49. Shannon Albert on WDW Prep School.com

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It’s a challenge to keep up with all the latest changes at Walt Disney World; I visit regularly and still can’t stay on top of everything. This creates a huge challenge for first-time guests or anyone that hasn’t visited for a while. The intricacies of FastPass Plus can seem overwhelming, and that’s just the beginning. What chance does the average guest have against a massive undertaking like a Walt Disney World vacation?

There are helpful tools available to novices that look in the right places. One of them is WDW Prep School, which provides lots of tips and other resources to help any type of guest. Owner Shannon Albert is my guest on the latest episode of The Tomorrow Society Podcast. We talk about the origins of her website and how it became her full-time job. Shannon also hosts the WDW Prep to Go podcast, which offers detailed trip reports and recommendations.

Shannon and I discuss some challenges with creating a business that covers Disney World. It’s a great job but is part of a crowded marketplace. Going to Disney World also becomes different when it’s about business, not just a fun vacation. Shannon also talks about some of her favorite things to do in the parks and what drives her every day at WDW Prep School.

Show Notes: Shannon Albert

Learn more about WDW Prep School and the WDW Prep to Go podcast.

Follow Shannon Albert and the WDW Prep School on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.

Related Podcasts

Tomorrow Society Podcast, Episode 48: Ricky Brigante, Inside the Magic and Pseudonym Productions

Tomorrow Society Podcast, Episode 30, AJ Wolfe, The Disney Food Blog

Transcript

Dan Heaton: Hey there. Today’s podcast is all about trip planning for Walt Disney World and what it’s like to create a service that helps people to tackle that huge challenge. Shannon Albert is here, and you’re listening to The Tomorrow Society Podcast.

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Introduction

Dan Heaton: Thanks so much for joining me here on Episode 49 of the Tomorrow Society Podcast. I am your host, Dan Heaton. And when I think about the types of shows I like to do and podcasts I like to listen to, they often fall into two buckets. One of them is of course looking back at the history of the parks at Disney World and Disneyland. And there are great shows like the Retro WDW Podcast that do a cool job with that. The second part is analyzing current news, and we see that most prominently with the Disney Dish but also the E Ticket Report and other podcasts that look at what’s happening and what they think about these latest changes.

But there is a third category that I also enjoy, which is podcasts that try to help listeners have a better Disney World trip. And the most prominent example for me was of course the classic WDW Today podcast where once a week they took listener questions and tried to answer them and they could never catch up! They received an endless supply of different questions and you rarely heard the same question more than once. And I loved it because for me who didn’t get to go all the time, having that little insight into the parks and connection only made me more excited when I finally got to go on my trips.

You see that now still with the Be Our Guest Podcast, where they do weekly listener questions and do a great job and also with my guest today, Shannon Albert, who runs the WDW Prep to Go podcast where she interviews listeners before and after their trips often in very extensive trip reports. And then also gives a lot of tips and takes her own trips and documents them. Even her site WDW Prep School.com has so many good tips and helps to plan your trip.

I was really excited to talk to her for that reason. It’s not easy to put together a site like that that can be comprehensive. We have a few good examples, something like Touring Plans.com or on the food side the Disney Food Blog but it’s a challenge to put together a site like that and in a way that’s easily digestible and not just a ton of information.

I also wanted to talk to Shannon about what it’s like to run a business where your focus is Walt Disney World because it sounds amazing. That’s all you get to do. But there are definitely challenges that are part of it too. So let’s dive right into it. Let’s go talk to Shannon Albert.

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Interview

Dan Heaton: I want to start by talking about how you got started doing WDW Prep School. So what made you decide originally to start the site?

Shannon Albert: Well I think after my very first trip as an adult where I planned my trip in 2005, I immediately thought I want to start a website because I was a web developer for corporations. Later on, I was a technical project manager and so I had the technical abilities. And I think like a lot of new Disney World visitors, I thought I knew everything.

So, I thought I’ve got to start a website. I’ve got to teach people what I know. I never really worked it out. I reserved lots of domain names, but I never really got traction. But it never stopped being a dream. And so it wasn’t until 2012 that I decided I’ve got to do this. I’ve been thinking about this for so long, and I need to just do it before it’s too late and by then I knew a lot more. So I was a lot more equipped to take on the challenge.

Dan Heaton: Yeah, I’ve been to Disney World since I was a kid. And many times since and doing the show, and I don’t think I know enough to run a site like that. So you made sure that you have the technical background. So had you gone to school for that or was that something you were really interested in?

