Main St. Monitor

A quick trip to the Disney Store this past weekend left me with some new water bottles, a pre-ordered copy of “Toy Story 3,” and Buzz Lightyear t-shirt my girlfriend picked up (in a child’s large, they don’t make them for people my age, the original Toy Story fans).

The label showing just how organic
the Disney Store t-shirt really is

We were satisfied with our purchases to say the least, but when we got back to our dorm, my girlfriend made a discovery. Accompanying the size on the printed on tag was a label, certifying the shirt 100% organic cotton, with two paragraphs of explanation below it. Normally, t-shirts only go so far as labeling the material. This shirt took a whole different approach.

The two paragraphs of explanation told us the specifics of the organic nature of the cotton, and directed us to a website: Disneystore.com/track-my-t.

I checked out the website, and it was gorgeous. It had some great animations, and a space where I could put in the unique number the Buzz shirt came with. It had different areas I could explore, each being a part of the process that brought my shirt from a cotton field to my hands. Though, I do feel each explanation was a tad bit too general.

The idea is a great one, and the fact that it’s not highly publicized makes it even better. Obviously, it is very trendy these days to be environmentally friendly and green, and many companies use it as a marketing strategy.

The website the label directed to

Apparently Disney decided not to take this route, even though their idea is better than everyone else’s and their website more enchanting. It’s good looking, informative, and entertaining. The site looks like they put a lot of work into it, even though it’s a website that takes a little digging to get to.

This is just another factor of the Disney company that makes it one of the most innovative, influential companies in the world.

Do you feel that it’ a great, yet subtle marketing camping, or a green gimmick?