Gauging Audience Response to a Reimagining of a History Museum
Client: History Museum in Northeastern United States | Location: Northeastern United States
We worked with a cultural history museum to test its vision for a new kind of history museum experience–one aimed at fostering empathy and connection through rich, historical storytelling and participatory experiences.
OVERVIEW
This museum was in the midst of a major institutional shift in 2022. We worked closely with staff to understand and test the museum’s vision for a completely reimagined permanent exhibition space with three distinct audiences.
The museum aimed to set itself apart from the typical history museum experience by using historical storytelling and interactive experiences to inspire connection and understanding between visitors. Our work would inform not only the overall exhibition approach and design, but also guide the museum’s marketing approach.
APPROACH
We designed a mixed method approach that would provide rich, detailed responses while also allowing us to surface important statistical differences between three distinct audiences important to the museum:
Remote focus groups across three audiences provided rich qualitative data
Remote hybrid interviews across three audiences provided qualitative data that was coded and transformed into quantitative data for statistical analysis
CLIENT TAKEAWAYS
We found that the museum was well-positioned to move ahead with branding, marketing, and design development of its new approach for the exhibition experience. The museum’s new approach draws in and hooks people across all three target audiences with a provocative framing that piques their curiosity and encourages them to find connections with people of many different backgrounds and experiences.
The data also revealed some concerns and sensitivities for the museum to keep in mind as it moves forward–particularly among people of color and those who are wary of participatory experiences. We recommended, and the museum agreed, they should continue to check in with their audiences to ensure the exhibition opens the door for visitors to reflect and think critically while also facilitating their understanding and comfort.