Disney exec Asad Ayaz on how century-old company stays ‘authentic, relevant’

Disney princesses all (from left): Jodi Benson (Ariel in “The Little Mermaid”), Paige O’Hara (Belle in “Beauty and the Beast”), Anika Noni Rose (Tiana in “The Princess and the Frog”), Linda Larkin (Jasmine in “Aladdin”) and Ming-Na Wen (“Mulan”) —PHOTOS COURTESY OF THE WALT DISNEY CO.

ANAHEIM, California—When we joined hundreds of thousands of Disney aficionados at this year’s spectacular D23: The Ultimate Disney Fan Event in the United States last week, we gamely took part in the rides with as much thrill and gusto as when we watched—or even crossed paths with—luminaries from Tinseltown.

They included the superstar likes of Harrison Ford, Jodie Foster, Gal Gadot, Miley Cyrus, Jared Leto, Meghan Trainor, Jeff Bridges, Dwayne Johnson, Jude Law, Billy Crystal, Darren Criss and director James Cameron.

Of course we were just as excited to see Disney legends and “princesses” in the flesh, like Jodi Benson (Ariel in “The Little Mermaid”), Ming-Na Wen (“Mulan”), Paige O’Hara (Belle in “Beauty and the Beast”), Linda Larkin (Princess Jasmine in “Aladdin”) and Anika Noni Rose (Tiana, the groundbreaking African American Disney princess, in “The Princess and the Frog”) all together on one stage—in various interactions that were spread over glitzy showcases, big reveals, SRO panel discussions, meet-and-greets and exclusive interviews.

Immersive thrill

As with the aforementioned superstar sightings, it’s impossible to invalidate the immersive thrill that any theme-park aficionado derives from rides like the Star Wars 3D Motion Simulator or the heart-stopping, lightning-speed race from Ornament Valley to Radiator Springs at Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, California.

Even more insightful and revelatory were the rare opportunities to take a deep dive into the Disney brand and ethos that allowed us to demystify the whys, hows and wherefores of what it takes to uphold and “manage” a much-revered but century-old brand that now consolidates, among others, Disney, Walt Disney Animation, Pixar Animation Studios, Lucasfilm, 20th Century Studios, Searchlight Pictures, Disney+ and Marvel Studios.

But how do you gather all these entertainment behemoths under one umbrella and expect them to work in “synchronized harmony”?

From left: Gal Gadot, Rachel Zegler and Yvette Nicole Brown

‘Working as one’

When we joined a panel of select journalists for an exclusive roundtable interview with Asad Ayaz, chief brand officer of The Walt Disney Co. and president of marketing of the Walt Disney Studios and Disney+, the executive underscored the importance of having different studios “working as one” without seeming like they’re disparate units just looking out after their respective turfs and fiefdoms.

Asad explained, “One thing we wanted to convey [at the Disney Entertainment Showcase at the Honda Center] is that we wanted to very much feel like ‘One Disney,’ because Disney has so many parts.

“If you’ve been to D23 before, we had an animation showcase, a live-action presentation, a television presentation, there was also Studios. [But] last night was truly about a One Disney entertainment experience—because that’s how the consumer interacts with The Walt Disney Co. and the dynamic of entertainment. How it touches people across consumer touch points is very unique to Disney, whether it’s by way of theme parks or social and digital or movie or streaming.”

Asked about his core challenges for the Disney brand in a constantly evolving entertainment landscape, he noted, “The world is changing in a significant way, and technology is disrupting the way people consume entertainment and media. People’s tastes are evolving, and we’re a 100-year-old brand.

“But I’m very proud of our creatives as our storytelling continues to evolve. At Josh D’Amaro’s presentation’ [at the ‘Experiences’ showcase], you saw ‘experiences’ that resonated with people around the world, even though the world is changing so much. ‘Inside Out 2’ is an example of that. It’s breaking records around the world because it connects with people.

Gratitude to fans

“Over the last year, [we’ve seen] the whole company coming together on the Disney 100 campaign. That was our first company-wide marketing and brand campaign celebrating the best of The Walt Disney Co. It was a celebration and a thank you to our fans.

“The whole campaign was anchored around our gratitude to the fans who love Disney and its creatives. Not a lot of companies, especially in entertainment, have been around for 100 years and [still] get a lot of love from fans all over the world.”

D23 is partly an expression of that gratitude, he said.

