CASE STUDY: Go To Disney Parks

How We Built a YouTube-First Planning Funnel for Disney Parks UK

A story-led content ecosystem designed to turn awareness into intent.

Overview

During my time marketing Disney Parks across the UK & EMEA, we reversed engineered a new intent layer for our social ecosystem — one built around long-form storytelling on YouTube.

The result was Go To — a cross-channel content series designed to turn high-volume social awareness into deeper planning intent for:

• Walt Disney World Resort
• Disneyland Paris
• Disney Cruise Line

What began as a TikTok-driven UGC campaign ultimately became a 40-minute holiday planning journey, delivered through YouTube playlists and episodic videos.

Today, the “Go To Walt Disney World” playlist alone has exceeded 500,000+ views on YouTube.

View the series HERE

The Challenge

Disney Parks UK had huge awareness across TikTok and Instagram — often millions of views.

But trip bookings didn’t correlate directly with viral performance.

We discovered a gap: high awareness, low conversion-driving intent.

We needed to recreate the function of the iconic 00’s Disney Holiday Planning DVD — content designed not to entertain, but to help families plan their dream holiday.

But modern audiences weren’t waiting for DVDs.

So we reimagined the DVD as a YouTube-first, social-powered content ecosystem.

The Insight

Travellers don’t book £5,000–£10,000 holidays from 6-second videos.

They book when they’ve spent time in the world — understanding, planning, dreaming, imagining themselves there.

Short-form = awareness.

Long-form = intent.

Intent drives bookings.

So we built a campaign around this truth. Instead of making a “social video,” we made a planning resource — then reverse engineered the campaign around it.

The Strategy

We designed a three-phase plan, starting with UGC awareness and ending with deep planning content on YouTube.

1. TikTok → Spark Awareness

We launched a UGC competition inviting fans to share their best “Go To Tip” for our resorts.

• Massive organic engagement
• Co-promoted with major UK creators
• Built emotional connection and reach
• Crowdsourced insights from real guests

This created early momentum and generated social proof.

2. Filming the Planning Videos (Lo-Fi, High-Trust)

Rather than a costly, high-gloss production, we deliberately kept it authentic and low-fi — because planning content needs clarity, honesty and trust.

Across three resorts, we produced:

• 3 long-form planning videos (one per destination)
• Shot on location
• Story-led walkthroughs
• Real guests featured
• Designed to mirror the emotional arc of planning a Disney trip

These became the backbone of our YouTube intent layer.

 
3. YouTube → Build Intent

Instead of one long video, we created YouTube playlists that unfold like episodes of a journey — ultimately giving viewers the experience of a 40-minute planning guide.

Each playlist delivered:

• High watch time
• Strong session duration
• Repeat viewing
• High-value traffic ready to explore planning tools and booking pages

The “Go To Walt Disney World” playlist alone now sits at 500K+ organic views, far surpassing all benchmarks.

4. Instagram & Other Platforms → Redistribute the Story

Once the long-form content was live, we cut it into:

• Short-form teasers
• Itinerary highlights
• Packing tips
• Micro-guides
• Top moments

These served as awareness drivers, all pushing viewers toward the deeper YouTube planning content.

The Results 

• Millions of views across TikTok & Instagram around the launch and cut-downs
• 500K+ views on the Walt Disney World “Go To” playlist alone
• Significant engagement across all resort playlists
• High average watch times (long-form, multi-episode)
• Strong social-to-YouTube traffic patterns
• Meaningful uplift in trip planning behaviours, based on publicly observable metrics (comments, search volumes, engagement signals)
• Measurable results driving to conversion 

Most importantly:

We successfully built a modern version of the holiday planning DVD — on YouTube, powered by social.

And it worked.

Why This Matters 

This strategy proved a key truth:

You don’t convert from viral reach — you convert from time spent.

If you want travellers to book high-value experiences, you need to build a story-led content ecosystem, not disconnected posts.

Short-form builds desire. Long-form builds intent. Platforms must work together, not compete.

Takeaway

The Go To campaign wasn’t just a social video series — it was a destination marketing funnel, designed to guide guests from dreaming to planning to booking.

It’s the same strategy I now help destination brands implement: story-led content that genuinely drives intent.

Need help building a story-led social ecosystem?

Let’s talk about how to apply this model to your brand. 

Reach out today.