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What Disney Can Teach You About Bad Execution

So, this past weekend I went into a Disney store with my daughter. She had $20 from the tooth fairy who visited Grammy’s as well as her own house (I don’t know either) that was burning a hole in her pocket.

As she perused the aisle of princess trinkets, I noticed a small, little end cap out-of-the-way towards the back of the store.

Compared to the rest of the displays, this one was pretty run down. I couldn’t tell what was being sold on this display until I was about 5 feet away.

Book Your Trip to Disney Here!

That was the sign I saw in about 18 font, on the opposing side of the display to the traffic facing it.

This was one banged-up display!

Now, if you know anything about Disney, they are all about imagery and pageantry. You will not see a single straw wrapper or character well, out of character at their parks. These guys run a tight ship.

Which is why I couldn’t understand how on earth this display was allowed to look the way it did. I wish I took a picture, but I was keeping an eye on my daughter too, but this thing was ugly.

And it was selling the most expensive item in the store!

Every go to Disney? I went a few years ago and it cost $3,000 for 3 of us for a week. That’s some serious coin for a vacation. Most people I know spend upwards of $5,000 or more.

In fact, my buddy told his wife she had $15,000 to spend to go wherever they wanted. Guess where they went? Disney!

What I would do if I were the king of marketing at Disney

Each store would have a travel center. A full-time, round the clock person who could help you book your travel, meals and other arrangements all in one place.

I would offer free child care to let parents pick and chose with peace of mind that the kids aren’t missing. And I bet if you let kids play with some of the new stuff in the “play pen”, they would be able to convince Mom and Dad to buy them something on the way out! More dollars in the Disney coffers.

If you have not been the one to book a Disney trip, let me tell you, it is a friggin nightmare. So it should be a no-brainer to have some imagery and pageantry at the store level to help the sales process along, right?

What’s this mean to you?

If you can create your own imagery and pageantry for the homeowner during the sales call process, you stand a better chance at getting to yes. By presenting Mrs. Jones with the keys to the kingdom (sorry, couldn’t pass it up) you help her remove her own barriers in her own head, which makes it easier to close.

How do you do this?

Imagery – you show her. Show her first what you have done for others. Show before and after pics. Show her how in just a few short weeks, she too can have what the Smiths across the street have.

There is a reason car dealers get you behind the wheel of a car as soon as possible. They want you to feel like you own the product already.

Pageantry – Your sales presentation should be littered words like “your new kitchen” or “parties or get-togethers on your new deck”. Pomp and circumstance can be created a hundred ways during the sales call process, the point is, make as big a deal as possible and make the Jones feel good about buying from you.

In the end…

You can trade on your name as is, or you can build go above and beyond your competition. You can make it easy for people to buy from you with financing help and free design, or you can make it hard for them by taking 2 days to get back to them, or coming to your presentations smelling like smoke. The point is a little pomp and circumstance can help you land jobs other contractors try to win solely on price.