Interpretation Australia SymposiumNovember 2010

Presenter: Regan Forrest

Why are we here?

Some theoretical background

Barriers to visitor engagement

Taking a step out – learning from others

Stepping back in – using what we know already

Action Plan, discussion, follow-up reading

EVERYTHING you do is saying something to your visitors . . .

Welcome

aWareness

Walking your talk

PERSONAL SOCIO-CULTURAL

PHYSICAL

Contextual model of learning:

(Falk & Dierking 2000)

A word association exercise . . .

1. Not Maslow again!!!!! Where’s the door????

2. OK, yeah . . . let’s have another look

3. Maslow’s Pyramid? That’s not in Egypt is it?

Desperate for the loo 3yo twins acting upI’m lost

Sore feetDo I belong here? I’m hungry

I don’t ‘get’ itInformation

overload

INTERPRETIVE “ENLIGHTENMENT”

This coffee’s bad I’m not buying that cheap tat

Well I never knew that!

We’ve had a nice day

Sorry, I didn’t know I wasn’t supposed to do that

What a rip-off!

Where is your ‘acceptability threshold?’

PhysicalConceptualVirtual

Do your services reflect visitor usage and needs, or internal management structures?

Retail and cateringExperience matching marketing materialSecurity vs Welcoming

Does your institution walk its mission ‘talk’?

Right idea (maybe); wrong audienceDiverting energy from what audience values (not always about doing MORE)

Are there well-meaning but misdirected efforts in your organisation?

Consider what barriers to audience engagement might exist in your organisation:

1. Barriers2. Inconsistencies3. Blind spots4. Misalignment5. Superfluous

services

Retailers are experts at communicating – both consciously and subconsciously – messages which support the buying experience. Some shoppers are novelty seekers, others like the reassurance of the familiar. Retailers need to accommodate both of these groups, or decide specifically to focus on a market niche. Retailers are increasingly drawing upon psychological and ethnographic research to enable them to design retail spaces in a way that maximises buying. Anything that makes the buying experience more difficult than it should be is removed or changed. Effort is expended in ways that maximise sales.

Interpreters are experts at communicating – both consciously and subconsciously – messages which support the learning experience. Some visitors are novelty seekers, others like the reassurance of the familiar. Interpreters need to accommodate both of these groups, or decide specifically to focus on anaudience niche. Interpreters are increasingly drawing upon psychological and ethnographic research to enable them to design interpretivespaces in a way that maximises learning. Anything that makes the learning experience more difficult than it should be is removed or changed. Effort is expended in ways that maximise engagement.

Customer focus at all levelsStaff empowerment at all levelsLeadership by exampleOngoing monitoring and improvementRemembering and rewarding loyaltyRespectful, communicative and responsive

Customer is not necessarily always right, but make sure they’re wrong with dignityIt’s not my fault, but it is my problem

Adaptation to new media and social networksCapturing imagination (but beware the deflation of ‘oversell’)Balance between listening and LEADERSHIP

What would need to change to address your institutional barriers?

WHO IS YOUR INTERNAL TARGET AUDIENCE?

http://www.theinvisiblegorilla.com/videos.html

In praise of the humble Post-it note…

Patterns emergeVoting, sortingDepersonalises ideasMore voices heard

An unfamiliar leisure activity with vaguely negative assumptions

Assess the experience mindfully:How do you start?Do you know what you need to know when you need it?Do you have ‘fitting in’ issues?Are your preconceptions unwarrantedTake-home messages for your own institution?

Alternative – “accompany a fan”

Change permission structuresBridge silosSignal to noise: (Disney toilets example)Walk a mile in my shoes

1. Challenge (Message)

2. Audience

3. Communication Plan

How could you apply interpretive techniques to create change in your organisation?

Influence beyond a position on an organisational chartChallenge permission structuresThe power to be brave; to fail; to succeed

How ideas gain momentumMavens, Connectors, Salesmen“Choice architecture”

Developing experience-based business modelsNew relationships with audiencesBeyond demographics to visitor motivation

Full of practical tips Case studies and examples of visitor participation (easily adapted to other scenarios)

Inspiring case studyJourney from vision to realityGood example of walking the talk

Creative business modelsAssessing your product / experience mix – does it match audience expectationsSpeaks the language of business

email: regan@reganforrest.com

blog: http://reganforrest.com

twitter: @interactivate