Disney Adults.
Although sometimes known as the bane of existence for crying over fictional characters and over priced theme park tickets, Disney Adults are a true testament to a real community built off of a brand next to the other great niche groups of NFL fans, Dungeon and Dragons nerds, and even comic book fans.
But how do these fans connect with each other? Sure they could meet through seeing one another at the theme parks or even passing each other by at a convention or two, but what really helps build the foundation of this community is their presence online.
And one group is doing this even better than the rest.
Founded in 2007 by Christopher Martin and Hannah Martin, Secret Theme Park Group on Facebook originally started as a way for Walt Disney World cast members to meet one another, swap insider tips and tricks, and share news about upcoming renovations. Since it’s inception, the group has amassed to now over 270,000 members (both cast member, former cast member, and theme park goers a like) and is growing everyday.
To manage a group of its size both Hannah and Chris have implemented Admins to help engage with members and monitor discussions. When running a Facebook of this size, it’s extremely important to implement rules and best practices for not only the safety of its members but also the well being of the group as a whole. Everyday you can see admins interacting with members, sharing different posts, and monitoring comments and conversations. By doing this, they allow for their faces and names to prominent in the group and almost also help with the community building aspects of the group.
Being engaged with our members is a huge part of making through group successful. It helps us build community and camaraderie with them so they feel like they’re able to easily engage with us and other members of the group. — Christopher Martin
In a group of this size, sometimes you can run into a few different opinions and this can lead to arguments and tension points between members of the group. To solve this, Admins have implemented a series of rules members must abide by when accepting their membership into the group. If any of the rules are broken or disobeyed, members may have their acceptance into the group revoked or terminated. Admins also monitor posts for any discourse or negative comments. If a post seems to be getting out of hand or receiving a lot of negative feedback, the admins may chose to turn off the comments on the post or remove the post entirely. It’s important that the group remains a safe space for members to ask questions and discuss different Disney related topics, so being on top of different conversations on postings is of ample importance to the admins.
Personally, I’ve been a part of this group, and several other large Disney groups, since 2017 when I began my first internship with Disney. What makes these groups so special is the openness and passion that comes from each of the members! Sometimes you may see someone posting about their first Disney vacation while others you may see posting about their millionth. Whatever it may be, members are always willing to jump in and answer questions which in turn builds a community and space unlike many other Facebook groups. Disney adults are passionate on their own, but bring thousands of them together and you’re sure to find a community unlike any other.
