So you’ve just finished construction on your brand new visitor center. Maybe you’re opening another park within your district. Perhaps you have an exhibit in need of a facelift. You’re excited about all the possibilities! It’s only natural to reach for the Pantone color swatches, or hop online and order 20 touch-screen monitors.

But it’s important to have a plan. All of these elements may be exciting, but if they’re not supporting your goals… what’s the point? An interpretive plan will ensure that all the components of your project have a purpose, and work together to tell your story. This installment in our “DIY” series will help you start crafting your own interpretive plan.

Interpretive plans bring it all together

I like to think of an interpretive plan as a cookie cutter. Let’s say you’re holding a bake sale for your local Turkey Vulture Defense League. You know that there are lots of unique aspects of turkey vultures, so you make several types of cookies: chocolate chip, sugar, and ginger snaps.

However, you want all of these diverse flavors to work together to convey your message of turkey vulture awareness. So you use a vulture-shaped cookie cutter on all the different cookies, bringing cohesion to your project.

An interpretive plan does the exact same thing for the many unique aspects of your agency. It provides a framework to unite diverse elements around one central message.

What you need to start planning

It’s tempting to open up a clean Word document and jump right in to writing your plan. Before you reach for the thesaurus, though, take a few steps to set yourself up for success.

• A team. Band together anyone who has a hand in interpretation within your agency. Outside perspectives help, too.

• Goals and objectives. Work with your team to decide what you want this exhibit, facility, or project to accomplish. Goals can describe what you want visitors to know, feel, or do. Objectives are specific measures used to evaluate whether you reached your goals.

• Your resources. Your park, museum, or zoo likely has countless treasures to showcase. It’s your job to hone in on which resources are most relevant.

Planners, start your engines!

You’ve got your planning team, your goals and objectives, and your resources. Time to start making a plan!

1. Find your central theme. What is the meaning behind your site or exhibit? What overarching story is told by your resources?

2. Build your subthemes and storylines. Your subthemes support your central theme, like chapters within a story. They provide opportunities to explore aspects of the theme in greater depth. Each subtheme has storylines—specific details that weave the story of that subtheme.

3. Consider the “5 M’s.” These are five broad factors that will influence your decisions. I like to think of them as simple questions your team must answer.

• Management: An understanding of the mission, goals, needs, and capabilities of your agency. Ask yourself: Why do we need an interpretive plan?

• Markets: An understanding of your current and future audience. Ask yourself: Who are we trying to reach with our interpretation?

• Message: A clear and compelling story to tell. Ask yourself: What do we want visitors to take away from this experience?

• Mechanics: An analysis of the opportunities and challenges presented by your site. Ask yourself: Where and when are we going to implement this plan?

• Media: A plan for the best way to deliver your messages. Ask yourself: How are we going to bring this all together? This section should take all the other sections into consideration, and outline your plan for success!

1. Type it all up. Record your efforts in a plan document! Organize it in whatever way makes sense to you and your team. You can refer back to it, make changes as needed, and use it to inform newcomers to your team.