From July 27^th until August 1th, I ran a simple 8 question survey called Does Social Media work for Cultural Sector.  Why?  Because I was working on a blog post and Tweeted to find out if anyone could point me to any research that would prove, or disprove, whether Social media does indeed work within the Culture sector.  To my surprise, it seemed that this question hadn’t been posed and there certainly didn’t seem to be any research or analysis to answer my question.

Therefore with the help of Twitter, I composed a few general multiple choice questions (via the excellent Survey monkey website)and gave those answering the opportunity to add additional information if they wished.

I was very conscious that despite its good intentions surveys can be tedious for people at the best of times and with time being at a premium for many of the people I was aiming this survey at I was optimistic but nevertheless realistic that I may not get the responses I required. I need not have worried, the response was superb and I would like to thank each and every person who took part.

Overall, 14 countries were represented:

So, does social media work in the cultural sector?

The majority (34.9%) replied they didn’t know. However, on a positive light, 33.7% said Yes.  However it’s that majority that ‘didn’t know’ that is possibly the most interesting result of this survey.

‘We don’t have any exact data but we know that brand awareness has been improved.’

‘No concrete data at this stage’

On average, the majority (39.8%) of the participants have only been utilizing social media for 1-2 years which reflects the inability to answer the questions with a solid Yes or No.  Interestingly some that did mark ‘No’ or ‘Not Sure’ followed up with a response relating to the inability to quantify this as the main reason for their answer.

‘We need to ask more of our visitors how they heard about us in order to see if it works!’

Is there a link between social media and footfall?

While the increase to website is a very positive 69.9%, there is only a slight increase with the ticket office (25.3% with 25.3% not able to answer) and even less with the online shop (14.6% with 56.1% not able to answer)).  This could be interpreted as social media not being used to its fullest potential, or (again) quantifying the benefits of social media still isn’t being seen as a priority.

Time Management

One issue that continues to be raised is time management.  There are some institutions that are very astute with social medial and are using it to the highest potential and still managing to organize their time appropriately.

‘it depends on our schedule~ …’

‘…almost all social media updates are done by staff in their own time at home because they like doing it – no one really has time to prioritise it in a usual work day’

A resounding 85% of those who took part in the survey have said they would recommend social media to other institutions not using social media.  I think we need to listen to them and do our best to get more institutions online AND active.

‘They should ask their community why they should use social media and tailor their approach to their audience’s needs and their own goals.’

And we should be asking how we can help our cultural community to embrace social media.

Mentoring

Much of what I see as the negativity towards social media is through either lack of confidence or an inability to see its relevance. Both of these are present in the institutions that are having the most success from social media and see it ‘as important as print marketing’. Therefore I feel that an informal ‘virtual’ mentoring program could be introduced where cultural venues that are confident in their approach could maybe dedicate a day (or even a few hours) to a smaller venue to show them the ropes and help them build their confidence but more importantly illustrate them to them the importance and relevance of Social Media as part of their everyday routine.  This type of mentoring program would benefit the sector as a whole. No one has time to attend social media surgeries so a more tailored approach should work better. 

Conclusion

The simple answer is that on the whole Social media *does* works;

• It reaches a large demographic not easily reached by other forms of marketing
• It’s essentially free (minus someone’s time)
• It opens dialog with other institutions
• ‘For those who have small or non-existent marketing budgets, it’s a good way to raise the profile of the museum, its collection and its activities’

We need to ensure all cultural venues, regardless of size, have the opportunity to learn and embrace this ‘new technology’.  Social medial activities such as Culturethemes , Jim Richardson’s AskACurator or more importantly MuseumNext  events are a great way to invite those cultural institutions that are weary of joining Twitter or Facebook to get involved.

If you have any questions, or would like to see more of the raw data, please feel free to contact me.  I’m conscious of the data being linked to names but I will provide as much as I can.

This survey will be run again next year – let’s hope we see some big differences!

Social Media in the Cultural Sector Survey