Shannon Albert: Yeah. I started programming in fourth grade and back then it was a keyboard. I think it was called a TRS 80 from Radio Shack. It was it was plugged into a black and white TV and all my programs were recorded to cassette tape. So these are back in the olden days. By the time I got to college, I studied computer information systems so that was that was my degree. And from there the Internet became a big thing. So I taught myself web development. Yes. So the technical…I think when people start websites the technical barrier sometimes they seem the most daunting, but that was not an obstacle for me. So you know that was the easy part.

Dan Heaton: Yeah because you know there are so many people out there that are using the most, myself included, pretty straightforward website. You know tablets and such. And luckily my wife is a designer, so she helps a lot. But that had to be a huge benefit. How important do you think that was in terms of not just getting it started but in terms of being able to kind of grow and expand the site?

Shannon Albert: It was hugely beneficial especially at the beginning. At the beginning, I did everything myself, 100 percent. So I had to manage the finances you know the taxes. I did the programming, the designing, the podcast, the answering every email, everything with just me. And so the fact that the technical part wasn’t an obstacle meant that I could focus on some of those other things that weren’t necessarily my strength. However, as businesses grow, as websites grow, the role of the owner changes. And so now I don’t do programming anymore. And I have programmers that do that sort of stuff, but it was definitely beneficial at the beginning.

Dan Heaton: So you mentioned that you went in 2005 and that was really what drove it with your family. Did you go as a kid because a lot of people that are now owning or operating sites like you, they have stories about how they went every summer and it was kind of a thing for them. Was that the case for you or was it more as an adult when you went with family?

Shannon Albert: Well, so I did go twice as a kid. The only time I ever went on an airplane was to go to Disney World, once in third grade and once in ninth grade. But it didn’t leave a huge impression on me because my dad didn’t like it at all. And we had three-day tickets and only used two. We stayed offsite. I wasn’t part of the planning, which I think is pretty normal you know for kids in my generation. We weren’t as involved in our parents decisions as kids nowadays are. And so I just didn’t really have an attachment to it like I liked it but it wasn’t sort of obsessed.

What got me wanting to go was in 2005 my daughter was 10 and I thought oh we need to do this before she gets to be a teenager. And you know while she’s still a little girl. I had no plans to keep going, and I had no idea it’d be more than a one-time trip actually. I was so overwhelmed by the planning, so I emailed somebody who ran a…can’t remember if it was a website or a travel agency. Said I’m overwhelmed. Can I pay you to do this for me? And she replied…I still have the email.

She replied with a link to tourguidemike.com and said you need to go read this site. He has all the planning information. So I did. I signed up and that is where it all began. For the planning obsession side of things.

Dan Heaton: Yeah. It’s amazing how much, and that was then. I mean now it’s a completely different animal as far as planning everything, so I can’t imagine going in like that. Because you know when I’ve gone with my kids, my oldest daughter is 9. I already have a lot of that background.

Dan Heaton: When you went like that first time because obviously you said it connected so strongly with you. What was it about, beyond the planning when you were there that really got you to even have the idea of doing the site? What hit you so strongly on that trip?

Shannon Albert: Yeah. I think you know for a lot of us Disney World is a obsession. I think it’s for different reasons. And you know I have friends that I go with who have been many times, and we all have different reasons why we want to go. The planning is definitely the thing I love the most. Absolutely. And it’s like a part0time job. You know when you’re planning your own trip and you get really into it. So I do really love the planning, but it’s also I don’t know the logistics of it. Obviously it’s super fun.

I feel like for analytical minds like mine there is a lot to sort of analyze. You know there’s a lot of data. Does the dining plan make sense? What’s the most efficient way to tour the parks? I just feel like there’s a little something for everybody depending on how your brain works. So it was kind of all of that. That makes sense and that’s one of the reasons why it’s so popular especially after so many years.

Dan Heaton: So you know you started the site. How long did you do it before you realized or made the decision to do it full time rather than as something on the side with another job?

Shannon Albert: When I started my daughter was getting ready to graduate high school. And I thought, okay, I’m really upset about her leaving and I need to focus on something else besides making her feel bad. She’s growing up and so I thought I’m going to do this thing. But I did have a full time job as a V.P. at Citigroup, and I started the site in my spare time and that was in May 2012. And by May 2013 it had started to gain traction not enough to pay full-time salary but it was showing promise.

So I quit my corporate job to focus on a full time pretty much ever since then I’ve been going, going, going. So within two months I had an e-book a month after that and launched the podcast. Then I launched some other sites that don’t exist now and I’ve created a membership site. So it’s been kind of a steady work ever since May 2013.

