Walt Disney Co. is exploring a membership program that could offer discounts or special perks to encourage customers to spend more on its streaming services, theme parks, resorts and merchandise, according to The Wall Street Journal citing people familiar with the discussions.
The program would be somewhat akin to Amazon Prime, which offers advantages such as free shipping, discounts at Whole Foods and a complementary streaming video service for a monthly or annual fee, the people said. Internally, some executives have referred to Disney’s initiative as “Disney Prime,” although that won’t be the name of the program, one of the people said.\
Discussions at Disney are in the early stages. It couldn’t be learned how much the company would charge for membership and how long it would take to launch such a program.
By creating a membership program, Disney would be betting it could offer customers more value, prompting them to spend more on the company’s products and services, while providing Disney with a trove of information about their preferences.
The effort is supported by Disney Chief Executive Bob Chapek, who has been vocal both internally and publicly about the opportunity for Disney to do more to cross-sell to customers, the people familiar with the discussions said.
Disney already has a special program for superfans, the D23 Official Fan Club, which costs $99.99 to $129.99 a year and comes with access to exclusive events and merchandise. That program offered members a discounted three-year subscription to Disney+ in 2019. A new membership program would be different in that it would be targeted at more casual Disney fans and customers.
As an early step to better link Disney products and services, Disney is working to enable subscribers to its Disney+ streaming service to buy merchandise such as T-shirts, themed accessories and children’s costumes associated with some of its shows by scanning a QR code on the service that links to the Shop Disney website, people familiar with the plan said.
Disney has a range of products and services based on its vast stable of entertainment content. In addition to its movies and streaming programming, the company has theme parks and sells a host of travel experiences, from cruises to private-jet trips, as well as clothing and toys.
Chapek in May highlighted Disney’s “unique synergy machine, or franchise flywheel” on a call with Wall Street analysts, saying the company was different from competitors because it could reach people in many different ways.
Membership programs have gained popularity among retailers from Amazon.com Inc. to Walmart Inc. to Starbucks Corp. because they help companies better understand customers’ purchasing habits, while offering discounts or perks that encourage them to remain loyal.
No comments:
Post a Comment