Preparing for the Visitor: Developing the WHATS, the WHO and the WHERE
In our last blog post we looked at Phase I of what we do when working with a site on an interpretive and visitor design plan. First, Expectations are communicated so everyone is on the same page, the EID role in the project is clarified, and we all know exactly what needs to be completed. Next, we Meet with Stakeholders to Clarify the Site’s Mission & Purpose, and finally we Introduce the EID Design Process.
EID’s philosophy as Interpretive Designers and Planners is to approach a project as coaches, not consultants. Though we may have decades of experience in tourism, visitor experiences, education and interpretation, we don’t want to come across as the experts who will write the plan. Rather we want to share a methodology with the site staff and other stakeholders to help improve the visitors’ knowledge, feelings and experiences with the mission, message and place.
Our view is holistic.
Our goal is to successfully introduce and kickstart a method for visitor experiential planning and interpretive design as outlined in the book Interpretive Design and the Dance of Experience.
Our aim is to help integrate and reinforce the mission and message using Visitor Outcomes at every step of the visitor’s experience -- the approach to the site, in the parking lot, on every pathway, at every building, in every exhibit, and during workshops and events.
Using the Model-Practice-Feedback-Revise technique we want the site staff, like at Métis Crossing, to be the ones to write, review, update and own the interpretive plan.
Phase II: Planning Site Outcomes and Essences
During this phase the staff and EID focused on getting ready for the visitors by refining the site essences, developing visitor outcomes and reviewing Métis Crossing’s essence-driven natural and cultural processes. All too often a site wants to jump right to designing the activities (the HOW) before even knowing what the visitors should take away from a site visit. The focus on the Outcomes (the WHATS) and the specific site visitor (the WHO) are the “behind the scenes” work that we introduce to ensure better participation and support by the visitor.
It may not be the “fun” stuff, but it is the necessary stuff.
Essence and Outcome
During Phase II we continued to offer feedback as the Métis Crossing and Métis Nation staff clarified and refined key statements for the six major Essences chosen for Métis Crossing:
Becoming a Nation
Relations & Families
Economic Life & Entrepreneurship
Land & Water Relationships
Creative Expressions
Belief Systems
Next, we turned our attention to the Outcomes. What do you want the visitors to take home in their Head, Heart, Hands and Stomach…those Must See, Must Do, Must Learn, Must Feel, Must Taste, and Must Take Home experiences and items? The Outcomes are connected to the site mission, the natural and cultural processes, and to the Essences. Working with the Métis interpretive planner, a 12-page Outcomes Inventory with about 100 visitor Outcomes was developed that covered all 6 of the Métis Crossing Essences.
Since we were introducing a new visitor planning process to the staff, we used a Model-Practice-Feedback-Revise technique to work through the various stages in the planning and design process. We would Model a few Outcomes for an Essence and then the staff would Practice writing additional outcomes. Next, Bill and I would provide Feedback and make suggestions. Finally, the staff would Revise and create a final, or close to final, version.
It definitely took time to complete the Head, Heart, Hands and Hunger Outcomes for each of the Essences – in fact it took a couple of months. We also had to factor in a few interruptions during this phase: emergency meetings, unexpected program scheduling, staff changes, technical issues, and of course, the fact that we were introducing a new process for planning. But in the end, by using this Model-Practice-Feedback-Revise method the staff drafted a document specifically for Métis Crossing.
Here is a sample from the Outcome Inventory for the Land & Water Relationships Essence. It includes the natural and cultural processes, the key Essence Interpretive Message, and samples of Outcomes for the Head, Heart, Hands and Hunger. (Note: the numbers in the parentheses show the total number of Outcomes in each category.)
We cannot stress enough the importance of taking the time to develop Outcomes for the visitor. All too often in the interpretive design process sites move right into creating activities – which is a fun and creative process, but this needs to, and will happen, later in the process. It is more important to first develop what we want visitors to take away from a site visit, then decide which experiential interactions to use for the desired Outcome.
WHO Should We Focus On?
With the Outcomes, or WHATS, well developed, the next stage involved determining which visitor type (WHO) to focus on:
the site’s most common visitor,
a visitor type that needs a bit of attention with some new interactions,
a new visitor you want to attract,
workshop/event attendee.
The Métis Crossing staff decided to practice developing an Outcome Matrix and interactive experiences for the adult, ½ day, drop-in visitor who might stay for 2 – 4 hours and did not have much knowledge about the Métis People.
