Episode 55: Interview with Gary Buchanan, Social Media Managing Editor for Disney -

Welcome to the MouseQuest Podcast- Your guide in the quest for the perfect Disney vacation. This is episode number 55. We are incredibly excited about the show this week because we have the wonderful opportunity to speak with someone who knows all about the Disney Parks Moms Panel and how much effort goes in choosing the incredibly talented panelists each year- Disney’s Social Media Managing Editor & Celebrity PR Manager, Mr. Gary Buchanan. We look forward to hearing all about this process and learn more about it from a new perspective.

A few months ago we recorded a podcast that outlined the Moms Panel process as we’ve personally experienced it for the past number of years. However, this year Gary stepped up as the fearless leader of these pixie-dusted moms and dads, and with that we saw some exciting changes to the process as well as some twists along the way. Questions for Gary include:

Can you tell us a little bit about your history with Disney and how your role relates to the Moms Panel?
Why was the Moms Panel started and do you feel that it has met its original goals?
Do you see the Moms Panel continuing in the foreseeable future?
Can you tell us about the changes that were made to the application process this past year?
What are the minimum qualifications that a Disney fan has to have in order to apply to be on the Moms Panel?
How does having (or not having) a social media presence affect an applicant’s chances of making it onto the panel?
What top 5 tips can you give guests about the application process? Do any of those change for a veteran applicant vs a first time applicant?
Many guests apply year after year to be on the Disney Parks Moms Panel without being exactly sure of what will be expected of them if they are invited to join the panel. Can you tell us what the job of a Disney Moms Panelist entails?

Appearing this week are Amy Bechtol, Gary Buchanan, Dawn Gosdin, and Marci Smith.

To submit a question for the show, please go to the MouseQuest Podcast website, or send an email to question@mqpodcast.com.