Dan Heaton: Wow. I know there are so many people that are doing sites on the side. You know it’s tough to give up that kind of job. I mean how challenging were those that those days after being V.P. at Citigroup? That’s a pretty high position. Was it a challenge the first you know however long a few months a year to really get going? I mean just personally not just as much with business.

Shannon Albert: I could write a book on how challenging that is. On an emotional level to start a business, I didn’t anticipate it and I’m not sure I could do it again. I worked 70 hours a week until a few months ago for six years and it was exhausting and unhealthy. But it is probably the reason that the growth was able to take place financially very difficult. I did not make money for three years. And you know I had to go to Disney World as part of my job, and when you’re not making money and you’re trying to go a Disney World several times a year.

So there was a lot of debt that was racked up. And so you know that’s an issue. So I don’t talk don’t usually talk publicly about the struggles because people don’t want to hear about how difficult your Disney World job is. But there’s a reason that a lot of people don’t do it full time. You know it’s just a part time hobby because it is very difficult. But once you get through the first few years then you get some traction. It’s a lot easier.

Dan Heaton: I can understand that because as somebody myself I’m just doing this podcast and my website as a as a hobby and such. And you know I already feel kind of pressure internally to want to grow it. It’s completely different if it was the job. So I understand having been to Disney World. I mean like you said especially if you want to go and you want to test out this restaurant or go stay at this resort. It costs a lot. So that’s a lot of your that’s not just your personal money that’s a business expense so I can completely understand that. But I mean what made you kind of decide to stick it out and really start to succeed and make it viable?

Shannon Albert: It’s just the passion for so long that when I started to see it working and being able to use so many I had just kind of random skillsets. Like I don’t know necessarily think I’m a great podcaster but I have a real passion for podcasts. And you know that was going so well. I’m not the best designer but I can design. So it was really fun to design graphics so I’ve just been able to do so many creative outlets to teach people how to do something that I love which it was just so rewarding and the consistent growth and progress made me think this is something I could really probably do and if I just keep going.

Then I’ll finally get to where it can be a viable fulltime job. So I was just very obsessed. If you have to ask if you can do it, the answer is No. You just have to be so obsessed that you don’t listen to anybody else. You just go and eventually hopefully it’ll work out.

Dan Heaton: And like you said you didn’t make money for three years. If you had really thought of it as I must make X in the first year you would have stopped. But I mean you talked about how it was in your head for a while. How much did what…I know it’s changed over the years but how much did what it became. How different was that from kind of your original thoughts for what it would be?

Shannon Albert: What it has become is what I dreamt it would be. I just did not fully appreciate the road that it would take to get there.

Dan Heaton: That makes sense because it is no way to know. It’s no way to know how it would be but because there are so many Disney sites and travel agencies and such but obviously you’ve been able to build this really strong following. So what do you think is one of the reasons that are some of the main reasons you’ve been able to eventually kind of do so well with the site and with the podcast?

Shannon Albert: I believe that motive matters the most of anything, and I think people that are in jobs like this where you’re sort of inviting attention on you in some way do it for different reasons. And a lot of people do it for ego and those people don’t have longevity. I don’t think but I genuinely want to help people. And I’ve I’ve often said you know if Disney World burned down…that’s never going to happen. This is hypothetical. You know I would just find another way to teach people how to do something that I thought would make their lives better. Like that’s just the spirit of the thing for me.

So throughout the business, you know I have a team. And so the decision is always, is this going to help people have better trips? You mentioned earlier that I have a travel agency and so I have a website and a travel agency. And so the decision every day about how to balance those is will this make people’s trips better. And that is always the core of it. It’s not how can you get more attention on me. How can I get rich.

It’s not that. It’s always about people’s trips. And then the following comes from that I think people appreciate that.

Dan Heaton: I think that’s really true. I was actually just listening to Pat Flynn who is a big podcaster talk about this exact same issue earlier today and you hear others have done very well like Lou Mongello on the Disney’s side. That’s definitely there. You can feel it. And I agree that if you don’t have that, one, you’re probably not going to push through when it’s difficult. You’re going to say well I’m not this is making money or whatnot but yeah I mean that’s where.

You can definitely feel that in the podcast where you’re talking all these to different listeners about their trips because if you didn’t believe in that, one, I don’t think you would do those podcasts. But two, that’s a big part of what the show is. So when did you start deciding you wanted to do the podcast?

Shannon Albert: Speaking of podcasts, you just mentioned Pat Flynn. He’s my idol and I met him once, and I said I’m going to be on your show someday as a success story. So that is a bucket list item for me.

Dan Heaton: Has it happened yet?

