Target Audience Report

By: Jamie Bornscheuer

Introduction
Jamie Bornscheuer and Emily Holdaway, PR students researching Disney+, analyzed the
strengths, weakness, opportunities, threats, stakeholders and target audience of Disney+. The
research gave the Disney+ PR team insight on how to and who to reach while promoting
Disney+. Being aware of the aforementioned research will maximize the efficiency of any future
communication strategies for Disney+.

SWOT Analysis
This section highlights the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats to Disney+
and Disney as a brand.

Strengths Weaknesses
• Highly recognized brand globally with a • Only reaching five countries in
large fan base 2019
• High follower engagement on Twitter and • Limited to just Disney content
Instagram • Lower follower count in
• Quick to resolve customer complaints and comparison to its competitors on
address issues social media
• Rarely interacts with its followers
on Twitter

Opportunities Threats
• Steady growth in social media following: • Must compete for share of voice
Nostalgic content and anticipation for new in media with already established
content is working brands
• Steady growth of media coverage leading • Decreased interest from older
to launch generations
• Original content can become a trending
topic separate from the streaming service

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Strengths:
Disney+ is the streaming service for one of the biggest brands in the world, with a very
large fan base. When Disney+ used the D23 Expo, a Disney fan convention, to
announce all the new, original content that will be featured on the streaming service and
to promote its three-year discount, the D23 website received so many visitors wanting to
sign up for the deal that the website crashed (Clark, 2019). The Disney fan base jump-
started Disney+ subscriptions and subscriber growth has been increasing rapidly ever
since. Disney’s new streaming service offers monthly subscriptions for $6.99 a month or
$70 annually in the United States. This price, at nearly half of Netflix’s monthly price,
makes Disney+ the lowest cost streaming service next to Hulu. The streaming service
also offers a $12.99 monthly subscription bundle with both other Disney-owned
services, Hulu and ESPN+ (The Walt Disney Company, 2019). This gives Disney+ a
competitive edge at its launch. Unlike competitors, Disney+ will not have different
pricing tiers. The streaming service will allow all subscribers to stream simultaneously
on four screens and create seven different profiles for added personalization at no extra
cost. Disney+’s social media following is increasing steadily. On average, its Twitter
account follower count increases by about 5% each week. Disney+ also has the highest
engagement rate on Twitter compared to Netflix and Amazon Prime video, according to
social media tracker Keyhole. Disney+ leads with an engagement rate of 1.42%, Netflix
has .09% and Amazon Prime Video has .02%.

Weaknesses:
Disney+’s biggest weakness is growing pains. Because the streaming service is new,
there are limitations and obstacles that they face. One of these limitations is that
Disney+ will only reach certain countries in 2019. The streaming service launched on
Nov. 12, 2019, in the United States, Canada and the Netherlands. On Nov. 19, 2019,
the service will be offered in Australia and New Zealand as well (The Walt Disney
Company, 2019). The company plans to expand to Western Europe, Eastern Europe,
Latin America, and the Asia Pacific in the future (Sorrentino & Solsman, 2019). Disney+
recently announced that the streaming service will be available in the United Kingdom,
Germany, France, Italy and Spain on March 31, 2020, but this won’t reach Europe at
the original launch date (Disney, 2019). Another limitation is that the streaming service
can only provide Disney content, a topic that has come up in previous preliminary
research. Disney+ does offer a bundle with Hulu and ESPN+ that will combat this issue,
but it’s still an issue for customers that only purchase Disney+. One obstacle that
Disney+ faces is financial loss due to programming. Michael Nathanson, a media
analyst, estimated that Disney+ could lose as much as $1.8 billion annually through
2023, with programming as the main cost (Barnes & Koblin, 2019).

