxury discretionary purchase that has been exclusionary for a long long time.

DISNEY IS TOO EXPENSIVE! BUT IT'S ALSO TOO CROWDED!