Art the Greeter (A Walt Disney World Social Media Tale)

A year ago, I created a Facebook fan page for Art Lark. You may not know him, but to my family, he’s a star. He’s our favorite Walt Disney World employee (or in Walt Disney World lingo, our favorite cast member), and we know him as “Art the Greeter”, who graced the entryway at Disney’s Beach Club and Beach Club Villas. I say that in past tense because Art retired this past Saturday.

I don’t know the specifics of Art’s job description, but a casual observer might say that his job was simply to say hello to each and every person that entered or exited the Beach Club lobby. In truth, I suspect that he was tasked with something bigger than this. But Art took what might have been an easy-to-dismiss job and made it an opportunity for true magic. He knew that he would likely be the first cast member to greet a new vacationer arriving for their week of magic. His smile, salute, and signature lines, “to the gentleman…” and “to the lady…” were just precursors to the genuine connection he strove for with each guest he met.

Art Lark ("Art the Greeter")

No strong efforts were made to beg for fans on Art’s page. In fact, knowing that I technically should have created a “group”, not a fan page (since I didn’t actually represent Art), I made only a few posts to Disney fan sites to inform of the fan page. Art’s reputation did the real work in growing his fan base. And man, did it grow! So much so that by a few weeks ago, when I first learned that Art was going to retire on October 17, 2009, he already had over 850 fans. At that point, I asked the fan base to let people know and try to grow Art’s fan numbers to 1,000 by his retirement. They surpassed that by 100 fans. And as of today, he has 1,193 fans. These people don’t just like Art, they love him! You’ll understand better if you read the comments on his fan page. (By the way, though he’s thrilled to have recently learned of this fan page, he’d have never created it for himself. He is truly a humble man.)

But here’s a surprise: the folks at Disney didn’t fully realize that they had a star in Art Lark. After all, it is the famous mice, ducks, dogs, and princesses that are typically presented as the stars of Disney Parks. Instead, Art’s online fame rose without self-promotion or Disney’s efforts, but instead via the Internet tool of social media. A quick look at the comments on Art’s Facebook fan page will make it clear that this was a special man to Walt Disney World fans and fellow cast members alike.

Much to the credit of Thomas Smith, the Social Media Director for Disney Parks, when the folks at Disney became aware of Art’s online status, they didn’t sit by idly. Instead, they first went to interview Art, featuring him on the Disney Parks blog yesterday (his last day on the job before retirement). That well-deserved honor makes a public statement about Disney valuing their cast members (a subject occasionally called into question online).

But they didn’t stop there. Thomas Smith and the Disney marketing/public relations team recognized that there is another set of stars within the Disney family, and they don’t all have Disney movie tie-ins. And they are very aware that social media tools have helped to create a huge, active fan base. So going beyond their blog salute to Art the Greeter, they named Art a “Disney Difference”, and established a new section on their blog for cast member profiles. While Art Lark is a great example of Disney magic, everywhere you look in Walt Disney World (and in other Disney parks, I’m sure) you’ll find examples of cast members who perform their job to the best of their ability. I’ve personally witnessed “above-and-beyond” of cast members ranging from janitorial workers to park executives.

By establishing these cast member profiles, Disney has acknowledged both the individuals serving as cast members in their theme parks and the power of the online community, and has continued their strong recent efforts to become a part of those conversations.

Nice work, Art. Happy retirement. And hats off to you, too, Thomas. Thanks for joining with us as we show our public appreciation of Walt Disney Company employees. And thanks for being willing to listen to (and participate in) the new online conversation. You clearly get it.

Now to the lesson that the rest of us can take from this. Don’t overlook what is important to your customers. They’re talking about you… listen to what they’re saying. Maybe like Disney, you’ll find that you’ve got a hidden star within your own business. Be happy that your customers helped you see it!

One final treat, for those who care, is an interview with Art, just put up on YouTube yesterday by Lou Mongello of WDW Radio (a top Disney-focused podcast).