It is important to remember that different Outcomes will work better with different visitor types. There may be Outcome overlap between visitor types, but the Outcomes chosen for a full day visitor or ½ day visitor or a family or a school group or a weekend workshop will be different. Having a document like the Outcome Inventory as a tool helps the staff determine what they want the visitor to leave with given the time constraints and visitor type.
The Perfect Day
To try and make the ½ day adult visitor as concrete as possible, the staff filled out a “Perfect ½ Day Schedule” for a visit to Métis Crossing. The schedule went from visitor wake-up time and preparing for the visit, building anticipation while getting to the site, arrival at the site, exploring the site and finally returning to the car park. This provided the Métis staff with some valuable insights, plus the need to make some key decisions like:
Have we allotted adequate time for welcoming and orientation?
Is there enough time for food, socializing, bathroom breaks, gift store?
How much time do we really have for the interpretive experiences?
Which Essences are best to highlight?
What Outcomes are best to focus on for this visitor time frame?
With this completed, the staff now needed to choose an experience that was important to the Métis Culture and fit into the ½ day visitor’s time frame in order to practice designing experiential interactions that were Outcome based. In this case the staff chose the Buffalo Camp as the focus experience (WHERE).
Photo Credit: Métis Crossing/Métis Nation of Alberta, Canada
Integrating the Immersing Experience and the Invitation Station
With the Outcome Inventory and the Essences completed, and the Visitor Type and focus experience chosen, it was time to create an Outcome Matrix using the Outcome Inventory and develop experiential interpretive interactions at the Buffalo Camp. At Métis Crossing each of the experiences being developed would offer an Immersing Experience and an Invitation Station.
An Immersing Experience involves a “deep dive” into several of the universal natural and cultural processes, connects to the mission and Essences, and includes Head, Heart, Hands, and Hunger Outcomes. It is a minimum of 30-60 minutes for the drop-in visitor but could apply to a day-long program or even a weekend workshop.
An Invitation Station is a 10–20-minute sampling experience that hooks the visitor and grabs their attention while presenting one or two key processes, Essences and Head, Heart, Hands, and Hunger Outcomes related to a specific Immersing Experience. It introduces the Immersing Experience and “invites” the visitor to participate more deeply either right away or on a subsequent visit when there is more time for “deep dive” engagement.
It’s best to integrate work on the Immersing Experience and the Invitation Experience for an interpretive experience. At Métis Crossing we developed a “work in progress” outline for the Buffalo Camp Immersing Experience (see below). This big picture sense of the “deep dive” helped determine how to best “invite” the visitor into the Immersing Experience.
After reviewing the “Perfect ½ Day” schedule, along with a bit of discussion, it was decided to focus the bulk of our visitor planning time developing an Outcome Matrix for the shorter Invitation Station at the Buffalo Camp. We came to this conclusion because (1) the ½ Day Visitor will probably want to “sample” a variety of offerings, not get deeply involved in one experience, and (2) this model could be used by the staff when designing other Invitation Stations for additional Immersing Experiences at Métis Crossing.
The sample Invitation Station Outcome Matrix below was developed by the Métis interpretive planner for the Buffalo Camp. It provides information on the visitor type, primary processes, essences and outcomes for the Head, Heart, Hands and Hunger for the ½ day adult visitor. Of course, the Outcome Matrix should be reviewed on a regular basis and revised as needed depending on activity changes at the Buffalo Camp, or a shift in Essence or Natural/Cultural Processes focus.
Remember, the Invitation Station is meant to provide a sampler that entices visitors to take part in the longer Immersing Experience and to takeaway a few key remembrances of the visit. Having the staff first work on the outcomes as part of the visitor planning experience gave us all a chance to cross-check what was on paper with the Outcomes and Essence-driven natural and cultural processes. Did everything match-up or were some revisions needed?
A quick Phase II recap of the interpretive design and visitor planning process so far at Métis Crossing:
a compiled Outcome Inventory
a chosen Visitor Type
a focus experience
an outlined Immersing Experience and
a completed Invitation Station Outcome Matrix for the Buffalo Camp
The next phase is the really fun stuff – “Designing the HOW: Getting the Visitor on the Interpretive Dance Floor” by using a bit of AMORE from Interpretive Design and the Dance of Experience.
Photo Credit: Mike Mayer