Shannon Albert: No not yet. I haven’t reached out to him yet but I would love to. But I met him at a podcast conference and I told him that. Podcast…I started in August 2013. So it’s been five years next month and I just started it because I love podcasts. That’s pretty simple. I mean I knew that I wasn’t gonna have a lot of time because at the time I wrote three posts a week, and my posts averaged 10 hours of work per post.

We’re not talking about little posts that I typed up in 30 minutes. I perhaps averaged 10 hours per post a week and there were three of them and then plus I was in the podcast so I thought well I want to do a podcast because I love podcasts, but it has to be simple. Like I’m not going to sit down all day in Audacity and in editing. You know editing every flub and every whatever. I can’t do that. So I got a very simple set up. It’s the iPad with a microphone, and I can easily you know run the soundboard from there and export it and all that very simple process. And I just started it just because I love podcasts.

It is still one of the best things that I do. I think it’s the best thing I’ve ever done in terms of the business because it’s an intimacy that you cannot capture through any other. Yes, there’s a lot of readers and there’s a lot of people in social media, but the podcasts are the one who recognized me in the parks and are the ones who start conversations. They’re the ones who feel like they know you when they listen to you and get it as an app. I feel like I know Pat Flynn and he has no idea who I am. Other than that two-minute conversation I had with hem. But it’s a very intimate thing, so it was just pure passion.

And similarly I am starting videos now I do YouTube. I’ve taught myself how to do the lighting and the camera and the backdrops and editing. And it is a similar passion because I love consuming videos to learn things, and so now I get to create them and it’s brand new. I’ve just started doing it, and I have that sort of same spark now that I did when I started the podcast five years ago.

Dan Heaton: I actually fell down a bit of a rabbit hole watching some of the videos you did recently to set up for this podcast. They’re very well done the same way with like tips and things like that which in small baskets are very helpful I think. And one thing I noticed about the podcast too is the way a decent amount of podcasts do trip reports even with listeners but the way that you do that interview beforehand and then afterwards.

And I think that’s helpful because you kind of get there’s often a big difference between what someone says up front like we’re going to do 20 attractions a day and go to every restaurant by the end they always have done less because Disney World’s that way. What made you decide to kind of take that route with doing the trip reports with kind of the double interviews?

Shannon Albert: Well, I just wanted to keep it realistic like I hope that the pre-trip reports sound good to me,and if anything doesn’t sound right I will often mention that either on the recording or afterwards you know like hey I don’t know how you’re going to get there. You might want to think about your transportation. So I hope the pre-trip reports sound good.

But it’s important to hear how it really goes so that people have a realistic idea of you know what to expect during their trips. I just like the juxtaposition because things never go 100 percent according to plan. But if you have a good plan in place, hopefully it mostly goes well.

Dan Heaton: Yeah. That’s definitely true where I always have these…especially I’m a planner like you are. I have these grand ambitions like we’re going to go to this park and then this park and then have dinner. You end up just after two days you’re like yeah we’re just going to sleep till noon. And that’s going to be it. Another thing you do which I like is the way you do all those short podcast when you go on your trips. Now is that a real challenge logistically to always remember at the end of the day I’m going to record this that I’m going to post it? I mean how much does that add to kind of the chaos of just doing your own trips even for business?

Shannon Albert: So you’re asking such good questions. I don’t think anybody appreciates the work that goes into this job, but you seem to. It adds a lot. And in fact it is the reason that I usually have my own room on trips. So like if I’m traveling with other people. We, for instance, did an all star music suite so I could have my own room or if I had my own room then whoever I’m traveling with has to tell me where I can record without being interrupted. It’s tiring you know because Disney World days are long.

I suddenly had to sit down and record, and I really don’t like listening back to myself where I’m like oh my god I’m so tired like that doesn’t sound good. So I have to really think about that, and I don’t think I was very successful at it on my last trip. Because at the end the day, I was doing very quick updates that weren’t very thorough.

And so what I did for this trip where I leave Wednesday is I got a lavalier mic so I’m going to try to record during the day as I go which will require editing as opposed to those sort of raw updates where I just record and upload. This lavalier mic will require me to add a bit, but I’ll be by myself and I’ll have a little bit more freedom to do that. So it is a lot of extra work, but I think it’s worth it especially because I can edit them together afterwards and people can hear it all in one swoop if they want to.

Dan Heaton: One of the reasons that I asked as I did not do what you did by posting every day but the last time I did our family trip I was like out on our little balcony recording each night and it came out okay but I was just thinking like that was difficult and you had like all of the extra steps of maybe editing and doing all that and it was like I don’t know how I could even possibly do that.

