Case Study: Hands On Children’s Museum
OBJECTIVE
Enhance community engagement, raise awareness, and drive participation for Hands On Children's Museum, focusing on accessibility, interactive learning, and diverse events for children and adults alike.
STRATEGY
1. Social Media Management:
Platforms: Managed all social media accounts, creating engaging content tailored to diverse audiences.
Content Types: Posts contained details about events, programming, and museum highlights.
Monitoring: Responded to comments and messages, fostering community interaction and managing crisis communications when needed.
2. Email Marketing:
Newsletters: Designed and sent newsletters, promoting events and updates to subscribers.
3. Internal Communications and Website Management:
Internal Marketing: Managed and updated electronic signage throughout the museum (when onsite), ensuring timely and accurate information on daily events and programs to come.
Website Updates: Regularly audited and updated website content, including the master event calendar, daily updates dropdown, and other relevant information.
4. Community Participation:
Partnerships: Promoted collaborations with other organizations and individuals.
Accessibility: Highlighted events like sensory-friendly programs, as well as the Inspired Learning for All initiative, ensuring accessibility and inclusion for all visitors.
5. Fundraising and Strategy:
Gala Events: Assisted in promoting and documenting fundraising events, including the annual Gala.
Donor Outreach: Thanked donors who contributed to the Gala and overall museum efforts.
Research: When on the cusp of a new idea, conducted cold calling and other research measures to seek information that would support future museum programming.
6. Analytics and Reporting:
Metrics: Tracked and reported on social media performance and engagement, providing insights for continuous improvement.
7. Crisis Management:
Response: On rare occasions, handled local area crisis situations with timely and effective communication, maintaining positive public relations.
RESULTS
Increased Community Engagement: Boosted interaction and participation through targeted social media strategies and community-focused events.
Enhanced Accessibility Awareness: Successfully communicated the museum's commitment to inclusivity and accessible admission offerings.
Supported Fundraising Efforts: Contributed to successful fundraising efforts, supporting the museum's operations and programs.
Sustained Visitor Traffic: Maintained high levels of engagement with the community, reflected in the consistent foot traffic and annual visitor numbers.
SUMMARY
The efforts significantly bolstered the Hands On Children's Museum’s visibility and community connection. Through strategic social media management, effective crisis response, engaging email marketing, and successful fundraising initiatives, the museum continued to thrive as a beloved community staple, ensuring accessibility and interactive, hands-on play for all visitors.
Kind Words from the Client:
“Kathryn was the Hands On Children’s Museum’s first social media contractor and she is a delight to work with! Hands On is open nearly every day of the year, serving 315,000+ visitors annually which means social media is tracked daily on multiple sites. Kathryn is completely dependable seven days a week. She knows when to seek management involvement and she works well from an off-site location. Kathryn has cheerfully stepped in to cover many communications needs—even those outside her social media expertise. We have appreciated her important work as we grow our strong online presence.”
“Kathryn is a go-getter who is a passionate, dedicated social media professional. She brings fresh ideas to the table and is constantly challenging herself, and the organizations she works with, to be the best. It is often said that when you find someone who is more skilled than you, hire them. I did that with Kathryn and she never let me down. Kathryn came to the Hands On Children’s Museum as an intern looking to share her social media skills. While we provided her the marketing and PR basics, she brought fresh ideas for content and tools to take the museum’s social media to the next level. After her internship, we hired her because her work was so valuable and she has significant knowledge of how a Communications Department works. Detail-oriented and extremely reliable, Kathryn is a joy to work with.”