Disney’s Content Marketing Strategy : The Magic Behind the Mouse

Companies dream of the day when their brand becomes a household name. When the whole world can recognize who you are without a piece of content directly naming you. One company who stands above the rest as far as marketing goes is Disney. Disney's content marketing uniqueness has kept a certain mouse’s ears on our heads and in our hearts for 100 years. /*! elementor - v3.14.0 - 26-06-2023 */ .elementor-widget-image{text-align:center}.elementor-widget-image a{display:inline-block}.elementor-widget-image a img[src$=".svg"]{width:48px}.elementor-widget-image img{vertical-align:middle;display:inline-block}

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Once Upon a Time…

Through a harmonious fusion of creativity, imagination, and heartfelt narratives, Disney has perfected the art of enchanting both young and old with its storytelling narrative. This may be obvious in reference to its beloved movie franchises. However, Disney takes this one step further to incorporate storytelling into every aspect of their business - products, theme parks and entertainment alike. “...Where most brands start with a physical product and then build a story around it in the form of ‘content marketing,’ companies like Disney do exactly the opposite. They create a brand story - a movie - and then build products around that story.”

Disney's Content Marketing Magic in Action

When you arrive at Disney's Animal Kingdom you are greeted with luscious plants, exotic animals and exhilarating entertainment. Recently, Disney added a 7th land to the park , Pandora - The World of Avatar. Disney already had a well known brand story and built a product, Pandora, around that. This theme park lands drops you into a post-movie storyline. Humans helped reclaim the Na'vi's home from the RDA, the movie's antagonist, and now coexist harmoniously

Disney built entire products around an already beloved IP through snacks, toys, collectibles, rides and experiences found throughout Pandora.While guests walk among familiar, impressive architecture, they experience exactly what the Na’vi do. From exotically sourced wildlife to a bioluminescent overlay at dusk to creature sounds pumped throughout the land, Disney forgets no small detail in the full immersion experience. Guests can purchase hamburgers in bao buns for lunch paired with a colorful popping boba drink. After riding through the Na'vi forest or flying through the sky on a Banshee, guests can purchase "authentic" jewelry or native animal shoulder plushes. Because Disney is constantly raising the bar, they even created a new Avatar lore for meticulous eyes. This land has easily become one of the most popular in Disney World due it’s extreme immersion and attention to detail. Of course, these marketing efforts were successful. This addition to Animal Kingdom brought in even more guests, erasing the "half-day" park reputation it once had. Avatar sales also boosted, years after the initial release, due to younger generations experiencing the story for the first time in the theme park. When the newest addition to the Avatar franchise was released, Disney also offered new treats and experiences within the land to keep the content marketing storyline fresh. If someone wasn't the biggest fan of Avatar, a visit to Disney's Animal Kingdom is sure to change this!

Bringing the Magic Home

So…what does this mean for your content marketing strategy? Not everyone can just create feature-length films and then build entire product lines around it! But this doesn’t mean there’s nothing to take away from Disney to bring just a little bit of magic to the way you do content marketing.

• Storytelling is key. People love stories and will tune in to content that feels like they  a story. Whether you’re writing a blog, drafting your Instagram content or creating TikToks - tell the story of who your brand is in every single bit of content! 
• Pay attention to the small details. Disney is world-renowned for making even the small things in their parks - construction signs, bathrooms, the literal ground - a part of the story. No matter how big or small your piece of content is, there's a way to make all of it important. 
• Don’t be scared to break the norm. From creating the first ever animated movie to redefining the theme park experience. Disney is known for going against the grain. Don’t be afraid to branch out and try new, creative ways to reach your audience’s attention span.

After 100 years in the business, Disney's content marketing strategy has lots backing it up! Any business could implement the strategies that Disney uses on a smaller scale. And who knows? Maybe you'll be creating the newest household brand name by following in the mouse's footsteps. Need some help bringing the magic to your brand? Reach out today for that sprinkle of pixie dust you’re craving.