We’ve got a lot to celebrate at Disney Interactive these days. Our Disney social network has expanded to new platforms like Pinterest, Tumblr and Instagram, the new blog Oh My Disney (OMD) is making waves, and the extended Disney Blog network just debuted on Disney.com.
In addition to demonstrating the overwhelming strength of The Walt Disney Company’s many brands, all of these remarkable accomplishments demonstrate the value of bringing Disney characters and content into the social space. We recently sat down with Social Engagement Strategist Emily Brandon to learn more.
The Disney social network has really expanded since it first started in 2009. How does your team approach producing content for channels like Facebook, Tumblr and YouTube?
We think it’s an exciting opportunity to connect and entertain Disney and Disney•Pixar fans all around the world. For the company, we see this as a channel for communicating the story of our brands, franchises and characters, while supporting new products. It’s an always-on Disney experience that our guests can access from any device, any time!
What were some of the strategies you employed to expand the network’s reach?
We develop content with the audience in mind first. We constantly monitor their response and fine-tune our strategy to give them more of what they love in unexpected ways. This approach has proven to deliver high audience participation.
Can you tell us a little about the recent launch of the extended Disney Blog network?
Our goal for the extended Disney Blog network is to give our guests the most comprehensive content experience we possibly can. Aside from the redesign of Disney Insider and the launch of OMD, at blogs.disney.com we’ve created a hub for partner blogs such as Disney Post, Disney Parks Blog, D23 and Babble. In addition, our own Music blog will undergo a transformation in the coming weeks.
There’s a lot of fun content that’s both timely and nostalgic on OMD. Where did the idea come from?
It came out of a brainstorm in which we thought “wouldn’t it be cool if…”. Disney has a history of telling really great stories, and it’s our jobs to adapt those stories for the digital audience. This just seemed like the next logical step. We were looking for ways to deepen our connection to our social audience. We felt this was a natural extension of the content we’re developing for channels like Facebook, YouTube and Tumblr.
What do you hope OMD will look like one year from now?
On OMD, you’ll see more blog-specific video and opportunities for fan participation. Beyond OMD, you’ll see us create other editorial voices that speak to unique audiences on Disney.com. We’re also making a huge push in producing music content through our recent partnership with Vevo.
Why do you think this is valuable to The Walt Disney Company?
It all comes down to entertaining our fans. We want to give them content that keeps them connected to the brand.
Anything else you’d like to add?
Just this.