So I’m impressed the doing of the parks if you can swing it is I have not tried to have a little bit here and there but not like a whole podcast that is ambitious but I think with the right…like you said I think it could work.

Shannon Albert: Yeah and it’s also just one of the many things that are going on during the trip. There’s also writing Facebook per se which takse a long time because there’s a lot of photos and a lot of links and a lot of words or Instagram posts. Now I do Instagram stories and there’s this a lot of stuff that have to be done and a lot of people do those just for fun on their own personal time. But when you have to do them all the time for your job and you know there’s a time commitment at least a couple hours a day just for the content.

Dan Heaton: And I mean how much do you plan that out? You know so far I’ve just been going like on family trips and kind of doing pictures and things on the way. But when you’re going on like a trip even with friends for like business do you plan out, okay today I’m going to do this many stories and this many photos or does it become kind of a lot to do that or is it more like as you go along and just kind of seeing what happens.

Shannon Albert: Yeah. I don’t have a certain minimum and used to post on Facebook several times a day, and now I just tried to do one day. I try to focus on a topic. Instagram is where my passion is right now and I try to post photos there throughout but it’s not like a certain minimum or anything like that. It’s definitely the plan like right now. I have a list of about 10 things that I have to do next week on my trip.

And it’s not necessarily fun stuff you know. Sometimes it’s go take a picture of all of the bathrooms or something like you know because we’re trying to talk about bathrooms like it can be just so many random things that have to be done. But it’s fun. I’m starting to go more often and I’m going every four to six weeks now. So we talked earlier about how you know trips are a big business expense and back then I was only going a couple of times a year. And now every four to six weeks, but that makes it easier to keep up with all the content that’s needed for website, podcast, and videos. You know social media.

Dan Heaton: Yeah. I’ve run into that where it’s like why did I not take a picture of the sign for living with the land? Or why didn’t I do that because I didn’t plan. So the fact that you’re going so often I’m sure makes it a lot easier. So you mentioned earlier that you do own a travel agency. And you and agents for you help them plan their trips. This is a big question but what is like the most one of the most important basic tips like if somebody came up to you at a park or whatever.

I don’t know why this would happen but said this is my first time here. What is the big tip you can give me to help my trip be better. Like I know that’s a big question. I’m just curious what’s the thing that people don’t think about when they’re putting something together.

Shannon Albert: Well that is the big question. I don’t know, I think the thing I want for people the most is to plan but also plan on staying flexible. So that’s sort of a general broad answer to your question, but I really want people to only plan their mornings basically and group like I group my touring plans by hour, so that it’s not like be here at 9:02 and here at 9:28 because I know when I used to have little kids that was very stressful.

Like, I cannot run from point A to Point B when my child is having a tantrum. He’s got to go to the bathroom. Maybe they want to ride something twice. It’s very difficult to stick to the schedule, so plan you know loosely and that way you can have a good mix of pre-planned stuff but also allow for spontaneity.

Dan Heaton: Yeah. That makes sense because you do see some of those sites that you know are or even possibly yours on the membership side where it is more specific with: okay, here’s your plan. You’re going to do this many things but the trick there with kids, and I’ve been going with kids, is that things always take longer than you think.

Shannon Albert: You know it’s just a different style. So if people want that minute by minute stuff that’s great. My membership site was built to group things by hour. So behind the scenes and the database that we built, every attraction has a number of minutes assigned to it. So if you say these are the five rides I want to do, it automatically calculates how long it will take to do that and groups then by hour.

Dan Heaton: That’s helpful. I’m sure I could use that because even you know knowing so much as I do there’s still be able to have some sort of framework is always helpful especially when people are new. You started doing this in 2012. And since that point we’ve obviously had the rise of FastPass Plus and My Magic Plus and so much more planning. What have you seen as kind of the big new challenges in the past few years or so that guests are facing now that maybe they weren’t even facing when you started the site?

Shannon Albert: Yeah. When you mentioned earlier how I said that planning in 2005 was so overwhelming, and you said now it’s so much harder. And I totally agree with you. I cannot imagine starting planning right now, like that seems like so much. But the thing that I consistently hear from people that is the most stressful is the Fastpass booking doing that 30 or 60 days in advance.

That seems to be a good thing because you know back when I was planning and I was overwhelmed the FastPasses could just be grabbed in the parks. And so as long as you wrote down, okay I’m the Fastpass runner, I’m going to go to the machine and grab it and whatever time it tells me what time I’m going to you know you see that was it was harder in terms of you know someone had to walk to go get it. But as far as you know the months leading up to the trip it was easier.