Opportunities
Disney+ is constantly gaining media coverage. There were 428 articles by 202 different
outlets during the week of Nov. 7-13, 2019 that were published in the U.S. and had

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some mention or discussion about the launch of Disney+. Although Nov. 12, 2019 was
the launch date for the service, which would boost its coverage amount, that week
Disney+ had 310 more articles posted about the launch of Disney+ than the previous
week. Disney+ is also constantly gaining Twitter followers. Each week Twitter gains
about 5% more followers, proving that posts about nostalgia and new content are
drawing new followers. The week Disney+ launched, its Twitter follower amount
increased by 21%. In addition to nostalgia, new Disney content such as “The
Mandalorian” is becoming a separate topic in traditional news media.

Threats
Disney+ is entering an established industry, so it is going to have to catch up with
competitors to gain share of voice among traditional and social media. Netflix and
Amazon Prime Video have millions of followers on their social media, while Disney+ is
still in the hundreds of thousands. Netflix and Amazon Prime Video comment and
interact with viewers often, whereas Disney+ rarely interacts or comments at all. Netflix
and Amazon Prime Video also have a higher average share per Facebook post.
Disney+ is also not attractive to customers ages 50-59. In a survey the PR team
conducted, 45% of participants were ages 50-59, and a majority of survey takers said
that they will not purchase Disney+. This leaves an untapped target audience.

Stakeholder Analysis

Primary
Disney+ is a budding threat in the streaming service industry and continues to grow
rapidly after its launch on Tuesday, Nov. 12, 2019. Because of this growing popularity,
the company has a significant amount of people and organizations with a stake in the
company’s success. The primary stakeholders for Disney+ include its customers,
investors, employees, talent, board of directors and co-marketing partners.

The board of directors and company leadership directly affect the streaming service’s
overall perception and the direction Disney+ will take as it navigates a competitive
industry. Disney+ must communicate and pay ample attention to its investors and
shareholders, especially during such a volatile time for the company due to a launch
plagued with glitches. Events within the industry and decisions made by the company
will affect the worth of Disney’s stock. Had the rocky launch of Disney+ brought down
Disney’s stock, the investors and shareholders would have been directly affected. Direct
email and internal communications are the most effective ways of communicating with
these primary stakeholders.

Employees for Disney+ are directly affected by the company’s decisions. Their jobs are
influenced by decisions made about the direction of the company and how well the
company is perceived by the public. Employees include those managing the streaming
service, filmmakers, writers, actors, producers, talent acquirers and more. The

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company’s talent, such as actors and actresses, are vital in the creation of content and
promotion for Disney+. Their influence over their fans can make or break a company,
depending on how they perceive it. Again, email and internal communications would be
the most effective way to communicate with these stakeholders.

Additionally, Disney+ partnered with Verizon Wireless to offer a free year of Disney+ to
any Verizon customers who have the unlimited data plan. Because this makes Verizon
a co-marketing partner for Disney+, Verizon is now directly affected by the decisions
that Disney makes.

Finally, customers are the biggest influence for the company’s success. Without
popularity and a growing subscriber count, Disney+ would not be successful and its
investors and many of its employees would abandon the company. Social media would
be the best way for the company to communicate with this audience and keep up with
the online sentiment toward Disney+.

Secondary
Disney+ has many secondary stakeholders as well. Although these groups are not
directly affected by the company, they can greatly influence public sentiment toward
Disney+. Secondary stakeholders include government officials, the media and internet
service providers.

Government officials write and pass legislation that affects the digital media and
entertainment industries. These industries are pivotal to the success of Disney+, so the
company has to comply with state and federal laws such as privacy policies and tax
codes.

A mutually beneficial relationship between the media and Disney+ is also a large factor
in the company’s overall success. The media, traditional and digital, promote and inform
potential customers about the streaming service and garnering a strong, beneficial
relationship will sway the media sentiment in the company’s favor. Media can influence
public perception and, because of this, it is important for Disney+ to establish a
collaborative relationship with such a powerful secondary stakeholder. Media can be
reached through email and phone while newsletters, press releases and company
statements should address the media as a whole.

