An expert answers questions about social media!

All Encurate powered apps have integrated social media. This means visitors can snap a photo and post it to their account with your location and hashtags automatically included. But why is social media important? We asked Jane Pederson, Marketing Manager at Glensheen in Duluth MN and an Encurate Client, how she and her team use social media at their historic home and estate. Here's what she has to say:

Encurate: How has social media changed your view on why people are coming to Glensheen?

Jane: When I first started six years ago, we thought our audience skewed older (50+) and we were totally cool with this. However, our Facebook audience insights were telling us something different. (See screenshots below) We did guest surveys onsite to back up the Facebook insights and sure enough, over multiple sample groups and seasons, our guests who were purchasing tickets skewed more so in the 35-44 age range. Social media has also helped us to understand why our audience loves Glensheen through our KPIs. If a post performs well organically, we know that this certain something is going to be successful on tour. Social media is such a powerful tool to help museum professionals understand their audience!

Encurate: Has the ability to track what your visitors are saying about your museum changed your marketing/messaging/interpretation?

Jane: Yes! Immensely. One example is: when we were taking down the Christmas decorations at the end of the season last year, we put out a handful of Instagram story polls. The results have shaped out Christmas offerings for this year and moving into Christmas 202 we are going full on vintage Christmas in the mansion.

Encurate: Has social media increased the ways in which you can interpret your museum/collection? How so?

Jane: Yes! We can tell the world about how cool the items are in our collection without ever needing to move the items, therefore keeping our precious collection items safe from harm. Facebook Lives and Instagram Stories have been amazing ways for us to share stories about items in our collection. We've found that when we do this, people are very interested an tend to ask lots of questions! Many of the questions include, "When can I com see this in person?"

We've also made many changes to the museum experience by getting rid of our band on photography and implementing a self-guided tour, both of which have increased social media engagement in our visitors when they are in the mansion.

Are you ready to utilize the power of social media in your own mobile app? Contact us today to talk more about our integrated social media and how it can help you understand your visitors!

Want more of the beautiful Glensheen Mansion? Follow them on Instagram: @glensheenmansion