So Fastpass Plus booking is I think by far the most difficult thing for a lot of reasons. One is the actual technical process of getting the FastPasses. My agents book FastPasses every day for clients, and they are pulling their hair out because the Disney website and the Disney app are so difficult and they’re professionals. This is what they do.

So for a new person to have to navigate the technical issues on the Disney site but then also just to know what to book and if you have kids whether they going to ride it. You don’t know are they going to love Seven Dwarfs Mine Train or is that going to be terrifying to them. So I think that’s pretty tricky for especially the first-time visitors.

Dan Heaton: Yeah. I’ve seen that even when you know family members who went a lot as a kid and I tried to explain like my brother. “Okay, here’s how FastPass Plus works.” And they both look at me like I’m insane. Nope. That’s it. I’m just giving the five-minute overview so I can’t imagine being an agent especially working with possibly a first-time guest or someone who hasn’t been since 1995 or whatever what it would be like. Because yeah it’s hard enough just doing it for myself from talking to people I know that’s a big job that you’re doing.

Shannon Albert: It’s a big job but you know when I think the advent of the whole My Disney Experience thing that technical thing has played to my favor because my background is technical. So the technical stuff is not that difficult for me, and that is pretty easy for me to do and explain. So I think that’s been sort of one of the secrets to the growth is just being able to sort of get a handle on that and teach other people how it works.

Dan Heaton: And that’s a great point because in one sense the complexities can be challenging for guests, but there can be real benefits like for me. I think after I’d gone a few times since Fastpass was started, I started to figure out that there’s ways you can really maximize this with the app and refresh especially when they got the app where you could do it. And the refreshing different tools so I’m imagining that for a site like yours with agents that if they give the right tips people can really do great things even in a crowded day, which is huge.

Shannon Albert: Yeah. You know the more you teach people, the smarter they feel, the better it is. That’s why I like the quick tips at the end of the podcast because people walk away thinking “yeah, I’m smarter now.” They figured out something. You know it takes a while to get a handle on all that for sure.

Dan Heaton: So I wanted to ask you this. You know you have a business relationship not them directly but as a travel agency with Disney and you’re doing a podcast but obviously I can tell from talking with you from the show that you’re also a big fan of the parks. Is it ever tricky to balance that where when you go and you’re going for business you’re also a guest. How is it navigating that because I have no insight into that so I’m just curious as a travel agent who also enjoys going to the parks.

Shannon Albert: Yeah it is. It’s definitely a job. Now you know I used to go just as a fan, and it’s definitely a job now. It is not where I would probably go on my free time because it’s work. But it’s a fun job obviously. It’s definitely work now where it didn’t used to be. But it’s work I love in terms of sort of balancing. I think what I say to friends on a personal level is different than what I say publicly. And I think there’s a balance there between the two.

For instance, there’s a couple of resorts I’m not a huge fan of but I don’t bash them harshly publicly because I don’t think people who have trips planned there need to hear that and to have you know their trips ruined by hearing me being super negative. But I do tend to focus on the things I love as a person over things I dislike. So you know I may not like hotel X but I really like y. So let me tell you why. And you know someone might just choose to stay at the better option, but the sort of negativity versus positivity is a balance for sure.

Dan Heaton: Yeah. That makes total sense because obviously like you mentioned earlier, your goals for what you’re doing is to help people. I don’t know if it really…it helps people to say “well, if you stay at that resort the transportation isn’t as good too if you want to go here. You know maybe you need a bigger room or whatnot.” You know something constructive but it doesn’t really help to just say “wow, that’s bad. That’s terrible.” You know.

Shannon Albert:. And if you do say that that might be the only hotel that was available or that they could afford. And it’s still going to be fine. There’s no Disney World resort that they’re going to stay that their trips are going to be ruined. It’s just that some are better than others in my opinion. And so it’s a delicate balance. I’ve had people say to me in real life, “why don’t you say that publicly?” Because it doesn’t do anyone any good, though. You just have to sort of be careful. I do anyway.

Dan Heaton: I don’t look at that as being somehow you know not genuine or something. I mean you have you’re still providing a helpful service to somebody and telling them what’s great. So you mentioned you don’t obviously you don’t visit much when it’s not work. I mean when you go do you. I mean I know you’ve probably gone a few times with family over the years. Do you still do that or are you able to kind of unplug it all if you’ve ever done?