Internet service providers are an essential secondary stakeholder for Disney+ because
without them, there is no platform to be used by customers. A significant amount of
bandwidth is required for the massive amount of online traffic that Disney+ generates.
Fostering a relationship with internet service providers would ensure that the company
has a stable platform. Company statements and press releases could address these
providers to maintain the relationship.

Audience Analysis
Target Audience: Millennials, Early Generation Z

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Generation Z was born between 1997 and 2012 (Generation, 2019). Those born
between 1997 and 2000 are part of Disney+’s target audience when trying to gain
subscriptions. Generation Z has grown up with the internet and streaming services.
They are accustomed to having entertainment on demand and a wide variety of viewing
options. This target audience should be reached via social media to increase its
awareness of Disney+. This specific demographic will most likely be moved by
messaging related to shows and movies they grew up with such as “High School
Musical,” “Hannah Montana” and “Wizards of Waverly Place.”

The target audience has most likely heard of Disney+ and its services because Disney
is a highly recognized brand. Some are college-age and most are on social media.
Focusing content on Disney Channel Originals and Disney movies is key to its social
media content. Early Gen. Z is also likely to be making independent purchases with little
annual income. According to a focus group conducted by the Disney+ PR team, this
target audience needs to see demand for the product to justify buying it for
themselves—a subscription purchase will not be made without great influence.
According to a study by Business Insider, the majority of Generation Z prefers
streaming services to cable TV, so it is likely that the people in this generation already
have a streaming service (Business Insider, 2019)

Generation Z habits:
• 45% of teens say they are online “almost constantly”
• Almost half of Gen Z-ers are online for more than 10 hours or more each day
• 95% of teens report that they have a smartphone or access to one
• 55% of Gen Z use their smartphone for five hours or more a day
• 85% of Gen Z use social media to learn about new products (Generation, 2019)

Millennials, born from 1981-1996, are another target audience for Disney+ because this
generation is likely to have young children who would be interested in the content that
Disney+ offers. This generation would likely be buying a Disney+ subscription for a
family, in contrast to those in the early Gen. Z category, who would likely be buying a
subscription for themselves.

Millennial habits:
• 51% of Millennials say they spend “nearly all” or “most of their online time on a
smartphone (D’Adamo, 2018)
• Facebook and Instagram are the most popular social networks for Millennials
(D'Adamo, 2018)
• 57% of Millennials watched more than 1 hour of TV in the last 24 hours (Youth
Ministry Media, 2019)
• 59% of Millennials use the internet as their main news source (Youth Ministry
Media, 2019)

Influencers to Target

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 • Shelby Revis, @shelbyrevis on Instagram, is a Disney influencer who reaches a
younger audience. She posts photos that cater to her Instagram “aesthetic” and
has a high engagement rate with her 51,700 followers. She has an average of
1,500 likes and 35 comments per post. She would be an influencer who would
reach the Gen. Z target audience Disney+ wants to reach.
• A Disney news Instagram, @disneynews55, would be an account that could
reach Millennials. The account has posts that specifically target parents and,
during the Halloween season, had advertisements for children’s Disney
costumes. This shows that the account’s following consists of some parents
would be interested in these kinds of posts. The account has 54,300 followers
and a high engagement rate with an average of 2,200 likes and 20 comments per
post.

Audience Personas
Persona One:

Name: Rebecca
Age: 20
Location: Phoenix, Arizona
Education: Currently earning an undergraduate
degree
Occupation: On-campus university job and internship
Income: $12,000 annually
Marital Status: In a relationship

Motivations:
Rebecca is a college student trying to balance work,
school, and social life. She is driven to finish her
degree and start her career. Rebecca is not sure what
she wants to do after graduation, but she is getting as
Figure 1: Audience Persona much experience as she can to figure it out. She grew
up watching Disney movies and loves Disney Channel
One
originals such as High School Musical and Hannah
Montana. She enjoys listening to pop and rap music.

Challenges:
Rebecca is paying for her living while in college and money is tight. She is careful where
she spends her money and does not like monthly subscriptions. She gets all of her
news from Twitter.

Decision Making:
Though she makes many impulse purchases, Rebecca thoroughly analyzes every
subscription she signs up for before purchasing them. She wants to make sure that her
purchases are of high quality.

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Persona Two:

Name: Jocelyn
Age: 37
Location: Phoenix, Arizona
Education: Bachelor’s degree
Occupation: Stay-at-home mom
Income: $100,000 annual family
income
Marital status: Married

Motivations:
Jocelyn is a stay-at-home mother to
three young boys. She loves being
able to volunteer at her kids’ school
functions, go to every soccer game
and spend time with her kids. Nothing Figure 2: Audience Persona Two
is more important than family to her.
She has been married to her husband for 10 years and he is a lawyer. His annual
income is around $110,000. The family lives comfortably, but it helps that both Jocelyn
and her husband are fiscally conservative. Money is spent with purpose in this
household and, more often than not, goes toward their children. Because each of
Jocelyn’s boys are under 13 years old, Disney is a big part of what her children watch.
She often turns on “Disney movie marathons” to distract her kids long enough for a free
moment to herself. She has both a Netflix and a Hulu account.

Challenges:
Jocelyn has a difficult time justifying “frivolous” purchases and already has two
streaming service subscriptions that the whole family enjoys.

Decision Making:
No financial decisions are made without the unanimous approval of both her and her
husband. Jocelyn always considers her children’s input and often feels like a sucker for
giving in and buying presents for her boys to make them happy.

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 Works Cited
Barnes, B., & Koblin, J. (2019, April 11). Disney Plus Streaming Service Is Unveiled to
Hollywood Fanfar. Retrieved from The New York Times:
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/04/11/business/media/disney-plus-streaming.html
Business Insider. (2019, November 12). Generation Z. Retrieved from Business Insider:
https://www.businessinsider.com/generation-z
Clark, T. (2019, August 27). The website offering a deep discount on Disney Plus has
crashed, as people rush to get the deal for the upcoming Netflix competitor.
Retrieved from Business Insider:
https://www.businessinsider.com/d23-website-crashes-down-during-from-disne
Y-plus-deal-2019-8
D'Adamo, A. (2018, January 31). Into Millennials' Digital Habits and Trends. Retrieved
from Stella Rising: https://www.stellarising.com/blog/millennial-digital-habits-
trends-social-media
Disney. (2019, November 7). Just announced: #DisneyPlus will be available in
the United Kingdom, Germany, France, Italy, Spain (and more to be announced
soon) starting on March 31st. Please note: Titles may vary by territory.
pic.twitter.com/lE6nzBeaXy. Retrieved from
https://twitter.com/disneyplus/status/1192557075651383296.
Generation Z Statistics - 99firms: November 2019. (2019, April 23). Retrieved from
https://99firms.com/blog/generation-z-statistics/#gref.
Sorrentino, M., & Solsman, J. E. (2019, September 12). Disney Plus: Launch dates,
prices, movies and shows to expect. Retrieved from Cnet:
https://www.cnet.com/news/disney-plus-streaming-service-launch-release-date
s-prices-shows-movies-to-expect-free-test-netherlands/
The Walt Disney Company. (2019, August 19). New Global Launch Dates Confirmed
for Disney+. Retrieved from The Walt Disney Company:
https://www.thewaltdisneycompany.com/new-global-launch-dates-confirmed-for
-disney/
The Walt Disney Company. (2019, August 19). New Global Launch Dates Confirmed
for Disney+. Retrieved from The Walt Disney Company:
https://www.thewaltdisneycompany.com/new-global-launch-dates-confirmed-for
-disney/
Youth Ministry Media. (2019, November 12). The Differinf Online Habits of Millennials.
Retrieved from Youth Ministry Media:
http://www.youthministrymedia.ca/infographics/the-differing-online-habits-of-
millennials-infographic/

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