Gracie Communications

You’ve spent ample time on customer research. You understand your audience demographics and psychographics. You may have even hired a designer to help you present your product in the best manner possible. You are confident that you can present your product or experience in a way that will resonate with your customers. 

If you gave your customers a camera, would they see what you want them to see? 

You might be surprised to learn how a roll of film could even teach Disney about how their smallest customers experience the magic.

Five years ago, my family went on a Disney cruise. I need to take a moment to point out that I think Walt Disney and Co. are masters at engineering the experience. The cruise line was no exception. From Donald Duck greeting us at the dock to the personal wait staff at dinner, nothing about the experience was anything less than wonderful. From start to finish, the attention to detail was impeccable.

The view when you are three

While my three-year-old daughter had an equally good time, I didn’t truly understand the pitfalls of her vantage point until I developed the film from her camera.  Her Disney experience included knees and lots of colorful walls.  Where I saw a promenade of Disney princesses, she saw a crowd of legs and staircases. While I looked out the window, she looked at the back of a chair or at the safety rail.

I learned a lot from those pictures. They showed me that I should have carried my daughter more often. They also showed me that Disney should think a little bit harder about how to improve the view from the 3-foot level.

What view do you need to think about when it comes to your product or service? What do your customers see when they walk in the door, or visit your web site for the first time? Ask them. Or better yet, give them a camera. It will give you a whole new perspective on how your product is seen.