“D23 is a marketing event. It’s a celebration of our brands, but it’s also a celebration of our fans—and we take that very seriously,” he said. “Yes, we certainly go to Comic-Con and other events. But what we can do here at D23 is create an experience that’s very unique … so many panels happening during the daytime, and then stage the big shows at night. It’s all about giving access to the fans, and creating specific experiences for them.”

Disney Legend Jamie Lee Curtis (center) with Jodie Foster and Lindsay Lohan

Gen Z audiences

Another crucial part of the company’s high-wire “balancing act” is merging its time-tested 100-year-old traditions with the way Gen Z audiences operate.“One of the greatest things about Gen Z is how they consume entertainment and media—they spend a lot of time on their phones. They don’t watch television the way that our generations have and do,” he observed. “And I think one of the greatest challenges and opportunities surrounding that is that they don’t necessarily engage with traditional marketing and advertising. On social and mobile, it’s very easy to avoid advertising, so when we’re marketing and promoting, we have to make it feel organic and authentic to them.

“With ‘Inside Out 2,’ we found that the idea of growing up and losing your innocence and joy as you get more anxious as a teenager really resonated with that generation. Sometimes, they’re actually more excited to engage with personalities on social media than with traditional celebrities. So, it really is a very different generation.”

Interestingly, one market may work out differently from the next. In countries without a Disney theme park or that have restrictions on film releases, what does he think will be key to building authentic connections with consumers to strengthen the Disney brand?

Opportunities to connect

“The top two drivers of the Disney brand are obviously our movies and theme parks—and these are very important ways to connect with our fans,” Asad shared. “But the world is continually changing. So, whether someone’s a fan of a comic book or our content on YouTube, or engages with us through gaming, publishing programs or consumer products, there are so many opportunities to connect.

“We obviously want them to enjoy our movies and visit our theme parks, but we want to reach our fans everywhere and have them celebrate the best of what Disney has to offer.”

Asad Ayaz, chief brand officer of The Walt Disney Co. and president of marketing of Walt Disney Studios and Disney+, at the roundtable interview last week

The rest of the Q&A with Asad:

How is Disney sustaining interest for long-running franchises with multiple sequels, prequels and remakes? What are key factors to marketing a successful title across the globe?

Those are both great questions. If you think about the Disney properties that have had a lot of success over time, the ones with the biggest gaps between the movie and their sequel are the ones that people love the most.

I think the insight there is: When the fans ask for something, and we deliver on that, I think that is the insight! Because we’re giving people what they want. For example, when we made “Incredibles 2” five years ago (and we announced “Incredibles 3” last night), it was something that fans had wanted for a very, very long time—and it delivered. So, whether it’s a live-action remake of something beloved, like “The Lion King,” “Toy Story” or “Inside Out 2,” there’s a built-in fandom involving people who love it.

Many of that generation are now parents and they get to share that property with their kids, so it becomes a multigenerational event. So, we’re very excited about “Snow White,” one of our oldest movies that’s also getting the live-action treatment.

We’re giving people what they ask for. I thought it was amazing last night when Jamie Lee Curtis and Lindsay Lohan came onstage. Who knew that [something like that could happen to] “Freaky Friday”? It’s a beloved movie that has grown into a massive nostalgia piece. And it was really beautiful to see them getting a standing ovation.

How is Disney leveraging new technologies to enhance the brand experience?

That’s a reality at this point. There’s a lot that we’re doing technologically. We’re constantly talking to top tech providers and all the social media companies around the world, doing creative integrations with them.

We worked with TikTok on Disney 100 (the company’s 100th anniversary campaign)—we’re very proud that we were the first entertainment brand to have a dedicated hub. We grew our followers in a huge way on the platform.

With the rise of local content and digital transformation shifting consumer behavior and preferences, how does Disney continue engaging with fans and consumers?

Obviously, local content is important. Carol (Choi) can speak to that, because we are absolutely in that business, and it’s a big part of our growth in many parts of the world. But ultimately, it comes back to creative quality—and that’s something we pride ourselves on as a company.

If you look at this year alone, and the summer we’ve had involving “Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes,” “Inside Out 2,” “Deadpool & Wolverine,” we’re making movies at a level of quality that resonates with viewers. But it is different things in different parts of the world.

Often, when we market these properties, we work with our teams locally, so there might be a certain character or theme that resonates more.

Also, with marketing teams, we do creative testing and focus groups; we get feedback from digital and social media, You can actually get a lot of insights into how people feel about your marketing, about an image, or about a trailer. So, we try very much to customize our approach for each country in a way that feels authentic and relevant to our fans.