Case studies
How a team was empowered to prioritise and make meaningful decisions about online content.
The largest museum group in the UK proud to own Europe’s largest civic collections.
Services: User Research, Audience Research, Content Strategy, Digital Strategy
Tools: Online survey, Diary studies, In-depth interviews, Collaborative workshops
Delivered: 2019-2020
The ask.
The Burrell Collection is one of 10 venues that make up Glasgow Museums and attracts visitors from all over the world.
With a small team and so many sites, how could the team create web and social content that both meets audience needs and delivers on organisational goals? How could they develop and test new approaches without the risk of changing their whole digital estate?
The answer.
The Burrell Collection is housed in an architecturally significant building in Glasgow’s Pollok Country Park. The museum is in an area with lots of social challenges. Yet, with the museum under redevelopment as part of the Burrell Renaissance Project, supported by the National Lottery Heritage Fund, there was an opportunity to reach more people and get them to visit.
Our aim was to help the team create a model for developing user-centred, data driven content that could be trialled at Burrell and then embraced across Glasgow Museums’ venues. We knew where to start our research – we had to get out and speak to people.
The approach.
First we designed an online survey to gather data about the audiences using their website and 28 social media accounts. We carried out quantitative and qualitative research to find out about why the current audience used specific platforms to connect with the organisation and what they expected from them. In order to develop new approaches, we also explored how they use online platforms as part of their wider leisure time and hobbies.
When we carried out the quantitive survey, we realised there were some key development audiences that were missing. So we carried out targeted research. We interviewed Black and Brown people living within 30 miles of Glasgow to find out about their perceptions of Glasgow Museums online and social media as well as their wider leisure activities.
What about a younger audience? To learn more about people aged 16–24, we ran a diary study using WhatsApp. We asked participants about what they were doing, and set activities for them to record their digital experiences. What were they seeing? What was appealing to them? We compared this real activity to the museum’s content aimed at that ‘youth’ audience.
Building the picture
This research phase gave us a lot of rich, valuable data. We analysed it and began to build a picture of the content that people were using and which platforms were best suited to different audiences.
This was a lightbulb moment for the museum’s team. Previously, they produced content that tried to target everyone. We gave them the evidence they needed to start tailoring their content, not just to different audiences, but to the channels those people were using too.
From there, we facilitated a workshop that helped the team establish realistic goals for their content and online activity. We challenged them to look at why they were using each platform. How could they adapt the content’s tone, imagery and messaging to better meet the needs of each audience?
The outcome.
To make any changes last, we then worked with the team to create a set of content principles that would inform all future work. Those principles would form part of a new content strategy and provide clear guidance on how to continue producing user-driven content.
Our work gave the Glasgow Museum’s team a much better understanding of how people engage with the museum’s content. We also left them with both the user-driven approach and design tools needed to make informed decisions about the content they create.
Online and social content for The Burrell Collection is now backed by a strategy based on real data. The team are currently in the process of developing a new website for the Burrell Collection that will pilot this new approach. It will act as a model for Glasgow Museum’s other venues.
–David Scott, Digital Manager
Burrell Renaissance Project, Glasgow Museums
“The processes explored and outcomes achieved in working with FG+W have helped us better understand ourselves – our structures and ways of working – and our audiences.
We are better informed to prioritise and make meaningful decisions around the resource and focus required in effective and targeted content production.
The data collected has made clear previously fragmented understanding of who we are reaching with our online content – and what impact it is having. It has also fostered a more collaborative way of working between Leadership, Digital and Marketing teams”
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