Shannon Albert: I don’t. I mean I go with family. My kids come with me about once a year or so, which sounds like a lot to most people but when you’re going eight to ten times a year, once isn’t that often. You know they go about once a year with me and my daughter the only hotel I haven’t stayed at is the Grand Floridian, and that’s been on my daughter’s bucket list so she’s coming with me to do that in December.

But it’s definitely mom’s job now you know. And so when they go, it’s a lot of you know when people have a social media presence they are terrible in real life. And that is such a delicate balance. When I’m going with friends, it always has to be people that know my job. I’m not trying to be rude. But there’s a lot of pictures to be taken. There’s a lot of stuff that be posted, and it’s really hard to be a good human in real life and also have an online presence.

So I don’t tend to take my kids because that’s what their view of me is is just like me you know down my phone or my computer record and podcast that kind of stuff. So you know I like for them to be involved sometimes, so that they’re connected to my work. You know a little bit, but it’s not all the time. They’re not and they’re not coming with me I was I also they’re big you know they’re not little kids that I can just tote around and tell them where to go anywhere.

Dan Heaton: Yeah. You mentioned that I think your daughter was 10 when you first went around then. So yeah I can do the math. I mean that’s she’s well in her 20s now so that’s her situation.

Shannon Albert: She is. She’s a college graduate who’s getting married.

Dan Heaton: Oh my gosh. Being there is a little differnt now. You can’t just tell her, “Hey, we’re going to go on this ride no matter what.”

Shannon Albert: You know when she was in college I did a mom daughter trip with her every May and she could pick the place and she really likes beaches. So we would go like Mexico, Puerto Rico, and then I’d always tack on a weekend at Disney World. And so during college that was sort of how she got little visits. But the primary location, the beach, was her choice. So we sort of combined our two preferences.

Dan Heaton: No, that’s good. It’s good that you did something differ too. Because like you mentioned then you’re able to actually go to the beach and relax and not that Disney World a bad place at all. But if you’re going there on work more, it’s not going to be the same thing. So have you ever considered moving especially because you mentioned you know that she’s getting married and is older? Have you considered moving to Orlando or even to Anaheim at some point to kind of be close to where your job is?

Shannon Albert: I have definitely considered Orlando. Most recently, I’ve really looked at getting a second home there because really my kids are here in the Dallas/Fort Worth area in Texas. And you know they’re big so they have lives here, and I don’t really want to leave them. But I did think about getting a second home so I could just keep my stuff there and not have to pack my luggage every time. But when I did the math, it is cheaper for me to stay up Pop Century once a month than it is to have my own place.

That includes like utilities and I’d have to have my own car and all that kind of stuff so I’ve spent years considering it. But right now I’m just going to stay at PopCcentury and that for about all my solo trips anyway. I’m going to stay at Pop Century and that’s a better decision right now I think.

Dan Heaton: Well yeah because you’re not paying for utilities and like you said and anything else even if you tried to have a house and use Uber probably wouldn’t work that well. So I know we’re kind of winding down a bit here but we haven’t really talked about…you mentioned things you really like at the parks. So I had put together kind of a small group of kind of rapid-fire questions if you’re game. Quick thoughts on things you like about the parks. Does that sound okay?

Which resort is a hidden gem that more people should consider when they go to Disney World or Disney Springs?

Shannon Albert: Is this rapid fire? Do you want me to just answer you or elaborate?

Dan Heaton: Probably just because I always try to do this and I end up having discussions. So yeah. Just a quick answer if you want to give a brief snippet. That’s great. But yeah. Just quick rapid fire answers off the top of your heads is great. What popular attraction at Disney World just doesn’t click as much with you?

Shannon Albert: Carousel of Progress, which is popular amongst fans. I would say does not click with me.

Dan Heaton: I’m going to have to not say too much. If you had a free day at Disney World that did not involve work, where would you go? What would you do?

Shannon Albert: With all the restaurants in Disney Springs, I’d definitely spend some time eating there. And I don’t think I spend enough time in the pools and just sort of relaxing. So maybe pool time and some trying more restaurants and Disney Springs.

Dan Heaton: Well, that’s funny. That leads into the next one which is: What is your favorite restaurant at Disney Springs?

Shannon Albert: Probably the Boathouse, but there’s a lot of good ones.

Dan Heaton: Yeah, I think that’s a popular one. I have not eaten there partially due to going with kids and then the price, but I know it sounds good. Okay. A couple more. So, not considering Galaxy’s Edge, what is another thing coming to Disney World that you’re really excited about?

Shannon Albert: I’m really excited about the Tron coaster.

Dan Heaton: Me too, especially because I have not been to Shanghai so that exciting. Okay, last thing. Simple question: What is your favorite attraction at any Disney park?

