Why the Danish National Museum has opted for a data-driven approach

The importance of a data-driven approach

The importance of a data-driven approach A cut in government grants in 2017 resulted in the National Museum charging an entry fee for the first time. This was a conscious decision, says Søren: “Some people think that free entry results in more visitors but it doesn’t really work that way. What does work, however, is to make your product more relevant and attractive so that potential visitors become aware of what you have to offer.” A data-driven strategy proved to be of crucial importance. Data research gave the museum a better understanding of visitor’s needs and how they can attract a new audience.

''A data-driven strategy can help make your product more relevant and attractive.”
Søren Moesgaard Bjørnsen

What were the National Museum’s first steps?

Firstly, the National Museum carried out market research to find out what the public thinks of the museum and to identify opportunities for change. This market research consisted of interviewing both current visitors and non-visitors. This provided the museum with a clear picture of the wishes and motives of various target groups. Research showed that although non-visitors think the museum is important, they actually see visiting the museum as a chore. “People who do not regularly visit museums, tend not to start appreciating museums until they have visited a couple of times,” explains Søren.

The museum carried out market research and held a series of focus group meetings. They used the data obtained to develop personas to break down the various target groups. The team looked at ways to involve non-visitors with their programming to increase their audience. So how do you make sure that the right offering reaches the right target group? This strategy saw a 42% increase in new visitors during the Vikings exhibition.

The four steps of a data-driven approach

“Before you start working with data, it is important to know what the purpose of this data is and what you will use it for,” says Søren.

Collect data
Data can be collected in various ways, e.g. you can ask visitors to complete a survey or, like the National Museum, set up a focus group or conduct market research.
Interpret data
Data interpretation is important because the data does not say much by itself. This is why it is important to employ people who know how to interpret the data, and how not to.
Accept data
The results obtained from the data are not always positive and it is therefore important to accept the data as they are, so that you act on it.
Implement data
Data reveal what you are doing well and where you could make improvements. To make sure the data obtained is valuable, it is important for your organisation to actually do something with the results.

Does your organisation want to introduce a data-driven approach? Use the Taskforce Audience Data Roadmap.

Start with your goals

KPIs (key performance indicators) allow you to measure your organisation’s performance, offering clear and specific insights into what is going well and what is going less well. The National Museum measures the following KPIs:

Awareness
Visitor numbers
Education (The museum aims to attract visitors who are less well-educated as well)
Last visit
Age, demographics
Tickets and other purchases

For example, the National Museum has a KPI with the objective to increase the number of new visitors to exhibitions by 40%. By measuring this KPI, they get an insight into which exhibitions attract new visitors and which do not. They subsequently use these insights when planning new programmes.

The Data Squeeze: an organisation-wide effort

Once the KPIs have been defined, it is important that this becomes an organisation-wide effort. Everyone in the organisation, whatever their role, contributes to the data-driven approach. The National Museum calls this ‘the data squeeze’, and this is what it looks like: