It's hard to believe it's been almost eleven years since I was a cast member and part of the Walt Disney World College Program.

A summer I will never forget, I came home with friends I am still close to today as well as four college credits and my Mouster's Degree.

I would highly recommend this learning opportunity to anyone that wants to learn about working for a big brand, how brands work together, and the what the word synergy means.  In fact, it was in the Walt Disney World College Program's second day of orientation that I first heard the word synergy used in the context that I still use it in today.

However, I digress.  This post isn't about my summer with the Mouse.  This is my social media fantasy campaign for the Walt Disney World College Program.

The WDWCP's website has tons of information and a lot of pictures.  There is some interactivity, such as being able to send an eCard, but honestly having been part of the program itself, I feel like there's so much more that could be done.

First of all, the photos of all the different activities they provide onsite are great.  However, I think it'd be very cool to offer a video tour of one of the Vista Way apartments.  Or to take it even further, give us a video of a cast member's day in the life!  Cast members get free park access, shuttle service that takes them to work and other areas of necessity (grocery store) in the Lake Buena Vista area, learning seminars, and access to their own clubhouse in pool.

What's harder to capture is the exposure to cultures from all over the world.  There's a large number of international students and while there is often a language barrier, it's the closest experience I had to studying abroad (without leaving American soil) in college.

Having a section where students interested in becoming cast members could learn simple greetings and questions in other languages would increase interaction among the North American and International students before they ever show up for their first day.

The WDWCP website does a great job of providing information, however, I know that even after reading all the handbooks and instructions before arriving at Vista Way (the apartment complex where the College Program cast members stay), I still had no idea what to expect.  I can appreciate that the WDWCP probably doesn't want to field questions from their potential cast members on Twitter or publicly on Facebook.  However, I do think a password protected social media channel with different levels of access for applying cast members, accepted cast members, and current cast members could prove valuable to sharing experiences, lessons learned, and fostering connections before the experience begins.

I'd also love to see a more robust social network for the alumni community.  They've got lots of resources for those alumni who decide to stay or come back and work for Disney.  However, considering how competitive it is to be accepted into the program, I'm willing to bet that the alumni who continue on to other careers...staying connected could be a powerful networking opportunity.

If the WDWCP ends up taking their social networking to the next level, I can almost guarantee it will happen on an intranet platform.  Disney takes pride in creating the magic (and they're so darn good at it!) and when you give college students free reign on a public platform in social networking...oy.

Have a company or brand you'd love for me to create a social media fantasy campaign around?  Let me know and if I take you up on the suggestion, I'll link to you in the post.

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