The National Association for Interpretation National Conference was earlier this month, and we are celebrating the hard work of interpreters everywhere with a series of blog posts focused specifically on Interpretation and Interpretive Planning. Past posts include:

How to Create Powerful Themes That Capture Attention

Why You Should Care About Co-Curatorial Exhibits

When Can Multiple Stakeholders Be Bad For Your Project?

Big Story, Small Space: How to Cut Content and Make it Count

Interpretation in the 21st Century: How to Make Your Content Relevant and Powerful

Don’t get me wrong.  I love history.  I love science.  I could talk about Abraham Lincoln all day long, or chat with my brother endlessly about his work in paleontology.  For me, even the most “boring” and didactic museums and nature centers are a joy, as I am simply enthralled by the information.  Yes, I’ll admit it, I’m a giant nerd!

The unfortunate thing for those of us who create exhibits is that most people are not like us!  The common visitor is a lot more normal than me, a lot less nerdy, and a lot less willing to sit through boring history or science presentations.  And they certainly won’t spend much time in exhibits that don’t grab their attention, captivate, engage, and excite them.  Perhaps worst of all, the 21st century visitor is used to a world of smart phones, IMAX movies, and scores of immersive video games.  Just how can an everyday museum or nature center compete for their attention?  Is it even possible?

Don’t fret – the answer is a resounding “yes”!  Natural and cultural heritage sites offer resources both unique and invaluable, and the only hurdle to jump is how we present these resources.  We have such treasures at our sites, and it simply takes good interpretation to engage our audiences.

What is the path to “good interpretation,” especially in a 21st century world?  The answers might surprise you.  “Good” interpretation does not always require fancy equipment, expensive technology, and showy graphics.  What it requires at its core is relevant and timely content that strikes a chord with your visitors.  When you present your best content through the best methods of interpretation, your visitors will be engaged, whether it be through high-tech, low-tech, or no-tech exhibits.

What makes your content relevant?  First of all, it must be meaningful.  As Dr. Sam Ham explains, your content must connect to something already inside your visitors’ brains.  Whatever your content is – be it the North American beaver or Lincoln’s address at Gettysburg – you must connect it to something which your visitors understand and know.  A very simple example could be explaining a beaver’s size through comparisons with visitors’ dogs and cats.

But your content is still not relevant!  In addition to making it meaningful, you have to take it one step further – you have to make your content personal.  Not only do you have to relate it to something that your visitor can understand, but also to something that your visitor cares about.  If they don’t care about your content, they will never engage with your exhibits beyond the surface.  So, explain to them how Lincoln’s speech at Gettysburg not only talked about soldiers’ sacrifices, but in fact did so in a way that is still relevant for all of America’s soldiers still fighting today in the Middle East.  If you can relate your content to your visitors’ world, their times, their interests, and what they are seeing around them today, you make your exhibits personal in a way that is incredibly powerful.

Now comes that expected question: in a world of smart phones and high-tech, can exhibit experiences truly engage today’s visitors – or will they just be bored to tears?  At Taylor Studios, we have created exhibits for years, and we can truly tell you that natural and cultural heritage sites are not going extinct!  When recently gathering together a group of high school and college students to discuss planning a Los Angeles-based exhibition, I asked them the question foremost on my mind.  Does our exhibition require tons of high-tech displays and gadgets?  And even then, would we be able to compete for your interests with everything that you already have at home?  The answer surprised me, but thrilled me.  Down to the last student, they told me that they can be on their smart phones and play their video games anytime that they want, but it is a rare pleasure to visit a truly powerful interpretive exhibit.  “Quit worrying about dressing up the content in high-tech for its own sake,” they all told me, “and concentrate more on the content itself.” Through their advice, we doubled down on making the content itself relevant and personal to their own lives, and we created an exhibition that truly captivated the 21st century visitor!

What are your thoughts?  How have visitors changed in the past decades?  How can we keep them engaged?