Here are a series of questions to help you identify what you already know about your audiences, where the gaps are and prioritise what you would like to find out. Adapt the checklist to suit your museum – delete questions if not relevant and add in your own. 

 

Question   We have data on this…   We know this anecdotally but don’t have data on this   We don’t have data on this   This is a priority for us   This is not currently a priority for us   Comments  
…and use it   …but don’t use it  
Our current audiences  

  
Who are our audiences?  
What is the demographic breakdown of our in-person audiences?                       
How does this differ across the week/year, events or exhibitions?                       
Who are our digital/online audiences?                       
How do our online audiences differ to our in-person audiences?                        
                       
                       
Where and how do they engage with us?  
How do they travel to us?                       
What proportion are first-time or repeat visitors/participants?                       
When do they visit?                       
How often do they visit/engage?                       
Who do they visit with?                       
How long do they spend visiting/engaging?                       
What proportion use our shop, café, other facilities?                       
                       
                       
What are the engagement or attendance drivers?  
Why do our audiences visit/engage?                       
How do they find out about our museum and its events?                       
Why do they become members?  
Why do they donate to us?                       
                    
How satisfied are our audiences?  
What do our audiences think about our offer?                        
What are their likes/dislikes?                       
What are their highlights?                       
What would they change?                       
If they have paid, do they feel they got value for money?                       
Do they intend to return or engage again?                       
                       
                       
Potential audiences  

  
How do our audiences compare to contextual data e.g. our local community & benchmarking data?                       
Which groups of people are under-represented among our audiences?                       
What are their main barriers to visiting/engaging?                       
Where are the best opportunities for audience growth?                        

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