Going Social: A Case Study of the Use of Social Media Technologies by the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa

Going social presents a case study of how the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa is incorporating social media across all aspects of its day-to-day business and public programmes. It also explores how the general public are using social media and what they think might be its value for museums. This dissertation addresses a gap in the literature in that little research has been undertaken in the field of social media and museums in New Zealand. Looking at social media use from a cross-institutional perspective is also something which has been neglected in the literature on this topic. Information is becoming increasingly digital and museums are beginning to feel the pressure to engage with active publics in this new online space. It is therefore crucial that more is understood about the impact this might have on organisations and the practicalities of implementing social media initiatives in museums. This study draws on multiple sources of data to examine some of the issues involved in employing social media tools and platforms at Te Papa. Interviews were conducted with staff drawn from the areas of marketing, the Te Papa Picture Library, collections and research, exhibitions and concept development and IT, in order to provide a diverse and balanced perspective. This also served to highlight similarities or differences in the way that different directives use social media. Focus groups were conducted to address the secondary aim of acquiring public views. Finally, Te Papa’s Statement of Intent 2010/11, 2011/12, 2012/13 and other documentary sources were used to provide insight into the degree that social media features in strategic and policy documents at Te Papa. It was found that different directives use social media in different ways depending on their unique aims and objectives. For example, marketing use social media to market exhibitions, events and public programmes, whereas staff within the area of collections and research use social media to provide access to, and promote, collections and collection-based information. Sharing museum information and content with internet users was a common goal, as was connecting with audiences and communities of interest in an informal and humourous way. Focus groups identified that the general public were most interested in gaining objective reviews and interpretations of museum content, along with behind the scenes insights. These findings are potentially valuable to museums as they move towards adopting a more strategic approach to social media use.