Universal Orlando marketing

[Sir_Cliff]

Just saw the following USO vs Disney comparison on the Uni website and thought it might be worth commenting on as they apparently also have a new advertising campaign which fairly directly attacks Disney:
http://www.universalorlando.com/disney_comparision.html

Is it just me, or is this a little sad, particularly when it gets down to comparing attractions and "Today's hottest entertainment" with "Yesterday's classic fairytales" (such as Toy Story and Monsters Inc, of course)? I also wonder how productive a marketing tool this is, especially considering that Disney's attractions placed next to Uni's actually sound better.

I don't know, all the cut-priced deals and this kind of approach does seem very desperate. The whole approach seems to underline the idea of them as a poor (and slightly desperate) cousin to Disney.

[Nemo88]

Universal always attacks Disney in thier marketting campaigns,Im just glad Disney holds themselves to a higher standard and doesnt resort to Univesal bashing in thier ads.

Ive also heard from Uni CMs that they attack Disney at thier cast parties,its pretty pathetic.

[JT3000]

I knew it was only a matter of time 'till someone made a thread about this. Pathetic this, pathetic that... Universal's marketing is NOT aimed at die-hard Disneyites. Of course you don't like it, you aren't supposed to. But why complain as if Disney is your baby or something? They can both be enjoyed. They are simply competing entities that WILL take shots at each other (Yes, both of them). As the underdog, common sense would tell you that Universal has to do things differently from Disney. Even if it means marketing themselves as the anti-Disney. I personally find their new strategies rather bold. If they find something that works, it certainly won't be "pathetic". You just wanted to do some Uni bashing instead of waiting to see.

[Instidude]

It looks to me like they're trying to position themselves as "similar" in Disney so that the people will come visit USO rather than WDW. There is a similar number of attraction/comparisons in each category that may lead a family to say "hey, it looks a lot like Disney, plus Fido can stay in the room with us."

GE still nees better returns out of the parks, and are working on new strategies to get it, or they'll dump them.

[JT3000]

GE isn't "dumping" the parks. It can continue to be rumored, and it will continue to not happen.

[Sir_Cliff]

I knew it was only a matter of time 'till someone made a thread about this. Pathetic this, pathetic that... Universal's marketing is NOT aimed at die-hard Disneyites. Of course you don't like it, you aren't supposed to. But why complain as if Disney is your baby or something? They can both be enjoyed. They are simply competing entities that WILL take shots at each other (Yes, both of them). As the underdog, common sense would tell you that Universal has to do things differently from Disney. Even if it means marketing themselves as the anti-Disney. I personally find their new strategies rather bold. If they find something that works, it certainly won't be "pathetic". You just wanted to do some Uni bashing instead of waiting to see.

I don't think Disney needs defending in this instance or is probably particularly worried. I also understand why Uni fans would get sick of Disney fans bashing Uni at every opportunity, and you're right that they're different from one another. However, do you really think this is a good strategy to follow?

The slogon "A better vacation" is actually pretty decent and would be subtle way to make the point that they're not so subtely trying to make in their marketing. What they should be doing overall, though, is emphasizing the resort's strong points on their own terms rather than trying to hold them up alongside what Disney offers, in the process reminding people of Disney World in their own marketing. The kicker, though, would be to emphasize (and I guess provide if necessary) easy access for hotel guests to all of Orlando's other major attractions. They would then have a killer package of the two theme parks which are more oriented to older kids than Disney's, themed resort hotels, and a nighttime entertainment district all in a compact and manageable complex, plus, rather than being walled off in WDW, you would have free and easy access to everything else Orlando has to offer, including WDW. This way you're not setting it up as an either/or choice, and far more often than not people will choose WDW over Uni, but rather an overall package that would be in many ways superior and better value than what Disney offers and which facilitates for the obligatory trip to WDW on an Orlando vacation. THAT, IMO, would be an innovative and bold approach which I think would have a good shot at working.

Instead, they have this comparison on their website and an ad with kids saying things like "If I had to hug one more princess I was going to hurl." To me it seems mean spirited, desperate and not all that convincing. Few families are going to go for a vacation in Orlando without visiting WDW and there really isn't enough at Uni for a week-long vacation. They need to recognise those facts and work with them to come up with a better product to promote.

[Goin2Disneyland]

I just think it's sad. That comparison page really does nothing to make them look good, it just makes them look desperately unoriginal for not being able to trumpet their strengths effectively. USO is a beautiful resort with two nice parks, some gorgeous hotels and a lovely CityWalk. I'm with Sir Cliff on this one.

It's just kinda pathetic.

[Mortimer]

But why complain as if Disney is your baby or something?

Well this is a Disney fan website .

......You just wanted to do some Uni bashing instead of waiting to see.

I don't really think the original post intended to "Uni-bash" It was just an observation to why Universal uses these particular marketing tactics. I think it also shows that Disney is in a much stronger market position due to the fact, they never "Uni bash" the way Universal bashes Disney in their marketing campaigns.

[JT3000]

Well this is a Disney fan website .

But does it really matter to you personally how any company you're not actually apart of does business? I mean, as long as the quality of the parks isn't hurt, right? I say let them do what they want as long as their products can continue to provide an enjoyable experience for the public. It's not like Universal is trying to take away anyone's opportunity to enjoy Disney. Marking is marketing, the final decision of where to go is up to the guest.

[Sir_Cliff]

Maybe, but this is an entirely reasonable topic for discussion on this site and some of us find it interesting.