Marketing for Museums
Museum marketing is different.
we get it.
Your future biggest fans may not even consider themselves “museum people” yet. But after scrolling onto the thumb-stopping vertical videos on your social media platforms or seeing a highly ranked article about your collection on the search engine results page, they’re just a click away from an admission ticket that could change their minds—and their pastimes.
We know that marketing magic doesn’t happen by chance. Museum marketing is designed to spark discovery through storytelling so potential visitors can see themselves in the experience before they even walk through your doors.
At CI, we help museums create success stories every day through the power of digital marketing strategies. One of our greatest strengths, aside from being total marketing geeks? We’re obsessed with the arts, just like you. We understand that museum marketing isn’t about selling a product (except from your museum gift shop!), but an experience—one that we want your audience to have again and again.
Dive Into a Strategy Gallery
Here are a handful of ways we helped museums make the most of their limited media budgets.
Digital Advertising for Museums
Most marketing firms can’t say that they help new, younger audiences get excited about 18th-century neoclassical art, ancient artifacts, etc. on the daily. For us, it’s not only what we do—but what we love! We can help you with Google Ads, Meta Ads, PPC, TikTok and Spotify advertising, SEM, Reddit, and much, much more. Our approach combines creative storytelling with performance-focused content marketing and social media marketing.
59/551 Meta Purchases, 113/433 Google Purchases
How we Helped Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art Run Bilingual Campaigns
CI helped this multidisciplinary arts organization reach new and existing Hispanic and Latinx audiences. We used the same content across social media platforms but included both an English and Spanish version of each ad.
The results? 551 purchases on Meta and 433 on Google.
77% Increase in Meta ROI, 556% in Google ROI
How We Helped Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art Streamline Its Digital Strategy
When you market a large volume of programs and initiatives, it can be tempting to run as many campaigns as possible—the more ads, the better, right?—but that doesn’t necessarily guarantee an equally significant payoff. When it comes to digital marketing strategies, sometimes less is more. We also worked with Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art to streamline their campaign structure, mitigate audience overlap, and reduce their team’s workload, all while maximizing overall impact.
1K High Intent Email Addresses
How We Leveraged Lead Generation for the Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University
For The Academy of Natural Sciences, our lead generation campaign exceeded expectations with a cost per lead well under $1, even with the majority of spend going toward top-of-funnel segments. Our call to action-driven strategies were key in engaging new potential visitors through clear, persuasive messaging.
473% ROI, 196 Purchases
How We Helped Cincinnati Arts Museum Unlock New Data Insights
Unlike the quick clicks of online shopping, attending an arts event is rarely an impulse decision. Visitors take time to research, plan, and choose. We helped Cincinnati Art Museum tap into the power of Google Analytics and museum websites to better track that journey and gain a more complete picture of how patrons behave across channels.
316% ROI, $56K Revenue
How We Helped Grounds for Sculpture Optimize Ad Spend
GFS brought us a challenge with their long-running exhibition. With limited media dollars, we extended campaign reach and kept creative fresh through strategic pacing, high-performing content, and optimizations rooted in data analytics and targeted audiences.
319% ROI
How We Helped Denver Art Museum Seal the Deal with Lapsed Members
It’s no secret that the pandemic shifted the subscription and membership landscape. With subscriptions declining 27% compared to pre-pandemic levels and arts buyers increasingly hesitant to plan far in advance, selling subscriptions and memberships can feel like an uphill battle. But it’s not impossible, especially with an innovative digital strategy. helped The Denver Art Museum re-engage lapsed members and build excitement around their programs—turning content marketing into conversions.
216% Overall ROI
How We Helped the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Learn and Optimize Shop Campaigns
Capacity Interactive helped a globally-renowned visitor destination test and refine their digital campaigns for their online shop with standout results, including a 216% average overall ROI across Shop campaign structures over 4 months.
More Museum Services
Search Engine Optimization for Museums
Your museum needs strong SEO strategies to rank higher in search engine results for relevant queries, increasing your site’s organic search visibility and traffic. Luckily, we specialize in SEO and SEO audits for museum websites. Here’s an example from the Capital Jewish Museum.
Email Strategy for Museums
Email marketing for museums focuses on building relationships with potential visitors, members, and donors through personalized, segmented messaging. With custom dashboards and data-informed insights, we help you understand what’s working—fast.
Web Analytics & Privacy for Museums
Understanding your audience starts with good data. From Google Analytics to cookie compliance, we help you uncover insights into how visitors interact with your museum website, buy tickets, and explore online exhibits.
Content Creation & Strategy for Museums
We partner with museums to deliver standout creative work—copywriting, design, media, and strategy—aligned to your goals. Everything we do is part of a cohesive content marketing plan tailored for targeted audiences.
CI + Museums = A KPI Exhibition
Hopefully it’s clear by now: when it comes to museum marketing, CI delivers. Since 2008, CI has been collaborating with museums on everything from ranking in organic search to building mobile friendly museum websites with strong user experience to improving results through Google Analytics insights and digital marketing strategies.
Your museum’s needs are CI’s call to action. Together, we’ll create impactful strategies tailored for your targeted audiences and potential visitors. Want a flawless user experience? Need help navigating the latest in social media marketing? We specialize in marketing for arts and culture—and we’re ready when you are.
You’ll Be In Good Company
Here are a handful of the museums we work with:
Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art
The Academy of Natural Sciences at Drexel University
…and more!
Let’s Make
Museum Magic