Brand Image and Walt Disney: A Qualitative Analysis of “Magical Gatherings”

Brilliant brand images have become increasingly essential to the longevity and popularity of products in today’s marketplace. Although much research has covered the theoretical aspects of brand image, little has focused on the actual techniques used to create successful brand images and the criteria by which brand images should be judged. By comparing the brand image of the Magical Gatherings vacation planning service website to Haedrich’s (1993) roughly developed brand image criteria, the researcher uncovered four themes that could be considered brand image building techniques: (1) A Magical Gatherings vacation is a way of purging one’s guilt about not spending more time with loved ones, (2) Buy, buy, buy, (3) The most magical website on the World Wide Web, and (4) Only the best for our guests. These themes provide valuable insight about what should be included in a successful brand image and provide a launch pad for further research into the vaguely defined field of brand image development.