Shannon Albert: Favorite attraction is Expedition Everest. Because I think it’s the best themed and fun. But ask me again in a couple of years and that might be different because as you get older, the G forces get harder to take.

Dan Heaton: That backward section never bothered me until the last few years. And I come out of it like wow. You know I agree it’s great. I just hope they can fix the Yeti at some point because I wrote it the year that he actually worked, and it was something you think you like it. Now I don’t know if you were there, but it was something to see at the beginning.

Shannon Albert: No, I was not. But Joe Rohde says the fix is in progress. That’s what I heard.

Dan Heaton: Right. So I want to ask you just a couple of closing questions. Not rapid fire. So you’ve been able to grow your site and podcast business in a very crowded marketplace. If some other creators, either Disney or not, try to do that, what is your advice that you would give to someone who’s trying to build either a podcast or something into a business?

Shannon Albert: I think you have to figure out…I waited a long time to create my site because I was intimidated because there’s so many sites are empty but you have to figure out what your niche is. And so for instance for me, the niche is depth. Like no one spends an average of 10 or 12 hours per article. Like I don’t think and so about is the niche that I sort of carved out and with always the spirit of teaching, always, always, always. And everything I do and a little fun along the way. So everybody has to figure out what their thing is and you know maybe you’re a foodie and you know you can do a really great review of food or something but you have to figure out what your specific choices or you won’t stick out.

Dan Heaton: In the very crowded field, that’s great advice. So speaking of kind of what you’re doing. Do you have any big current projects you’re doing right now at WDW Prep School that either just got released or are in the works?

Shannon Albert: I always have so many. I just met with the district sales manager. Every agency has a district sales manager that they report to who works for Disney. And I just met with him and he’s shocked at the growth. Fast growth. And I was telling him about upcoming plans, and he said are you going to get burnt out? And I said I have been doing this for 6 years at this pace.

I hope to offer more information about other destinations because I think that people that are interested in Disney World also naturally are interested in some other things you know that are Disney related or you know things like universal. So sort of expanding the destinations a bit. I hope to launch a merch shop by the end of the year. And we’re just working on some upgrades behind the scenes to make sure things work better.

Dan Heaton: Well that sounds great. And yeah with the sort of competition from Universal, they’re going to build another park. I think the resorts are only going to become a bigger deal along with Disney and going to be expanding that way.

Shannon Albert: It sounds like a great idea, and the better Disney does, the better Universal to us. Because you have more people in town to see Disney stuff. So it’s in their interest to keep growing and accommodating the increase in Disney guests.

Dan Heaton: I think we’re really going to see that with Galaxy’s Edge and the 50th Anniversary and everything coming on both sides. If anyone can afford it, it’s going to be great.

Shannon Albert: Absolutely. I know that is the key that is true.

Dan Heaton: All right well if anyone wants to connect with you or learn more about WDW Prep School, where’s the best place they should go online?

Shannon Albert: Well so WDW Prep School.com or you can search WDW Prep School on any social media and you’ll find me.

Dan Heaton: Well great. This was this was really fun. I now feel much smarter about a lot of things.

Shannon Albert: So that is a great compliment.

Dan Heaton: Well, thanks so much for doing the podcast.

Shannon Albert: No problem, thanks for having me.

Conclusion

Dan Heaton: That was cool. I hope you enjoyed learning a bit more about Shannon and how WDW Prep School.com came together. And if you’d like to help this show continue to come together, you can go to Tomorrow Society.com/support and find out about a few different ways that you can help to support the show. I have one big mission for you this week though. If you listen to this show on Apple Podcasts or through another podcast source. If you could subscribe to the show, that would be really helpful and it goes beyond the benefit to you, which is you’re able to find out about the podcast right when they’re released.

But it also helps more listeners define the show, which is super crucial to keep bringing on great guests like Shannon. I will be talking with Lou Prosperi, who is the author of several books about Imagineering including his latest book The Imagineering Process, which came out a bit earlier this year. If you’d like to stay in touch with me you can always go to Tomorrow Society.com or send me an e-mail Dan@Tomorrow Society.com. Follow me on Twitter at Tomorrowsoc or Facebook or Instagram at Tomorrow Society. The Tomorrow Society Podcast is hosted, produced, and edited by Dan Heaton. The music for this podcast is written by Adam Hucke and performed by the Sophisticated Babies.

Thanks again to all of you for the great feedback. It really makes it more fun to do the show when I’m hearing from you and connecting with listeners. I can’t overstate how important it is and thank you for all the great feedback. And I’ll be back talking with you again very soon.