‘If it's not on Instagram, did it even happen?’ A common mantra that dictates the way we behave on social media.
We want our account to tell a story.
One such story is of Jane August, a young New Yorker who turned to museums as a sanctuary of cultural enrichment. During the challenging times of the COVID-19 pandemic, Jane embarked on a mission to visit every museum in New York City, documenting her journey on TikTok.
Her video series, showcasing the authentic experiences museums can offer, garnered local media attention—from outlets like WNYC and NPR to Gothamist and WNBC 4 New York.
Jane’s story exemplifies how User-Generated-Content (UGC) can revolutionize the way museums connect with international visitors. Her unscripted and genuine content illustrates the museums as vibrant, accessible spaces rather than static repositories of art and history.
This real-time depiction through UGC enables potential visitors to envision themselves in the shoes of an actual museum-goer, making the decision to visit far more compelling.
In this blog, we will discuss why museums need to leverage UGC to position museums as a hub for new cultural dialogues and experiences.
Does UGC Really Help Increase Museum Visits?
Does user-generated content (UGC) genuinely increase museum visits? International Center of Photography (ICP) in New York says a resounding yes.
Spearheaded by Anna Selle and Kim Cabrera, the ICP's innovative UGC campaigns like #ICPShareTheStreet have transformed digital engagement into physical footfall.
How did it work?
Anna explains, “I think this served as a solid pilot for the strategy. We leveraged an on-site exhibition that gained a lot of attention – in this case, Willian Klein’s street photography – to get our social audience to share their own images.”
But, let's talk about numbers. These campaigns gave the museum a major boost.
The strategy resulted in a 300% increase in the ICP’s social media audience growth year-over-year and converted a healthy percentage of online engagements into actual visits.
5 Ways To Boost Museum Exhibits Through User-Generated Content
Encourage Visitors To Join The Exhibit
Museums have long been running on the conventional walk-and-observe experience. It is now time to transcend beyond it. But how?
The Wellcome Collection in London has shown us the way.
Their approach involves integrating visitor feedback directly into the exhibit. By encouraging visitors to share their emotional responses to the Wellcome Medicine Man exhibit using the prompt “This makes me feel…” coupled with the hashtag #MuseumFeels, the museum has taken a novel approach to visitor engagement.
The most poignant reactions are then physically displayed within the exhibit on clipboards, serving dual purposes: capturing and immortalizing visitor experiences as part of the exhibit itself, and inspiring further social media interaction.
Building on this concept, we collaborated with the Aviation Museum of Kentucky to create a similar immersive experience.
We have transformed visitor interaction into a dynamic part of the exhibition narrative by leveraging a custom museum app complete with guided tours and community engagement features. This app fosters a community among aviation enthusiasts and scholars and enhances the museum experience by promoting the exchange of diverse perspectives.
Features like audio tours, event notifications, and offline access encourage ongoing dialogue and engagement, ensuring that each visitor’s experience contributes to a living, evolving cultural discourse.
Visitor Photos As The Cornerstone Of Your Exhibit Marketing
"Beauty holds in the eye of the beholder."
The infrastructure of your museum, the quiet corners of your gallery, or even the most popular pieces in the institute are re-imagined by your visitors. Two people might not see the same thing. Hence, what they capture might also be contrastingly beautiful.
This is an opportunity for the museums to take advantage of the different perspectives.
For instance, the British Museum reshares visitor-generated photos on its page with rich backstories about the exhibits and the museum's architecture to capitalize on the genuine interest of its visitors.
Hence, museums looking to boost their exhibit marketing are strongly advised to incorporate visitor photos into social media posts.
In fact, it is a proven fact that including your customer or audience in your brand improves your promotions by 28%.
Diversify Your Museum Marketing
Four out of ten people in the U.S. feel that art and history museums are not for people like them.
Why?
Historically, museums have only featured a homogenous demographic when marketing their exhibits, restricting the environment.
This is where content generated by visitors is a great resource to better represent different demographics and ethnicities in your marketing.
Communications and Public Affairs Coordinator, Shannon Robb from the Denver Art Museum highlights "Content from people who are having experiences here helps us keep promoting the idea that an art museum is open and accessible to anyone who wants to come."
Moreover, in a study conducted by the yogurt brand Chobani, the deployment of user-generated content across websites, billboards, and social media platforms led to an impressive revenue surge of 225.9% from 2009 to 2010.
If you’re short on user-generated content, try inviting underrepresented members of your community to enjoy early access to exhibits and encouraging them to post about their experiences on social media.
Give Your Visitors A Voice In Your Museum
Museums often struggle with the high cost and resource-intensive nature of commissioning professional photography. Photographers may charge $115 to $195 per hour.
Solution: The treasure trove of user-generated content.
Every day, museum-goers capture and share their unique experiences and perspectives through photos. By curating a gallery of these visitor photos on each exhibit page, museums can enrich their visual content and offer a more relatable and diverse portrayal of their exhibits.
Statistics reveal that 70% of consumers trust online peer reviews and recommendations more than professional content and copy.
Jeff Grover of the Best Company suggests "If you are trying to attract more customer reviews, make an in-depth video about how your brand helped change one customer's life."
The Children’s Museum of Indianapolis and the Connor Prairie Museum exemplify this practice - These institutions showcase galleries of user-generated photos, obtained with permission from their visitors, on their exhibit pages.
Using Influencer Meetups to Spotlight New Collections
Times have changed so much. Back in the day, museums would be opposed to visitors taking pictures of the exhibits as they might be a spoiler, potentially deterring paid visits.
Today, the Guggenheim Museum in New York City and the Royal Ontario Museum (ROM) in Toronto have reimagined the role of photography within their walls, turning it from a forbidden activity into a powerful promotional tool through strategic influencer meetups.
For instance, the ROM has harnessed the power of user-generated content during its popular Friday Night Live events. By displaying event-goers' tagged photos on large screens, they encourage widespread social sharing, thus amplifying their reach without additional advertising costs.
Meanwhile, the Guggenheim's approach involves hosting exclusive meetups for social influencers prior to public exhibitions. Limiting attendance to about 20 influencers, the museum offers them free rein to explore and photograph the exhibits. This content, when shared, reaches millions, thereby generating buzz and drawing new visitors.
How Can Museums22 Help You With UGC Content
While UGC allows museums a competitive edge, it also requires a robust digital transformation strategy, where technology plays a crucial role in capturing and showcasing this content effectively.
As a digital transformation company with years of experience in the museum space, we recommend a mobile app.
A museum mobile app offers a platform for your visitors to interact, share, and become part of the museum's narrative.
Starting at just $199, Museums22 offers our Full Stack Museum App, catering to diverse needs with Progressive Web App (PWA) capabilities, extensive content development options, and support services. Our varied plans, ranging from our basic plan for small museums to customized options for larger museums, ensure that museums of all sizes can benefit from our digital solutions.
Additionally, we extend the physical museum experience into the digital realm with dynamic web-based galleries and exhibitions. This allows global access to your collections, ensuring that anyone, anywhere can interact with your exhibits at any time.
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